Since the concept of Remote Hosting is relatively new to most companies, we believe it’s important to understand the various forms of Remote Hosting Service available. The following describes the most common applications for today’s businesses.
Software as a Service (SaaS)
This is the most popular form of hosted services. The software is built by a service provider while the end users can configure it to suit their needs. End users, however, cannot change or modify the software. Mozy, Carbonite, and SalesForce are examples of SaaS. Mozy and Carbonite are basically backup services that offer the software to help people backup their data. Thus, you can use the service without actually having to code or buy the software. Just pay a monthly or annual fee to use the service.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
The key aspects of IT infrastructure, hardware, facilities, and administration have traditionally been the domain of IT departments within each company. Dedicated personnel install and configure servers, routers, firewalls, and other devices in support of their respective employers. This equipment requires dedicated housing as well as environmental controls, emergency power, and security systems to keep it functioning properly. Finally, every company allocates additional space where IT personnel work to support the infrastructure that is in place.
Every aspect of IT infrastructure has evolved on its own, yet, until now, has not moved toward integration. For example, a company purchases software it needs and then purchases a server to run it. If data storage is necessary for files or databases, disk arrays and hard drives are added into the mix to accommodate the needs of the company. A local area network is maintained to provide employees access to IT resources, and high speed internet connectivity for voice and data is added to the company account as necessary. Practically speaking, each IT system has its own management system, with some systems requiring the addition of a specialized worker to the staff.
Infrastructure as a Service removes the traditional components of IT infrastructure, takes them off site, and offers them in one unified, scalable package to companies who can manage them through one management interface. Infrastructure as a Service results in IT services that easily conform to the changing requirements of a business. Because the infrastructure does not reside on the premises, obsolete equipment, upgrades, and retrofits no longer play a role in the company’s decision to adopt new technology: the IaaS provider takes care of that seamlessly, allowing the business to focus on its mission.
Cost effectiveness augments the convenience of IaaS. Because the IaaS provider has massive platforms segmented for each customer, the economies of scale are enormous, providing significant cost savings through efficiency. The need for every company to maintain its own infrastructure is eliminated through IaaS.
The power of IaaS brings the resources needed to service government and enterprise contracts to businesses of every size. IaaS improves reliability because service providers have specialized workers that ensure nearly constant up-time and state-of-the-art security measures.
Platform as a Service (PaaS)
Offers a platform to clients for different purposes. For example, the Windows AZURE offers a platform to developers to build, test, and host applications that can be accessed by the end users. The end-users may or may not know that the application is being remotely hosted. As mentioned earlier, the storage space for user data may be increased or decreased per the requirement of the applications. As with the SaaS, you do not need to build the platform. You just pay a nominal fee for using the service.
Failover as a Service (FaaS)
This may be a service unique in its application to Xogenous. Many companies perform this service but, because we are local to Northern Nevada, this service is extended to include design, setup, and management at your local facility for an affordable cost. In the SaaS model, you simply access remotely hosted software. In the IaaS model, your existing data center or one that you anticipate building, is relocated and accessed through the Internet. The PaaS example uses a remote location to perform testing and development prior to releasing products to production. In the FaaS model, a virtual duplicate of your existing data center’s full or partial functionality is replicated to a remote location. This remotely accessible service would kick in almost immediately should your in-house facility fail, data is lost, files are corrupted, etc.