What a virtual (cloud) server is and what it is for

Special technical equipment is needed to store and process data. It is often necessary to use third-party equipment for information storage, functioning computing power and other purposes. In such cases, we are talking about a cloud server. Let's consider what a cloud server is and what its advantages are.

Virtual server: the necessary power and convenient management

A cloud server is a virtual equipment with remote management. Depending on its capabilities, customers change its functions according to their needs. As a rule, the provider offers ready-made options with fixed settings and applications. It is not uncommon for customers to customize the remote computer options for their needs.

The entire technical side of the issue is taken care of by the provider. Such a company has experience and resources for building IT systems. It has high-quality equipment. Not every customer is able to independently provide such resources for the performance of their resources or databases.

Types of cloud server services

Hypervisors

Providers provide access to machines in remote mode. In other words, the software manages to be used autonomously from the hardware. In such cases, they talk about hypervisor technology. With its help, the user regulates such computing resources:

• Memory capacity.
• Network bandwidth.
• Processor cycles and other parameters.

As for companies that provide cloud server services, the hypervisor distributes physical hardware for several virtual machines. Each such system is separate from each other. If desired or necessary, a virtual machine can be moved to other resources.

In the list of the most popular types of hypervisors are:

• Vmware.
• Citrix.
• OpenVZ.

The first two hypervisors provide full access to the physical hardware up to the installation of operating systems. The last option is deprived of such flexibility in operation, but its functionality is quite suitable for solving medium-level tasks.

Server format

VPS/VDS involves the provision of a private or, as it is also called, dedicated server. Users set the configuration themselves or use ready-made offers from the provider. In the IaaS environment, which stands for Infrastructure as a Service, tenants form a set of cloud servers, as well as change their OS, install applications, etc. through a special control panel.

At the Software as a Service (SaaS) level, there is only access to a virtual machine with pre-installed software. Platform as a Service (PaaS) provides the deployment of a full infrastructure, and in addition to this is designed for the development of their own software.

Benefits of a cloud server

A virtual machine allows you to solve issues related to technical support in a short time, without having to buy, install and configure equipment. This results in significant budget savings. To this should be added instant scaling of the configuration and remote access to resources from anywhere in the world.