Today, a large proportion of companies function almost exclusively on computer networks, and in many cases, this means working with cloud technology in some form or other.
So What is Cloud Technology?
Cloud technology, AKA cloud computing, takes the onus of operation of a particular software system away from the desktop computer user and into the realm of the remote server cluster. The software and the user’s data lives on a cluster of servers at a data center, often a distributed data-center, spread over a number of locations, and can be accessed by users from virtually any computer, from virtually anywhere.
That’s it in a nutshell. To the end-user anyway.
But like most things in IT, the reality of the system itself is more complex than that. Let’s look a little deeper.
The Technology and typical usage scenarios
In recent years, the rapid advancement in computer technology has resulted in unprecedented growth and availability of high-capacity networks, advanced server virtualization, low-cost hardware, vast storage capacities, and service-oriented system architecture and software. This in turn has led to the adoption of these systems by technology companies, service providers, and enterprises in order to provide advanced services to their staff and customers, without the traditional client-side overhead of desktop software and hardware, such as security, backup, upgrades, and troubleshooting.
Cloud computing relies on the principles of shared resources and virtualization in order to provide platform cohesion, apps, and services. Cloud Software Providers build their architecture on a variety of operating systems, dominated by Linux, followed by Microsoft.
Cloud technology is often used in either the enterprise model, whereby large companies provide distributed cloud-based data and applications to their staff, and in the consumer market, where service providers provide services and applications to their customers, often on a pay-as-you-go model, such as Adobe providing their creative software as cloud-based apps, rather than as desktop applications as they’ve done in previous years.
TechPoint and Cloud Technology
TechPoint prides itself on being at the forefront of new technology, and the cloud is no exception. TechPoint have recently partnered with United Cloud and are now providers for their Cloud-based business phone system which is a fully-managed, enterprise-grade communications system with advanced features, at an affordable cost.
And TechPoint are continuously researching, testing, and reviewing other cloud-based apps and systems, so remember to keep watching our blog, Facebook, and website for more cloud products soon.