Jargon Buster

SaaS (Software as a Service): this refers to software that's hosted in the cloud and accessed via the internet. You've probably used a few SaaS applications already. Google Docs, Salesforce, Slack, Microsoft Office 365… ring any bells?

IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service): essentially a data centre that's hosted on cloud servers instead of your own. When people talk about shifting their data to the cloud, they're usually talking about IaaS.

PaaS (Platform as a Service): a cloud service that's usually used by software engineers. It provides a ready-made platform for developers to write and test their code, without having to worry about annoying stuff like operating systems and middleware.

Public cloud: cloud services that are delivered via the public internet. There'll still be security measures in place, but you'll be sharing server infrastructure with other companies.

Private cloud: cloud services that are delivered to one business only, via a private network. This model tends to be more expensive, but it's (inherently) more secure.

Hybrid cloud: exactly what it says on the tin! Hybrid clouds use a mix of public and private infrastructures.

AWS (Amazon Web Services): Amazon's cloud offering, and one of the most notable competitors to Microsoft Azure.

Microsoft Azure: Microsoft's cloud offering. As Microsoft Partners, Azure is our preferred platform