[Ashly Jackson]

Clouds deliver the added benefits of self-service access, automated infrastructure scaling, and dynamic resource pools, which most clearly distinguish it from traditional virtualization. In short, virtualization creates simulated versions of a machine’s software or hardware components, while cloud computing is a model that enables users to access a shared pool of resources conveniently. Virtualization can be part of the cloud, but cloud computing itself is an entire infrastructure built around supporting online access to applications, services, and data. As long as a provider is enabling access to resources, compute power, and/or applications through an online pathway, they’re using cloud computing. In a nutshell, virtualization is a technology that uses software to create virtual versions of a machine’s software and hardware components. Clouds are IT environments that utilize virtualization and then make those software and hardware components accessible on-demand. Simply put, the difference between on-premise vs cloud software is the location. On-premise software is installed and runs on a company’s own hardware infrastructure, and is hosted locally, whereas cloud software is stored and managed on the provider’s servers, and accessed through a web browser or other interface. It can be defined as the centralized storage of a distributed virtualized environment where a wide range of remote servers allow computer services and resources to be accessed online. A private cloud, however, is single-tenant. A private cloud is a cloud service offered only to one organization. A Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) is a private cloud within a public cloud. No one else will share the VPC with her VPC customers. – Cloud computing separates applications from the hardware, while virtualization separates the operating system from the underlying hardware. -Cloud computing provides services for web-based access, and virtualization provides services for data access through virtualized Internet connections. On desktop systems, all software updates are applied individually to each computer, so some older programs or versions may be in use. In contrast, cloud-based systems are updated centrally, so everyone has the latest version.