Cloud Computing brings best in breed technologies mesh to provide high availability, durability and capacity with minimum time frame. In simple words your traditional data center (DC) would have flew down from on-premise to somewhere with big giants Cloud Service Providers DC like GCP (Google Cloud Platform), AWS (Amazon Web Services), Azure, IBM, Salesforce etc.

Why Should You Learn Cloud Computing?

As i mentioned above, Cloud Computing is growing faster than ever and creating lot of high paying jobs. The reason behind its popularity is its Pay As You Use model.

All cloud services are running on “Pay As You Use” model. You only pay for the services till you are using and can increase/decrease the usage capacity in few hours only. The Cloud Computing takes away hassle of procurement of servers, software’s & resources. It also removes the need of building, managing & maintenance of Data centres that is why most of the organizations are adopting cloud computing these days.

As more organizations will move to cloud, more cloud related jobs or opportunities will arise. So, it is imperative to learn cloud computing technology so that you can make use of it in your IT career. The added advantage of learning cloud is that you can bring value to your organization and its clients.

Prerequisites to Learn Cloud Computing

Today I will brief you about the skills needed to learn cloud and build promising career in it. Cloud can add value to your CV/Resume. Every IT professional need to have some familiarity with cloud. It has become an essential part of Information Technology. We as Digital Users are leveraging cloud Technology every day in our life. The most common example is social media, mails, music, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, News etc. Everything where data is stored in huge size is using cloud technology in the background.

Cloud Computing services falls into three categories:

• Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS),
• Platform as a Service (PaaS)
• Software as a Service (SaaS).

Although this article is very much applicable to all three categories for learning standpoint but primarily we will talk and refer about IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service) model. Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is a form of cloud computing that provides virtualized compute resources over the internet following pay per use model.

As in earlier days Data center had multiple roles and responsibilities, similarly in cloud you can get similar technology, roles and career. If you belongs to IT Infrastructure services, then you  can pursue your career in IaaS cloud computing.

One can learn cloud as a beginner even if you have very basic skills in computers, prior experience in IT is an added advantage.

To begin with cloud there are three-important area to cover:

• Virtualization concepts
• Networking in virtual environment
• Operating systems (Linux & Windows)

Virtualization

It is important to understand how virtualized environment operates. In cloud context, virtual machines lie over and above hypervisor layer. Multiple VM’s shared same physical hardware and all the network equipment but are isolated or virtually separated from the other client machines using hypervisor technology. Virtualization means every type of application or workload which needed physical machines in past now can run by using shared resources across many clients. For more information refer to

Networking

The most important aspect of cloud is to understand cloud networking. It is very difficult section in cloud, and even those with some robust skills, typically require time to fully understand it.

Operating System (Linux & Windows)

Hands on experience on Linux and Windows is with excellent command lines skills is must before begin journey in cloud computing. One must begin with above three concepts to enter cloud computing.

How to Start Learning Cloud Computing?

The very first thing you need to do is, you need to decide the cloud service provider for which you want to learn and pursue distinct roles. There are many Cloud service providers in the market. You can choose any of them but it’s always wise to choose from top 3 service providers. Currently, Amazon is top cloud service provider in the market followed by Microsoft. Below are the names of some popular cloud service providers.

1. Amazon Web Services (AWS)
2. Microsoft Azure
3. IBM Cloud
4. Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
5. Salesforce

Once you have chosen the right cloud service provider then you should focus on the distinct domains. For example, if you had prior experience in networks you can choose to become Cloud Network Architect role and start focusing on CSP network services. If you are a system administrator then you can pursue Cloud System Administrator role. Below is the list of some cloud computing roles.

You can choose any roles given below as per your choice and are of interest. It would be an added advantage if you choose a domain in which you have some knowledge. The Distinct Technical roles which you can pursue in cloud are given below.

• Cloud Operations Engineer
• Cloud System Administrator
• Cloud Solution Architect
• Cloud Technical Architect
• Cloud Network Architect
• Cloud Security Architect
• Cloud Sales Consultant

I have explained the responsibilities and job profile of each and every role in below points.

• Cloud Operation Engineer – You should have at least 3 years of experience in this role. You need to ensure management of daily operations like adding Virtual machine (VM) to the cloud stack, installing software’s on the VM’s, monitoring cloud usage, controlling access to cloud environment, Identify and Access management for cloud.

