Expression Cloud infrastructure is used to describe the components necessary for the operation of services cloud computing, This includes hardware, virtualized resources, storage and network resources.
Just as to make a wall we need bricks and cement, to provide cloud services we need the following components
Virtualization technology is used to extract resources from one or more physical computers and combine them to make them available to cloud services. Automation software and management tools allocate those resources and provide new environments so users can access what they need, when they need it.
In some cases, the phrase Cloud Infrastructure is used to refer to a complete cloud computing system, once all the pieces are put together and working. In other words, it describes the technologies that, once combined, serve as the basis for operating in a cloud environment. The one in charge of making everything work in harmony that the result is greater than the sum of the parts is the operating system.
Components of the cloud infrastructure
Cloud infrastructure is the The result of the combination of several components, each one integrated with the others in a single architecture that supports cloud operations. A typical solution can be made up of four types of components; hardware, virtualization, storage and networking.
Hardware
Although as users we only make contact with the virtual components, for the clouds to work, physical equipment is still necessary to serve as a base. This hardware includes network equipment such as switches, routers, firewalls and load balancers, storage arrays, backup devices, and servers.
Clouds work from the combination of different types of hardware that may not be physically close nor operated by the same people. Through the use of virtualization technology they work as if they were one since they take care of obtaining and allocating the resources that each user needs.
Virtualization tools
Through virtualization technologies, a tool called a hypervisor gets the resources from the different servers and combines them in such a way that the user has a similar experience to what you would have if you were working with a certain combination of hardware and operating system on a physical device.
Storage
When we store our data in services such as Google Drive or Dropbox We do not know where the data is physically stored and if when we retrieve it we do it from the same place. Our only concern is not to exceed the storage space we have allocated.
From the physical point of view, our photos may be stored on a disk located in a Bombay data center and the copies in Madrid, OR the doctoral thesis we are writing may be stored in Hong Kong and the other in Ciudad from Panama. Virtualization technology makes it seem to us that everything is saved as if it were on our own disk
Industrial
Connections between computers in a cloud infrastructure can be physical or virtual.
The physical network is made up of actual cables, switches, routers, and other equipment. Virtual networks are built on top of these physical resources.
A typical cloud network configuration is made up of multiple subnets, each with different levels of visibility. The cloud enables the creation of virtual local area networks (VLANs) and assigns static and / or dynamic addresses as needed for all network resources. The limits of virtual networks do not necessarily have to coincide with those of a physical network.
The concept of cloud architecture
According to the needs of the users, different combinations of the components of a cloud infrastructure can be chosen. Each of the ways in which the individual component technologies are integrated is called a cloud architecture.
Returning to the example of the construction industry, the infrastructure is the materials to make the wall. The architecture the instructions on where to orient it and what measures it should have.
Links to the rest of the articles in the series
Prehistory of cloud computing.
History of cloud computing.
Cloud types. Characteristics of the public cloud.
Characteristics of the private cloud.
Hybrid cloud features.
Characteristics of multiple clouds.
List of cloud services (Part One).
List of cloud services (Part Two).