Pros and cons of Virtualization in Cloud Computing

Virtualization is the creation of Virtual Version of something such as server, desktop, storage device,
operating system etc.
Thus, Virtualization is a technique which allows us to share a single physical instance of a resource or an
application among multiple customers and an organization. Virtualization often creates many virtual
resources from one physical resource.
 Host Machine –
The machine on which virtual machine is going to create is known as Host Machine.

 Guest Machine –
The virtual machines which are created on Host Machine is called Guest Machine.
Why Virtualization in Cloud Computing ?
Virtualization is very important concept in cloud computing. In cloud computing, a cloud vendor who
will provide cloud services have all physical resources like server, storage device, network device etc. and
these physical services are rented by cloud vendors so that user’s will not worry about these physical
services.

But it is very costly to provide physical services per customer on rent because firstly it becomes very
costly and also user’s will not use the fully services. So this problem can be solved by Virtualization. It is
very cool approach for not only efficient use of Physical services but also reduce costs of vendors. Thus
cloud vendor’s can vitalize their single big server and provide smaller spec server to multiple customer’s
Pros of Virtualization in Cloud Computing :
 Utilization of Hardware Efficiently –
With the help of Virtualization Hardware is Efficiently used by user as well as Cloud Service
Provider. In this the need of Physical Hardware System for the User is decreases and this results in
less costly.In Service Provider point of View, they will vitalize the Hardware using Hardware
Virtualization which decrease the Hardware requirement from Vendor side which are provided to
User is decreased. Before Virtualization, Companies and organizations have to set up their own
Server which require extra space for placing them, engineer’s to check its performance and require
extra hardware cost but with the help of Virtualization the all these limitations are removed by Cloud
vendor’s who provide Physical Services without setting up any Physical Hardware system.
 Availability increases with Virtualization –
One of the main benefit of Virtualization is that it provides advance features which allow virtual
instances to be available all the times. It also has capability to move virtual instance from one virtual
Server another Server which is very tedious and risky task in Server Based System. During migration
of Data from one server to another it ensures its safety. Also, we can access information from any
location and any time from any device.
 Disaster Recovery is efficient and easy –
With the help of virtualization Data Recovery, Backup, Duplication becomes very easy. In traditional
method , if somehow due to some disaster if Server system Damaged then the surety of Data
Recovery is very less. But with the tools of Virtualization real time data backup recovery and
mirroring become easy task and provide surety of zero percent data loss.
 Virtualization saves Energy –
Virtualization will help to save Energy because while moving from physical Servers to Virtual
Server’s, the number of Server’s decreases due to this monthly power and cooling cost decreases
which will Save Money as well. As cooling cost reduces it means carbon production by devices also
decreases which results in Fresh and pollution free environment.
 Quick and Easy Set up –
In traditional methods Setting up physical system and servers are very time-consuming. Firstly
Purchase them in bulk after that wait for shipment. When Shipment is done then wait for Setting up
and after that again spend time in installing required software etc. Which will consume very time. But
with the help of virtualization the entire process is done in very less time which results in productive
setup.
 Cloud Migration becomes easy –
Most of the companies those who already have spent a lot in the server have a doubt of Shifting to
Cloud. But it is more cost-effective to shift to cloud services because all the data that is present in
their server’s can be easily migrated into the cloud server and save something from maintenance
charge, power consumption, cooling cost, cost to Server Maintenance Engineer etc.
Cons of Virtualization :

 Data can be at Risk –

Working on virtual instances on shared resources means that our data is hosted on third party resource
which put’s our data in vulnerable condition. Any hacker can attack on our data or try to perform
unauthorized access. Without Security solution our data is in threaten situation.
 Learning New Infrastructure –
As Organization shifted from Servers to Cloud. They required skilled staff who can work with cloud
easily. Either they hire new IT staff with relevant skill or provide training on that skill which increase
the cost of company.
 High Initial Investment –
It is true that Virtualization will reduce the cost of companies but also it is truth that Cloud have high
initial investment. It provides numerous services which are not required and when unskilled
organization will try to set up in cloud they purchase unnecessary services which are not even
required to them.
cloud service provider (cloud provider)
What is a cloud service provider?
A cloud service provider, or CSP, is a company that offers components of cloud computing -- typically,
infrastructure as a service (IaaS), software as a service (SaaS) or platform as a service (PaaS).

Cloud service providers use their own data centers and compute resources to host cloud computing-
based infrastructure and platform services for customer organizations. Cloud services typically are priced
using various pay-as-you-go subscription models. Customers are charged only for resources they
consume, such as the amount of time a service is used or the storage capacity or virtual machines used.

For SaaS products, cloud service providers may host and deliver their own managed services to users.
Or they can act as a third party, hosting the app of an independent software vendor.

The most well-known cloud service platforms are Amazon Web Services ( AWS), Google Cloud (formerly
Google Cloud Platform or GCP) and Microsoft Azure.

What are the benefits and challenges of using a cloud service provider?
Using a cloud provider has benefits and challenges. Companies considering using these services should
think about how these factors would affect their priorities and risk profile, for both the present and long
term. Individual CSPs have their own strengths and weaknesses, which are worth considering.

Benefits

 Cost and flexibility. The pay-as-you-go model of cloud services enables organizations to only pay
for the resources they consume. Using a cloud service provider also eliminates the need for IT-
related capital equipment purchases. Organizations should review the details of cloud pricing
to accurately break down cloud costs.

 Scalability. Customer organizations can easily scale up or down the IT resources they use based on
business demands.

