What Are the Different Cloud Service Models?
Several different ones exist, with new ones always being created. The fundamentals of the “as a service” movement include: IaaS, SaaS, PaaS, and FaaS.
IaaS (Information/Infrastructure as a Service)
IaaS can refer to either Information or Infrastructure as a Service. IaaS companies provide businesses with virtual networking infrastructure. Clients no longer need to invest in physical networking, data centers, and other networking resources that companies now provide virtually.
Popular IaaS providers include Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and the Google Cloud Platform.
SaaS (Software as a Service)
SaaS is subscription-based software. Before SaaS, purchasing software was a physical experience. Companies would order licenses and install them with physical CD-ROMS. You owned the physical disk copy and it was yours forever. This also meant you had to purchase new CD-ROMs every time an upgrade was published if you wanted the newest features.
Adobe transformed software forever when it decided to offer Photoshop (and its other flagship applications) as a cloud service.
Today, SaaS is the default model for software, with virtually every company selling their software through the subscription model.
PaaS (Platform as a Service)
PaaS provides a cloud platform where businesses can create or deploy software. PaaS solutions are marketed as all-in-one solutions, without the need for third-party functionality or additions.
WordPress is a popular example of PaaS, where businesses can deploy websites and mobile apps, or a code editor where you can code and run programs on the editor itself.
FaaS (Functions as a Service)
FaaS is not as well known, but many companies do rely on FaaS features. Some companies can even be built around FaaS.
FaaS service providers offer singular functionality services rather than a whole platform or software.
Amazon AWS is a well-known example of an FaaS provider, as you can purchase specific service subscriptions for server management, DevOps, code deployment, storage, and much, much more.