• Cloud System Administrator – This job profile is similar to the system administrator job in legacy environment. Here, you need to take care of your cloud deployments and administration.  In cloud context security is shared responsibility however the systems security is client accountability. This role is mainly focus on hardening the Operating system and maintaining it. This will cover antivirus installation, policy control and overall protection services offered by cloud service provider. Strong Linux command line skills are needed.

• Cloud Solution Architect – You should have more than 6 years of experience to pursue a cloud solution architect role. The Cloud Solution Architect roles means to understand client requirement and propose possible design for the cloud IaaS. This comprise of servers, Data storage strategy, location, region, monitoring, security, Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity solution. Cloud SA may need to design a Hosting solution for some website or Data analytics, Data warehousing, Graphics processing solution. The responsibility of cloud SA is to understand all services provided by the Cloud Service Provider (CSP) so that he can design a suitable solution considering all services and their relative cost.

• Cloud Technical Architect – You should be on senior role or at least 7 years of experience to work as cloud Technical Architect. The Technical Architect role is to create the proposed design by the cloud Solution Architect. The responsibility of the Architect is to manage all technical queries in creating the entire cloud stack. Expert in shell, Perl, python compiled code language will be an added advantage. You must have expert level knowledge of Linux and windows operating system. This role demands knowledge of all fields including Networks, Infrastructure, Servers and settings, Identify and Access management. The Architect need to fix any issue which comes under configuring access, or security settings, Roles distribution etc. The hands-on experience on all services provided by CSP is mandatory for this role.

• Cloud Network Architect– The Network Architect need to configure Virtual Private Network(VPC), load balancing in cloud, manage ports, Incoming and outgoing connections, Tunnelling, Internet to cloud connection etc. Deep understanding of TCP/IP, Subnetting, DNS, DHCP, NAT and routing, strong knowledge of layer 2 network protocols, Good knowledge of IP routing, scripting abilities Perl or Shell. CCNA or CCNP preferred certification. The Network Architect need to design, create and maintain any network related issues.

• Cloud Security Architect –The role is most crucial and important in cloud environment considering the fact you can access cloud from anywhere anytime and its security need to be designed by Cloud Security Architect. The data security at rest and in transit, encryptions and descriptions, to avoid data loss and exposure. Good understanding of Internet and hosting from network layer up through the application layer, monitoring tools, clustering and internet security. The cloud security policies, governance, risk assessment, Multi-factor authentication and Authorization. Read attached article if you want to understand the basics of Cloud Security and Data Protection.

• Cloud Sales Consultant – Must be a business administration preferable MBA, Client facing roles, excellent communication skills, building strategic partnership at the C-level. Google knowledge of market leader in cloud in terms of services and costing. Love travel jobs.

Study Materials

There are lot of study materials available on internet to start with. Many portals have free courses that you can register to learn cloud computing. You can also buy a cloud related course on Udemy or Coursera. I have given specific training courses for each cloud providers in below links. You can access as per your choice to learn different cloud courses like AWS, Azure, GCP etc. You can also get practice papers as well if you are preparing for AWS or Azure certifications.

Online Training Courses for Top Cloud Service Providers:

• AWS Certified Solution Architect – Online Training Courses
• Architecting with Google Cloud Platform
• Architecting Microsoft Azure Solutions
• Hands on Google Cloud Platform (GCP) – Cloud Architect

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Read More:

• Is Presales a Good Career Opportunity in IT Industry?
• Top 5 Cloud Service Provider Accreditations and Third Party Auditor Reports
• Understanding Cloud Computing
• Understanding Cloud Security and Data Protection

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Here I am going to answer all these questions and explaining about Cloud Security in this context.

Is your data secure in Cloud environment?

Yes, your data will be secured in cloud environment if you can design security solution/configurations leveraging public cloud providers features and third-party tools efficiently.

The amount of security configuration work you must do will varies, depending on what kind of cloud services you select and how sensitive your data is.

