Cloud Models

Question 1

What is cloud computing?

Answer 1

A model that allows applications and services to be hosted remotely at cloud providers. Providing on-demand access to effectively unlimited CPU, storage and network resources from anywhere in the world

Question 2

What is a major advantage of cloud deployment compared to a traditional physical data center?

Answer 2

Cloud deployment can be done in moments by pressing a button. Traditional data centers required purchasing hardware, waiting for delivery, racking, installing OS and applications and connecting to a network

Question 3

What does it mean that cloud computing is elastic?

Answer 3

Resources can be scaled up when demand increases and scaled back down when demand decreases. You only pay for what you use rather than maintaining fixed infrastructure

Question 4

What is a public cloud?

Answer 4

A cloud infrastructure provided by third-party providers such as Microsoft, Amazon or Rackspace. Accessible publicly from anywhere on the internet

Question 5

What is a private cloud?

Answer 5

A cloud infrastructure built and operated in an organization’s own private data center. The organization purchases all equipment but retains full control of all data and applications

Question 6

What is a hybrid cloud?

Answer 6

A combination of both public and private cloud. An organization might run internal private apps on a private cloud while using a public cloud for internet-facing deployment and access

Question 7

What is a community cloud?

Answer 7

A shared cloud infrastructure built and used by a group of organizations with similar needs. Allows smaller organizations to share cloud benefits without each bearing the full cost of their own private cloud

Question 8

What are the four cloud deployment models?

Answer 8

Public cloud, private cloud, hybrid cloud and community cloud

Question 9

What is Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)?

Answer 9

A cloud model where the provider supplies hardware (CPU, storage, network) and the customer is responsible for installing and maintaining the OS, applications and data. Also called Hardware as a Service (HaaS)

Question 10

What is another name for IaaS?

Answer 10

Hardware as a Service (HaaS)

Question 11

What is Software as a Service (SaaS)?

Answer 11

A cloud model where the provider manages everything from hardware through application. The customer simply logs in with a username and password and uses the application

Question 12

What are two examples of Software as a Service?

Answer 12

Google Mail (Gmail) and Microsoft 365. Users simply log in and use the application without managing any infrastructure

Question 13

What is Platform as a Service (PaaS)?

Answer 13

A cloud model where the provider manages the hardware and OS platform while the customer is responsible for building and deploying their own applications on top of that platform

Question 14

What is a real-world example of a PaaS provider?

Answer 14

Salesforce.com. Which offers both a SaaS product for end users and a PaaS development platform where developers can build custom applications

Question 15

In IaaS who is responsible for the operating system?

Answer 15

The customer. The provider supplies the hardware and data center but the customer installs, maintains, patches and secures the OS

Question 16

In SaaS who is responsible for application updates?

Answer 16

The cloud service provider. The customer has no responsibility for application maintenance, updates or infrastructure

Question 17

In PaaS who is responsible for writing the application?

Answer 17

The customer. The provider manages the platform and OS but the customer builds and maintains their own application on top of it

Question 18

What does a cloud provider responsibility matrix show?

Answer 18

A breakdown of which parts of the service are managed by the cloud provider and which parts are the customer’s responsibility. Varies by deployment model (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS)

Question 19

In a fully on-premises deployment who is responsible for everything?

Answer 19

The customer. They are responsible for physical hardware, network, OS, applications, data and security with no cloud provider involvement

Question 20

What are the customer responsibilities in a SaaS deployment?

Answer 20

Providing identity and directory infrastructure for authentication, managing user accounts within the platform and providing end-user devices to connect to the service

Question 21

What does the cloud provider typically supply in an IaaS deployment?

Answer 21

The physical data center, network connectivity and the underlying hardware (CPU and storage). The customer handles everything above that layer

Question 22

Why is SaaS considered the lowest management overhead cloud model for the customer?

Answer 22

The provider manages all infrastructure from the physical data center up through the application. The customer only needs to log in and use the service

Question 23

Why is IaaS considered higher management overhead than SaaS?

Answer 23

The customer must install, configure, patch and secure the OS, manage applications and maintain security. The provider only supplies the underlying hardware and data center

Question 24

What financial advantage does cloud computing offer over traditional data center ownership?

Answer 24

No large upfront capital expenditure. You pay over time based on usage rather than purchasing and maintaining physical infrastructure

Question 25

True or False: Cloud computing is simply a server hosted somewhere else with no additional advantages.

Answer 25

False. Cloud computing provides extensive functionality including on-demand scaling, global deployment, pay-as-you-go pricing and instant provisioning

Question 26

True or False: A public cloud can only be accessed from within a corporate network.

Answer 26

False. Public clouds are accessible from anywhere on the internet

Question 27

True or False: A private cloud is hosted by a third-party provider like Amazon or Microsoft.

Answer 27

False. A private cloud is built and operated in the organization's own data center under their full control

Question 28

True or False: In a hybrid cloud model an organization uses both public and private cloud simultaneously.

Answer 28

True. Hybrid cloud combines private cloud for internal apps and public cloud for internet-facing services

Question 29

True or False: A community cloud allows multiple organizations to share infrastructure to reduce individual costs.

Answer 29

True. It lets smaller organizations access cloud benefits without each bearing the full cost of a private cloud

Question 30

True or False: In IaaS the cloud provider is responsible for maintaining the customer's operating system.

Answer 30

False. In IaaS the customer is responsible for installing and maintaining the OS. The provider only supplies the hardware

Question 31

True or False: IaaS is also known as Hardware as a Service (HaaS).

Answer 31

True

Question 32

True or False: In SaaS the customer must manage application updates and patches.

Answer 32

False. In SaaS the cloud provider handles all application updates, patches and maintenance

Question 33

True or False: Platform as a Service requires the customer to build their own application.

Answer 33

True. The provider manages the platform and OS but the customer is responsible for writing and deploying the application

Question 34

True or False: Google Mail and Microsoft 365 are examples of IaaS.

Answer 34

False. Google Mail and Microsoft 365 are examples of SaaS. The user simply logs in and uses the application

Question 35

True or False: With cloud computing you must pay for maximum capacity at all times regardless of actual usage.

Answer 35

False. Cloud computing allows you to scale resources up and down paying only for what you use

Question 36

True or False: Salesforce.com offers only a SaaS product and has no PaaS offering.

Answer 36

False. Salesforce.com offers both a SaaS product for end users and a PaaS development platform for building custom applications

Question 37

True or False: In a fully on-premises deployment the customer is responsible for everything including physical hardware.

Answer 37

True. On-premises means the organization owns and manages all layers of the infrastructure

Question 38

True or False: SaaS requires a large development team to write and maintain the application.

Answer 38

False. In SaaS the application is written and maintained by the provider. No development team is needed on the customer side

Question 39

Scenario: A startup wants to rent server capacity without managing physical hardware but will install their own OS and apps. Which model?

Answer 39

IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service). The provider supplies the hardware and data center. The customer manages everything above that including the OS and applications

Question 40

Scenario: A small business wants email and office tools for employees without building infrastructure or hiring developers. Which model?

Answer 40

SaaS (Software as a Service). Employees simply log in and use the application with no infrastructure management required

Question 41

Scenario: A dev team wants to build a custom application without managing servers or operating systems. Which model?

Answer 41

PaaS (Platform as a Service). The provider manages the platform and OS. The team focuses entirely on writing and deploying their application

Question 42

Scenario: A hospital needs to run sensitive patient data internally but also wants public cloud for external services. Which model?

Answer 42

Hybrid cloud. Sensitive applications run on a private cloud under their control while public cloud handles external-facing services

Question 43

Scenario: Five small government agencies want to share a cloud infrastructure to reduce costs but avoid public cloud. What model?

Answer 43

Community cloud. Multiple organizations share a cloud infrastructure reducing individual cost while maintaining more control than a public cloud

Question 44

Scenario: A retailer needs much more server capacity for three holiday months but minimal capacity the rest of the year. How does cloud help?

Answer 44

Cloud elasticity. They spin up additional instances for the holiday period and remove them afterward paying only for what they use

Question 45

Scenario: A small IT team cannot handle OS patching and application maintenance. IaaS or SaaS - which is more appropriate?

Answer 45

SaaS. The provider manages all infrastructure, OS and application maintenance leaving the IT team with minimal management responsibilities

Question 46

Scenario: A company moves from on-premises to IaaS. What responsibilities shift to the provider?

Answer 46

The provider takes over the physical data center, network connectivity and hardware (CPU and storage). The customer retains responsibility for OS, applications, data and security