 Mobility. Resources and services purchased from a cloud service provider can be accessed from
any physical location that has a working network connection.

 Disaster recovery. Cloud computing services typically offer quick and reliable disaster recovery.

Challenges

 Hidden costs. Cloud use may incur expenses not factored into the initial return on investment analysis.
For example, unplanned data needs can force a customer to exceed contracted amounts, leading to
extra charges. To be cost-effective, companies also must factor in additional staffing needs for
monitoring and managing cloud use. Terminating use of on-premises systems also has costs, such
as writing off assets and data cleanup.

 Cloud migration. Moving data to and from the cloud can take time. Companies might not have
access to their critical data for weeks, or even months, while large amounts of data are first
transferred to the cloud.

 Cloud security. When trusting a provider with critical data, organizations risk security breaches,
compromised credentials and other substantial security risks. Also, providers may not always be
transparent about security issues and practices. Companies with specific security needs may rely
on open source cloud security tools, in addition to the provider's tools.

 Performance and outages. Outages, downtime and technical issues on the provider's end can
render necessary data and resources inaccessible during critical business events.
 Complicated contract terms. Organizations contracting cloud service providers must actively
negotiate contracts and service-level agreements (SLAs). Failure to do so can result in the provider
charging high prices for the return of data, high prices for early service termination and other
penalties.

 Vendor lock-in. High data transfer costs or use of proprietary cloud technologies that are
incompatible with competitor services can make it difficult for customers to switch CSPs. To avoid
vendor lock-in, companies should have a cloud exit strategy before signing any contracts.

Types of cloud service providers

Customers are purchasing an increasing variety of services from cloud service providers. As mentioned
above, the three most common categories of cloud-based services are IaaS, SaaS and PaaS.

 IaaS providers. In the IaaS model, the cloud service provider delivers infrastructure components that
would otherwise exist in an on-premises data center. These components include servers, storage,
networking and the virtualization layer, which the IaaS provider hosts in its own data center. CSPs
may also complement their IaaS products with services such as monitoring, automation, security, load
balancing and storage resiliency.

 SaaS providers. SaaS vendors offer a variety of business technologies, such as productivity
suites, customer relationship management software, human resources management software and data
management software, all of which the SaaS vendor hosts and provides over the internet. Many
traditional software vendors sell cloud-based versions of their on-premises software products. Some
SaaS vendors will contract a third-party cloud provider, while other vendors -- usually larger
companies -- will host their own cloud services.

 PaaS providers. The third type of cloud service provider, PaaS vendors, offers cloud infrastructure
and services that users can access to perform various functions. PaaS products are commonly used
in software development. In comparison to an IaaS provider, PaaS providers will add more of the
application stack, such as operating systems and middleware, to the underlying infrastructure.

Cloud providers are also categorized by whether they deliver public cloud, private cloud or hybrid
cloud services.

Understand
the similarities and differences between the public cloud, private cloud and hybrid cloud models.
Common characteristics and services
In general, cloud service providers make their offerings available as an on-demand, self-provisioning
purchase. Customers can pay for the cloud-based services on a subscription basis -- for example, under
a monthly or quarterly billing structure.

Some cloud service providers differentiate themselves by tailoring their offerings to a vertical market's
requirements. Their cloud-based services might deliver industry-specific functionality and tools or help
users meet certain regulatory requirements. For instance, several healthcare cloud products let
healthcare providers store, maintain, optimize and back up personal health information. Industry-specific
cloud offerings encourage organizations to use multiple cloud service providers.

Amazon and Microsoft lead the cloud infrastructure market. See how the market share breaks out among the top five
providers.
Major cloud service providers and offerings
The cloud services market has a range of providers, but AWS, Microsoft and Google are the established
leaders in the public cloud market.

Amazon was the first major cloud provider, with the 2006 offering of Amazon Simple Storage Service. Since
then, the growing cloud market has seen rapid development of Amazon's cloud platform, as well as
Microsoft's Azure platform and Google Cloud. These three vendors continue to jockey for the lead on a
variety of cloud fronts. The vendors are developing cloud-based services around emerging technologies,
such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, containerization and Kubernetes.

Other major cloud service providers in the market include the following:

 Adobe

 Akamai Technologies

 Alibaba Cloud

 Apple

 Box

 Citrix

 DigitalOcean

 IBM Cloud

 Joyent

 Oracle Cloud

 Rackspace Cloud

 Salesforce

How to choose a cloud service provider

Organizations evaluating potential cloud partners should consider the following factors:

 Cost. The cost is usually based on a per-use utility model, but all subscription details and provider-
specific variations must be reviewed. Cost is often considered one of the main reasons to adopt a
cloud service platform.

 Tools and features. An overall assessment of a provider's features, including data management and
security features, is important to ensure it meets current and future IT needs.
 Physical location of the servers. Server location may be an important factor for sensitive data,
which must meet data storage regulations.

 Reliability. Reliability is crucial if customers' data must be accessible. For example, a typical cloud
storage provider's SLA specifies precise levels of service -- such as 99.9% uptime -- and the recourse
or compensation the user is entitled to should the provider fail to deliver the service as described.
However, it's important to understand the fine print in SLAs, because some providers discount
outages of less than 10 minutes, which may be too long for some businesses.

 Security. Cloud security should top the list of cloud service provider
considerations. Organizations such as the Cloud Security Alliance offer certification to cloud providers
that meet its criteria.

 Business strategy. An organization's business requirements should align with the offerings and
technical capabilities of a potential cloud provider to meet both current and long-term enterprise
goals.