Simon FosterIn Cloud Computing there are a lot of terms that end aas or As a Service. Most of these I hadn’t heard of until I started writing this list.
Any service that is delivered over the internet instead of hosted locally on your network or PC could in theory be described as an As a Service.
PaaS Platform As a Service
This is one of the big ones. Microsoft Azure provides a Platform as a Service which I am familiar with. Platform as a Service is where a provider provides a platform where you can build apps or websites.
SaaS Software As a Service
Another popular one. Software as a Service can be as simple as a website that runs a service that a customer wants to use, I work for a company that provides a SaaS product.
IaaS Infrastructure As a Service
The last of the big ones. A good example of IaaS is a Virtual Machine which can either be hosted on a server somewhere (a private cloud) or on the internet via a company such as Azure (public cloud) The Pizza as a Service diagram illustrates the differences between Saas, PaaS and Iaas.
NaaS Network As a Service
This is just a type of IaaS that specializes in providing networking. Anything that provides network connectivity could be included in this category.
CaaS Communications As a Service
Another subtype of IaaS this time specializing in communications, this could include Voice over IP or other similar technologies.
MONaaS Monitoring As a Service
If you have a SaaS, PaaS or IaaS you will most likely want to monitor that it is working, I certainly do. This is something that is often included in your IaaS or PaaS package. Azure has various tools for monitoring and this could be included in this category.
BaaS Backup As a Service
With the growth of cloud storage and the decrease in its cost, backing up to the cloud is a very attractive option. Any service that allows you to backup and restore from the internet can be included in this category. Your provider needs to manage your backups for it to be truly BaaS rather than just another place to store your files.
DaaS Desktop As a Service
This is where your desktop is visualized and stored in the cloud. I know very little about this as I have never used it, but I would imagine you need a strong internet connection for it to work reliably.
DBaaS Database As a Service
This is a simple one if your database is stored in the cloud like Azure SQL Database then it fits into this category. If you run your own sql server install on a VM then it doesn’t fit in this category as you are still managing it yourself and is IaaS
HaaS Hardware As a Service
HaaS this is another subcategory of IaaS which concentrates on hardware.
IDaaS Identity As a Service
This is where the management of who you are is managed in the cloud. Single Sign-On could be achieved if a website redirected determining if you are who you say you are to a particular IDaaS. Azure Active Directory is an example of this.
SaaS Storage As a Service
You get the idea now, storing files on a remote cloud product is an example of Storage as a Service. DropBox or OneDrive are good examples of this.
FoaaS F Off As a Service
.NetRocks mentioned this a few weeks ago and is a joke As a Service. http://foaas.herokuapp.com/ The idea is that you can use this service to tell people to F off.
Writing this blog post has given me a better understanding of all the aaS that are out there. I am sure I haven’t explained some of these very well and no doubt missed some off.
