Running head: Cloud Computing and its Future. Fernandez 1. Cloud Computing and its Future

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1 Fernandez 1 Cloud Computing and its Future

2 Fernandez 2 Aarika Fernandez University of North Texas LTEC Assignment 5 Abstract This paper will discuss cloud computing and how used today it is being referred to as the future. This paper will explain what working in the cloud means and how it is developing in the personal and business world. How using this technology a glimpse of the future is present and soon this technology will take over the tech world if it has not already. The benefits for this technology are great; however, with like any new shiny toy there are bugs and kinks to work out. This paper will not only explain the benefits of cloud computing but will also discuss cloud issues with security and what is being done. History of the Cloud The idea of cloud computing first came in the sixties from the mind of a man by the name of J.C.R. Licklider. Licklider is responsible for enabling the development of ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) in 1969 (Mohamed, 2009). His vision of his had everyone globally interconnected and able to access not only data but also programs from any site, anywhere. This explains what now called cloud computing. However, this was all a theory until the nineties when the internet speed finally were capable of mass cloud computing. Still it had its limitations. [T]he first

3 Fernandez 3 milestones in cloud computing history was the arrival of Slesforce.com in 1999, which pioneered the concept of delivering enterprise applications via a simple website (Mohamed, 2009). Another milestone came in 2006 when amazon launched Elastic Compute cloud (EC2) as a commercial web service that would allow companies and individuals to use computers to run their own computer applications (Mohamed, 2009). However, it was not until recently that cloud computing became a term heard and known throughout the public. In 2009, Google released Google apps; this allowed the public to easy accesses documents from anywhere, anytime (Mohamed, 2009). What is Cloud Computing? Cloud computing is a centralized means of storing and accessing data and programs over the internet, rather than by the computer s hard drive (Griffith, 2015). This means that cloud computing has nothing to do with the physical hard drive or solid-state drive of your computer. Local storage is accesses programs and files directly from the computer. This is how the computer industry functioned for decades; some would argue it s still superior to cloud computing (Griffith, 2015). This means data and programs can be accessed only when on a certain network, or directly connected to each other. To be considered a cloud the ability to access data and programs from over the internet is needed. This cloud computing is defined as a type of computing that relies on sharing computing resources rather than having local servers or personal devices to handle applications (Beal, 2015). The cloud is a paraphrase for the internet. Another comparison some have made to cloud computing is another term called grid computing, a type of computing where unused processing cycles of all computers in a network are harnesses to solve problems too intensive for any stand-alone machine (Beal, 2015). How cloud computing works?

4 Fernandez 4 It takes a network of large groups of servers with connections that are specialized to spread data processing across that network (Beal, 2015). To explain this infrastructure clearly it is helpful to divide the system into two parts, the front end and the back end (Strickland, 2008). The front-end side is the client side of the system; this includes what the computer user sees. The back end is what is called the cloud section (Strickland, 2008). The back end has various computers, servers and data storage devices that make up the cloud computing services. This system runs on a set of rules called protocols and uses a special kind of software called middleware (Strickland, 2008). The middleware is used in order for the computers to communicate with each other throughout the networks. This large IT infrastructure is usually combined with virtualization techniques in order to maximize the power of the cloud computing (Beal, 2015). When servers do not run at full capacity a lot of unused processing power is wasted, so in order to harness this power server virtualization is used. This fools a physical server into thinking it s actually multiple servers, each running its own independent operating system (Strickland, 2008). By using virtualization, we can maximize the output of an individual server and reduce the need for physical machines. The front end of the system includes either the client s computer or a single computer network, as well as the application to access the cloud computing system (Strickland, 2008). Some cloud computing systems can even exist in web browsers like internet explorer, chrome, or Firefox. These can include things such as web-based programs like Office 365 for Microsoft. Benefits in Business, Education, and Private Use Since the utilization of applications and cloud services, the use in business, education and private use has grown. The main benefit many find are reduced IT cost. When moving to a cloud computing system the amount of physical hardware needed, managed, and maintained are greatly reduced. The cost of system upgrades, new hardware, and software can be included in a cloud contract therefore eliminating future cost. Expert staff can be reduced to just a couple to maintain the cloud

