
Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is a type of cloud computing service that offers essential compute, storage, and networking resources on demand, on a pay-as-you-go basis.
Migrating your organization’s infrastructure to an IaaS solution helps you reduce maintenance of on-premises data centers, save money on hardware costs, and gain real-time business insights.
IaaS solutions give you the flexibility to scale your IT resources up and down with demand. They also help you quickly provision new applications and increase the reliability of your underlying infrastructure.
IaaS lets you bypass the cost and complexity of buying and managing physical servers and datacenter infrastructure. Each resource is offered as a separate service component, and you only pay for a particular resource for as long as you need it. A cloud computing service provider like Azure manages the infrastructure, while you purchase, install, configure, and manage your own software—including operating systems, middleware, and applications.
IaaS means a cloud service provider manages the infrastructure for you—the actual servers, network, virtualization, and data storage—through an internet connection.
The user has access through an API or dashboard, and essentially rents the infrastructure. The user manages things like the operating system, apps, and middleware while the provider takes care of any hardware, networking, hard drives, data storage, and servers; and has the responsibility of taking care of outages, repairs, and hardware issues. This is the typical deployment model of cloud storage providers.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is a form of cloud computing that delivers essential compute, storage, and networking resources on demand, over the internet, allowing businesses to scale and manage their IT infrastructure flexibly and efficiently.
IaaS provides a virtualized environment where companies can build and manage their applications without the expense and complexity of maintaining physical hardware.
IaaS is one of the core cloud service models, alongside Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS). Unlike traditional IT infrastructure, where companies have to invest heavily in hardware, data centers, and management, IaaS providers supply resources in a pay-as-you-go model. This means businesses only pay for what they use, reducing costs and making it easier to handle fluctuating workloads.
Key Components of IaaS
- Compute: IaaS providers offer virtual machines (VMs) or bare metal servers, which allow organizations to run operating systems and applications. Companies can select the number of virtual CPUs, memory size, and storage capacity required. The flexibility to scale up or down depending on demand makes IaaS ideal for dynamic workloads.
- Storage: IaaS includes scalable storage solutions such as block storage, object storage, and file storage. These options allow businesses to store data securely and access it efficiently. Object storage, for instance, is used for unstructured data like images and videos, while block storage is suitable for databases and file systems.
- Networking: Networking resources include virtual private networks (VPNs), load balancers, and firewalls. IaaS providers ensure secure and optimized connectivity, making it possible for users to connect to their virtual resources securely and efficiently.
- Security and Compliance: Most IaaS providers offer robust security measures, such as encryption, threat detection, and compliance with industry standards. However, the shared responsibility model applies, meaning the provider secures the infrastructure, but the user is responsible for securing data and applications.
Benefits of IaaS
- Cost Savings: IaaS eliminates the need for significant upfront investments in hardware and the ongoing costs of managing on-premises infrastructure. Businesses pay for what they use, making costs predictable and manageable.
- Scalability: Companies can scale their resources up or down based on demand. This flexibility is crucial for handling high-traffic periods, such as e-commerce events, or scaling down during quieter times to save money.
- Improved Business Agility: IaaS enables rapid deployment of infrastructure. Businesses can experiment and innovate faster, as they are not constrained by long procurement cycles or hardware limitations.
- Disaster Recovery and Backup: IaaS solutions provide robust disaster recovery options, reducing the complexity and cost of setting up a secondary data center. Businesses can also back up data securely across geographically dispersed locations.
- Global Reach: Most IaaS providers have data centers worldwide, allowing businesses to deploy applications closer to their users for better performance and lower latency.
Use Cases of IaaS
- Development and Testing: IaaS allows developers to set up and dismantle testing environments quickly. This accelerates development cycles and ensures resources are available when needed.
- Big Data Analytics: Companies dealing with large datasets can use IaaS to process and analyze data without needing expensive infrastructure.
- Website Hosting: IaaS can host websites and applications, providing the necessary compute and storage resources to handle web traffic efficiently.
- Backup and Storage: Organizations use IaaS for storing backup data securely and ensuring easy recovery in case of data loss.
Popular IaaS Providers
Major IaaS providers include Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), and IBM Cloud. Each offers a wide range of services and pricing models tailored to various business needs.