IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) is a cloud computing model that provides users with access to fundamental computing resources over the Internet without the need to purchase and manage physical hardware.
IaaS is a model in which a provider offers virtualized computer resources as a service. The client gets access to virtual infrastructure components that are physically located in the supplier’s data centers, but are logically perceived as their own computing resources. The key difference between IaaS and traditional hosting is flexibility, scalability, and a payment model for the actual use of resources.
In the IaaS model, the distribution of responsibility between the provider and the client is as follows:
The provider is responsible for:
- Physical hardware (servers, networks, storage systems)
- The basic infrastructure of the data center (power supply, cooling, security)
- Virtualization environment and allocation of virtual resources
- Physical security and fault tolerance
- Service availability according to SLA
The client is responsible for:
- Operating systems
- Application software
- Security at the virtual machine and application level
- Processing and storage of user data
- Backup of your data (unless a separate service is ordered)
The advantages of IaaS are cost efficiency, flexible scalability of resources, high fault tolerance and fast deployment of requested services.