What’s with all the *aaS? – SaaS, IaaS, PaaS

August Ground School: SaaS, IaaS, PaaS – What’s with all the *aaS?

What is with all the *aaS? This is not misspelled, and we are not talking about a donkey or your rear end. We are talking about the three most popular types of cloud service offerings. These are also referred to as cloud computing service models.

Before we dive into the different types of aaS’s, let us understand what aaS even means. AaS stands for “as a Service.” In simple terms, aaS refers to IT (Information Technology) being delivered to you remotely through the Cloud. There is generally little capital expenditure, and you could scale it to suit your needs. Commonly, you will control it through a web interface or web browser.

Here are some of the top benefits of using the as-a-service model:

• Cost-effective
• Quick configuration and launch
• Automatic updates
• Easily accessible
• Scalable

Now let us dive into some of the different channels of aaS. On the Wikipedia website, they identified 28 different aaS’s, but we are going to focus on the three you are most likely to come across when running a delivery business. These include Infrastructure, Platform, and Software as a service. IBM defines each of these three types as:

1. SaaS (Software as a Service) – On-demand, cloud-hosted application software.
2. IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) – On-demand access to cloud-hosted physical and virtual servers, storage, and networking. It is the backend IT infrastructure for running applications and workloads in the cloud.
3. PaaS (Platform as a Service) – On-demand cloud-hosted platform for developing, running, maintaining, and managing applications.

SaaS (Software as a Service)

Back in the day when you needed new software, you would go to the store to buy it and then install it onto your computer. You would pay a larger up-front cost and utilize the product without updates. With SaaS, you generally pay for a subscription, rather than purchasing it outright. If you have ever used Microsoft Office 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox, QuickBooks Online, or even Netflix, you have used Software as a Service. The traditional software era will eventually come to an end, and the SaaS industry is going to continue to grow. Many of the modules that Advantage Route Systems offer are SaaS. There are many advantages to this business model, including access to the program from any device or web browser, fewer up-front expenses, and your software automatically stays up to date with each release.

IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service)

You can think of IaaS as the original aaS offering. Some examples of IaaS are the main cloud providers, including Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and more. These businesses host, manage, and maintain hardware in their data centers. IaaS customers pay for a subscription to use the hardware via an internet connection. Customers utilize a dashboard where they can configure and operate this service. A huge benefit is not having to invest in expensive hardware and pay the ongoing maintenance costs to keep it running optimally. If you use Mango Cloud to backup and store your data, you are utilizing IaaS.

PaaS (Platform as a Service)

If you are a software developer building an application, this is a channel you would use. It allows you to focus on the creation of your application without having to worry about managing the operating system, software updates, or any other infrastructural requirements. You can think of it as having a canvas in the form of a platform where you can create your own application using the internet. You also have the flexibility to collaborate with other developers all on the same platform. Some advantages of PaaS are the ability to develop and deploy programs cost-effectively, reduction of required coding, and easy customization.

It is important to familiarize yourself with all different types of *aaS. ???? In addition to the technical world, IaaS and SaaS are already found in your daily lives. Knowledge is power, and knowing and understanding the different resources available will help you thrive not only in your business but personally too.

https://www.ibm.com/topics/iaas-paas-saas

As a service – 1. SaaS (Software as a Service) – On-demand, cloud-hosted application software.Wikipedia