Tech Trends in Practice

TREND 7Cloud and Edge Computing

The One-Sentence Definition

Cloud computing means storing and processing data on other people’s computers (e.g. data centers) via a network (e.g. the internet), which gives companies the ability to store massive amounts of data and process it in nearly real time. Edge computing refers to the processing of data on devices such as smart phones (which are getting more powerful and therefore no longer need to outsource processing to the cloud).

What Are Cloud and Edge Computing?

To put it in the simplest terms, the cloud is “other people’s computers.” With the rise of cloud service providers such as Amazon, Google, and Microsoft, it’s no longer necessary or even desirable to host all of your vital IT infrastructure within your organization’s digital walls.

Moving operations to the cloud means you cut down on the overheads needed to maintain and operate all of your systems, software, and data. Cloud providers host all of the tools for you, allowing you to access them wherever and whenever you need to. Not only does this mean you take advantage of their expertise at maintaining and updating tools, you also benefit from their world-class security and support facilities. You also get access to the huge amount of computing power and storage resources that cloud service providers have at their disposal – the amount of computing resource at your disposal can be scaled up or down, as demand for your own service changes.

Of course, the providers themselves ...