What is Cloud?
#1 · Level 0 · Getting started · Cloud basicsConcept
Section titled “Concept”Cloud means renting computing resources over the internet from another company’s large data centers, instead of buying your own servers. Servers, storage, databases and networks are all available as services. You can start them within moments when you need them, and you usually pay only for what you use (pay-as-you-go). Buying, installing and repairing the hardware is the cloud provider’s responsibility. AWS is one such cloud provider, and you can combine many of its services to build a complete system.
Simple example
Section titled “Simple example”Instead of buying your own generator for your home, you take a line from the electricity office. At the end of the month you pay only for the electricity you used. There is no generator to repair or refuel.
Why it’s needed
Section titled “Why it’s needed”Buying a server takes a lot of money and time, and it also needs space, power and maintenance. In the cloud you can start a server in a few minutes, and turn it off when you no longer need it.
Where it’s used
Section titled “Where it’s used”Running websites, storing files, mobile app backends, data analysis, AI — almost all software today runs on some cloud. AWS, Azure and Google Cloud are the largest cloud companies.
Azure equivalent
Section titled “Azure equivalent”Microsoft Azure
Related
Section titled “Related”Region · Availability Zone (AZ)
Learn more
Section titled “Learn more”For details and the latest information, see the official documentation: