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As massive tech companies grow increasingly dependent on computer systems to develop and deploy their products, the switch to cloud computing from traditional computing becomes inevitable. This is not only due to the financial advantages that come with this switch, but also the wide range of facilitations that it can bring to massive workflows. In a nutshell, cloud computing constitutes relying on computer resources available on the internet, rather than having them present in the immediate physical location. These resources mainly include data storage and computing power, but can also comprise of other things like virtual machines, containerization services, and neural networks (AI).
How Cloud Computing Stands Out
Although cloud computing is currently mainly being used by bigger companies and institutions, more and more solutions are emerging that target average individuals. These solutions are recognized for their great affordability as well as their user-friendliness and ease of setting up. It is therefore unsurprising to see hordes of non-institutional entities rushing into cloud computing in search of an easier and more portable workflow.
When it comes to traditional computing, one must remain tethered to a certain set of restrictions. These can be due to limitations imposed by the immediately available hardware resources, as well as their lack of portability and diversity. They may also present long-term risks like hardware failure that may sometimes cause irreversible damage or even risk suffering a cyberattack like ransomware.
All of these obstacles can be mitigated simply by switching to cloud computing. The client can easily access a dynamically manageable scale of resources from anywhere and at any time, tailored specifically to their immediate needs. All that is required is a reliable internet connection in order to connect with the cloud, and they’re ready to go. This also eliminates the need to worry about hardware repairs and protection against software exploits, as most cloud providers guarantee immunity against such issues and boast best-in-class data encryption.
Virtual Machines vs. Containerization
A specifically interesting technology is that of virtual machines, or VMs for short. Virtual machines comprise reserving resources into what seems like a different machine (guest) running within the main operating system (host). They can also be found in the cloud where they are accessed on-demand. This can allow, for example, a Windows user to emulate a Linux machine right on their computer with ease. This offers some advantages like the ability to test software on different platforms and operating systems without needing a separate setup for each.
Virtual Machines come at a cost, however. While they are great at providing a diverse field for work, they do require vast amounts of resources reserved solely for them which can sometimes be inefficient and expensive. As long as a virtual machine is running, any hardware resources allocated to it are rendered inaccessible by other software, even if these resources aren’t currently in use by this VM.
In 2008, the Linux kernel introduced a new feature called “Control Groups.” It was essentially used to manage processes more efficiently using containers. The concept of containerization is somewhat similar to that of virtual machines, but it does exhibit some key differences mainly in resource management. The software mainly used for this purpose is called Kubernetes and was originally developed by Google.
The Future of Kubernetes and Containerization
Containerization is famous for its superior resource management when compared to virtual machines. It effectively allows shared resource allocation between containers, while also being more lightweight and providing somewhat similar functionality. It can be said that containerization gathers the best of both worlds.
In fact, it is so efficient that it can be used to bundle software across different operating systems. The same piece of software could be run across multiple platforms in a sort of mini-VM, effectively reducing bugs and production efforts. This can be helpful for software developers as it eliminates the need for them to repeatedly test their products across these different platforms.
Similar to cloud computing, containerization is also being increasingly sought after by average individuals and massive companies alike. Nobody wants to miss on its practicality, especially with services like a Helm repository that can make it even easier to leverage Kubernetes. When combined with the power of cloud computing, the result can be a truly revolutionary solution for anyone who uses it.
Conclusion
As the tech world keeps exponentially advancing, new methods must be developed in order to keep up. Only two decades ago, anything could have been done with just a few kilobytes of RAM. Today, we require millions of times more RAM than that for the simplest of tasks. The tech industry is the fastest evolving ever and indicates promising potential. With the emergence of breakthrough technologies like cloud computing, virtual machines, and containerization, we can be hopeful of a future where we will be able to do magnificent things with our personal devices.