Application Platform as a Service

Application Platform as a Service or a PaaS is better known as Platform as a Service or PaaS and refers to a cloud computing model similar to Software as a Service or SaaS and Infrastructure as a Service of IaaS. This technology provides end-users with operating systems, hardware, network equipments and storage facilities that are required over the cloud so that they can launch new applications and run existing ones.

Products like Google App Engine offer Application Platform and VM Force as a Service. This helps to make the technical aspects of producing and installing applications much easier since it is simple to maintain; it is also resilient to faults and scalable.

This makes PaaS very advantageous for end-users. The operating system may be improved and frequently upgraded and development staff that is distributed geographically can collaborate on projects through a cloud.

SaaS, aPaaS, and IaaS – key differences

The application platform lies between software as a service (SaaS) and (IaaS) infrastructure as a service.

• aPaaS, just like IaaS, includes infrastructure – data center storage, servers, network, ISP, etc. – and also the OS (operating systems), DBMS (database management system), analytics, and development tools.
• SaaS is a software that is almost always available online, and can be easily accessed through subscriptions. SaaS can be updated without any impact on active users. Netflix, Amazon Prime and Spotify are examples of SaaS and so are Salesforce and Office 365.
• SaaS may or may not be built on top of aPaaS, but this is less of a requirement than a necessity.

The ideology underlying the application platform is the inclusion of the operating system, required hardware, network capacity, and storage. Users can, thus, log on from anywhere, by using a range of devices to build, test and use applications. Not to mention, there can be some minute or considerable differences depending on the company’s wishes and the specific cloud solution offered.

If the apps are both scalable and intuitive for tab or mobile, users can perform tasks from any place in the world, provided they can connect to the worldwide web. This not only makes aPaas time-saving but also genuinely efficient. Further, it truly embarks the digital journey by deploying the technological possibilities of traditional connectivity.

Private vs public cloud vs APaaS

When a broad picture of the same is viewed, APaaS could be seen using the capabilities of the cloud. The most common PaaS type is either public or private -

When an organization opts for private cloud, it (organization) means to own the infra for its exclusive use. Private clouds are built for a single company, one of the main reasons why they are so capital intensive. Private clouds also lack the so-called economic advantage and involve huge costs upfront. With the economic factor removed, private clouds are still the ideal solution for some companies who want to leverage all the other advantages of cloud computing.

Public clouds, on the other hand is rendered not over a private infra but over a public model that keeps it open for public use. Services like Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, and Google clouds are the best example of public clouds. As long as expenditure is involved public clouds can help save some bucks but the open nature of this service is really a cause of concern to some administrators, who believe their data could get compromised if hosted in a public cloud model.

ApaaS in the Future

One of the most interesting characteristic of aPaaS is that you can do a number of other things that weren’t originally imagined with it.

Much has changed since the first application platform was launched in the year 2005. Innovation has driven new technologies, steered by new discoveries that have empowered cloud to the core.