SaaS, PaaS, IaaS and more: ☁️ Compare cloud service models

Cloud service models use many short names that can be confusing.

There’s a lot to learn when getting started with cloud computing. This article describes some of the popular cloud service models that are widely used and essential for aspiring cloud architects.

The three cloud service models PaaS, SaaS, and IaaS are the most important, so we’ll start with them.

PaaS

PaaS stands for Platform as a Service.

Here, we provide a complete platform for cloud providers to use. Using a complete platform means that the provider handles all of the underlying infrastructure. For example, it manages servers and virtual machines, and provides several predefined tools that you can use to build applications.

The benefits of using PaaS are:

• Accelerate development and delivery
• Create/deploy applications on the fly
• Easy to upgrade
• Provides backup, recovery and data security
• Easily accessible from multiple locations (and by multiple teams)

Example – Google Cloud’s App Engine .

Why not build your own PaaS?

It sounds very exciting, but the good news is that you can create a mini-PaaS to suit your needs.

SaaS

SaaS stands for Software as a Service.

This means that cloud providers offer complete software, such as servers, databases, and application code, in the form of a service.

For example, Gmail lets you exchange emails without worrying about what’s happening in the background. Just enter your email and your email will be delivered to the places or people you want it to be delivered to. You don’t worry about how the platform works, what the security concerns are, what happens if the server goes down, where your emails are stored, etc.

This architecture is called Software as a Service because the service provider provides complete software or applications in the form of a service.

Some advantages:

• On-demand service
• independent platform
• no need to install anything
• Vendor-managed resources
• Available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year

Example – Freshdesk as a help desk and self-service solution.

IaaS

IaaS stands for Infrastructure as a Service.

The definition of infrastructure as a service means that only the infrastructure is provided to you and everything else is placed and used as you wish. IaaS provides computing architecture and infrastructure apart from data storage, virtualization servers, and networking.

Let me explain with an analogy.

For example, let’s say you rent a house. Now let’s say the owner gives you a house and tells you to use it as you like and pay the rent. So you are paying the owner of the house, but when you enter the house, you realize that there is only a bed and a table. Apart from that, you need to install your kitchen appliances and set up your home the way you want to use it. Then you can use the house. Basically, you’re setting up your infrastructure.

The important features of IaaS are listed below.

• dynamically scalable
• Rental / License / Pay-as-you-go system
• several levels of service
• 100% resource availability
• Easy GUI or CLI-based access

Previous – Vultr, Kamatera , AWS, GCP

APIaaS

API as a Service is used to manage your own custom APIs and allow your applications to connect to third-party APIs such as Google Maps, voice search APIs, etc.

It is also used to generate documentation that describes all of the API’s features and working with the API. You can share with your team using that API or a third-party API.

API services allow applications to communicate with functionality stored in the backend.

Examples – Maps, Aviation, SERPs

Oh S

AaaS stands for Analytics as a Service.

We offer our analytics software on a subscription-based model in the cloud. It has become an important option for companies to avoid upfront new capital costs and easily adopt new business process requirements.

You can use AaaS for predictive analytics, data analytics, and business analytics to find insights and trends in your data. In this era of big data, AaaS is a savior. Clean, analyze, and store insights from big data in a scalable and cost-effective way.

Original – Zoho Analytics

BaaS

BaaS stands for Backend as a Service. It handles all the backend services for an application, allowing developers to focus solely on creating and maintaining the frontend side of the application. It provides backend services such as database management, user authentication, cloud storage, hosting on the cloud, and push notifications.

Take amazon.com for example, it is one of the most popular e-commerce websites around the world. Users may see a friendly website or app, but there’s a lot going on on the backend. BaaS helps Amazon with storage, user management, payment gateways, recommendation systems, push notifications to users of the latest offers, and many other backend functions.

Example – Managed Database by DigitalOcean

Data as a Service

Data as a Service (also known as DaaS) is a service model that provides pre-aggregated and calculated data. This provides better insight and enables better business decisions. Utilizing the cloud, we provide network-based data storage, data integration data processing, and data analysis services.

Features:

• Reduced setup time
• abstract complexity
• minimal downtime
• Automatically managed services/tools
• cost effective

Example – MongoDB

DBaaS

DBaaS stands for Database as a Service.

DBaaS is managed by public and private cloud providers. Provide database functionality as a service to internal/external customers. With Database as a Service, application developers do not rely on database administrators to manage the database.

Benefits of using DBaaS.

• Reduce operational costs
• Easier to deploy and manage
• Supporting businesses of all sizes
• Pay only for what you use
• Automate database operations
• Set up clustering in minutes
• High availability across regions

Examples – Scalegrid for MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis, MongoDB

dozen

DaaS stands for Desktop as a Service.

Virtual desktops are hosted on any device from anywhere via the cloud. It offers a subscription-based model and is multi-tenant. We provide services in all regions, improving data security and increasing remote productivity.

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) has many similarities to DaaS. The difference between the two is that DaaS infrastructure is hosted on the cloud, while VDI infrastructure is mostly located on-premises.

Example – V2 Cloud

FaaS

FaaS stands for Function as a Service.

This helps eliminate server complexity and provides a serverless architecture. You can focus on your business logic and don’t have to worry about code development because the service provider handles all the background work for you.

AWS Lambda is an example of FaaS developed by Amazon. Azure and GCP also support FaaS through Azure capabilities and Google Cloud capabilities.

Some advantages:

• Removes complexity and provides abstraction
• Billed based on usage only
• Accelerate development
• easily expandable
• Provisioning time (ms)

Former Cloudflare worker

SECaaS

SECaaS stands for Security as a Service.

With cloud-based security, your application or infrastructure is protected by a cloud-based security provider (CSBP). A simple example of Security as a Service is antivirus software provided by organizations such as Avast, Norton, and McAfee.

Other security services such as anti-malware, firewalls, penetration testing, intrusion detection, authentication, spam filtering, and identity and access management (IAM) are part of SECaaS.

Example – SUCURI for Web Application Firewall

XaaS

Anything as a Service (XaaS) refers to a cloud service model in which different types of services, including products, applications, technologies, games, tools, etc., are delivered to users’ devices via the cloud rather than on-premises. This is an umbrella term that covers everything a vendor offers to users on the cloud to enable remote access.

XaaS has transformed modern business and is now used to deliver a wide range of IT services and resources. Examples of XaaS include SaaS, PaaS, IaaS, CaaS, DaaS, DBaaS, CaaS, etc. The XaaS model is applied across multiple industries, from IT, banking, and finance to healthcare, manufacturing, and education.

Benefits of XaaS include:

• Unlike traditional systems, companies can use XaaS to buy exactly what they need from vendors and pay for the resources they use. This significantly reduces expenses and increases return on investment (ROI).
• IT companies can use XaaS to effectively streamline operations and free up resources and capacity for innovation.
• XaaS helps businesses become more agile and easily implement digital transformation.
• With XaaS, modern businesses can easily adapt to rapidly changing market demands with related applications and solutions and enjoy the flexibility to scale up or down based on their requirements.

conclusion

These were the important cloud service models that are often encountered when using cloud solutions. Go ahead and try any of the above cloud service models using any one cloud service provider (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud) to get a feel for it.

If you’re new to cloud computing, check out these courses to learn.