5 Fernandez 5 (Strickland, 2008). Not only business but also smaller companies and school districts can benefit from as well these benefits. Big business can take comfort in knowing that their data is stored off site. This protects their information from things such as natural disasters, power failures, and other crisis that could cause them to lose precious data. In addition, another benefit is the ability to access data from anywhere at any time. This not only allows the freedom of employees to work where they feel more productive but also allows them to continue to conduct business in usually downtimes and therefore reduce loss of productivity. This mass sharing of data on the cloud also helps make collaboration more effective in business and education settings. Today in the classroom, many students work on school from the comfort of their couches with their laptops on their lap. For the most part most students may live in different parts of the state or even country, and still they have to collaborate with each other as if in the same classroom. Cloud computing helps make sharing ideas and files easier and makes collaborating with these students across the country a breeze. This is also a great way for people in their personal lives to share photos, and other data information with each other from anywhere at any time, as long as they have access to the internet they can then have access to each other s files. In business, as well the IT department finds cloud computing a simple solution for things such as software updates and installations. Rather than going to each individual station and installing a program, through cloud computing it is easy to manage and install multiple software in multiple locations (Benefits of Cloud Computing, 2015). These benefits are just a few that can be experienced from all walks of life, whether it be business as usual, education for learning and collaborating, or private sharing between family and friends. Security in the Cloud Although cloud computing is the future it is still having issues with adapting to this fast pace ever changing world that is network security. Constantly there is more and more people ready to break down the security of well-established networks and the cloud computing is still young and still has work

6 Fernandez 6 to do in order to completely secure the network from threats such as a standalone server would. Data breaches are number one of top threats that cloud computing faces today (Samson, 2013). CSA pointed to a research paper from last November describing how a virtual machine could use sidechannel timing information to extract private cryptographic keys in use by other [virtual machines] on the same server (Samson, 2013). Since this technology is still very new and undefined it is easy for a cloud service database to be designed with flaws that could lead to malicious hacker attacks. The way to prevent this data lost is the measures you put in place to mitigate one can exacerbate the other (Samson, 2013). Another defense for this loss of data is to be sure to use complex credentials and to protect those credentials from being stolen. The Future of Cloud Computing As time goes on the future for cloud computing looks bright and continues to grow. Below are just a few predictions of what the cloud computing will use. First real prediction for the cloud service is the possibility for more applications to be available on the cloud (Menegaz, 2014). Since more and more applications are being specifically built for the cloud, many predict that by the year 2016 over a quarter of all apps will be available over the cloud. Increase in the cloud market will continue to grow; one example is Gartner also suggested that the worldwide software as a service (SaaS) Market would grow at an astounding yearly growth rate of 20.2 percent! (Menegaz, 2014). More hybrid cloud adoption will be presented by This allows for a mix of cloud and local host systems. Simply put, it would be very difficult, if at all possible, to move everything wholesale to the cloud because of the complexity of today s environment (Menegaz, 2014).

7 Fernandez 7 These are just a few predictions to look forward to seeing the cloud continue to grow and explain in all aspects of the business, education, and personal world.

8 References Fernandez 8 Beal, V. (2014, June 1). Cloud Computing Explained. Retrieved from webopedia: Beal, V. (2015). Cloud Computing (The Cloud). Retrieved from webopedia: Benefits of Cloud Computing. (2015, April 23). Retrieved from Business and industry portal: Griffith, E. (2015, April 17). What is Cloud Computing? Retrieved from PC: Menegaz, G. (2014, May 22). The future of cloud comptuing: 5 predictions. Retrieved from Thoughts On Cloud: Mohamed, A. (2009, March). A history of cloud computing. Retrieved from ComputerWeekly.com: Samson, T. (2013, Febuary 25). 9 top threats to cloud computing security. Retrieved from Info World: Strickland, J. (2008, April 08). How Cloud Computing Works. Retrieved from how stuff works:

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