Exams / AWS · CLF-C02 / Topic 1
1. Benefits of cloud
Domain 1: Cloud Concepts
What it is
Cloud computing is on-demand delivery of IT resources over the internet with pay-as-you-go pricing. Instead of buying and running your own data centres, you rent compute, storage and databases from a provider like AWS.
The six advantages (memorise these)
| Advantage | In one line |
|---|---|
| Trade fixed expense for variable expense | Pay only for what you use, not upfront for servers |
| Benefit from massive economies of scale | AWS's huge volume means lower prices for you |
| Stop guessing capacity | Scale up or down with demand |
| Increase speed and agility | New resources in minutes, not weeks |
| Stop spending money running data centres | Focus on your product, not racking servers |
| Go global in minutes | Deploy to Regions worldwide with a few clicks |
Deployment models
- Cloud (public): everything runs in AWS.
- On-premises (private): your own data centre, often virtualised.
- Hybrid: cloud connected to on-premises systems.
Commonly confused
- Economies of scale vs variable expense: scale = AWS's lower unit prices; variable = how you pay (no upfront).
- Stop guessing capacity vs speed and agility: capacity is about sizing; agility is about how fast you can experiment.