Security in Cloud creates a shared responsibility model between the customer and Cloud Service Provider (CSP). CSPs are responsible for securing the infrastructure (hardware, software, networks, and facilities of their Data center) that supports the cloud and you will be responsible for anything you put on the cloud or connect to the cloud (Data, Operating System, softwares, tools, License, Access, Credentials, authentication, encryption etc.)

Is your data in Cloud Hackable?

No, cloud systems are not hackable in terms of technology, hardware and network services provided by cloud provider. However, if security configurations are not done accurately by the user then loopholes in security may lead vulnerability in your cloud environment.

Can your data be disclosed by the Cloud Service Provider?

Your content/data will not be disclosed unless service provider required to do so to comply with the law of the country or a valid and binding order of a governmental or regulatory body. Unless prohibited from doing so or there is clear indication of illegal conduct about the use of CSP’s products or services. CSP notifies customers before disclosing customer content so they can seek protection from disclosure.

To understand all above and similar security related concerns you should first understand Cloud Security. Let’s discuss what is cloud security and how many domains we need to take care from cloud security point of view.

What is Cloud Security?

As every second your information/data travel through cloud and from different locations, networks and regions. We need to ensure it is not leaked in process of transmission from one place to other. Typically, all firms are well verse about physical and technical security of their On-premise data center. Similarly, cloud services and Infrastructure need to be secured to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of your or your client data.

In Cloud context, security is a shared responsibility between the Cloud Service Provider (CSP) and its users/customers. CSPs take care of physical and logical security of its underlying hardware until Hypervisor layer. However, anything above Operating System is Client responsibility because customer owns the data and service provider has no access to it. Although it also varies in each model of Cloud Computing for some services.

Cloud Security is all about leveraging security features and tools to design and build a secure cloud environment to protect the privacy and integrity of cloud customers and their data. Cloud Security is blend of technologies and policies designed to adhere and regulate compliance rules and protect information, data applications and infrastructure associated with Cloud Computing use.

Cloud Security Categories

From cloud security perspective, below are the cloud security domains or categories that needs to be considered while building cloud environment.

1. Physical Security
2. Network security
3. System Security
4. Application Security
5. Data Security
6. Identity and Access management
7. Encryptions
8. Security operations

Each ownership for each type of security in cloud varies in each model of Cloud. You can see who is responsible for  what in each cloud model in below image.

1. Physical Security- is the protection of hardware, software, networks and data from physical actions and events that could cause serious loss or damage to an enterprise, agency or institution. CSPs are responsible to take care of this security.
2. Network Security – Includes data security in transit to and from the public cloud provider. It means designing and building network configuration and its elements allowing a secure access to cloud resources from your on-premise Data centers, Office, Internet etc. This security is shared responsibility between CSPs & Customer.
3. System Security- This capability covers operating system hardening, protection and policy control. The host security at PaaS and SaaS Level are transferred to CSP.
4. Application Security – It’s a shared responsibility in cloud context to protect the application running over the cloud. Based on type of cloud model application security is managed, for e.g in SaaS cloud provider will manage the security of the application. While at the PaaS level platform security will be managed by CSP and deployed application will be customer responsibility.
5. Data Security – Data security capability includes securing data in transit and at rest it to avoid data loss and exposure.
6. Identity and Access management- This capability evolves around authentication, verification and authorization of cloud resources.
7. Encryptions – As all communications between regions is across public Internet infrastructure; therefore, appropriate encryption methods should be used to protect sensitive data.
8. Security operations- Governance and strategic direction on security policies, risk assessment and its maintenance.

Choose Cloud Service Provider considering Data Security, Information Security and Quality Assurance?

Its depends on data and its criticality in terms of sensitivity, availability & durability requirement. For choosing most reliable cloud service provider we must consider CSP’s accreditations, security certifications and third party audit assessment reports. All major cloud service provider share their policies accreditation on data privacy, security, durability, availability information on their respective portals under valid Non-disclosure agreement. These certifications are global and can be achieved through periodic rigorous external audit accredited certification bodies based on NIST (National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual) global standards.

Some of the Most popular Cloud Service Provider Accreditations and Certification for cloud computing compliance and security are given in attached article. Read it to understand Cloud Accreditations and Certification that will finally help you to choose right Cloud Service Provider.

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Reference Links: Azure , AWS  ,Google ,IBM

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Compliance Program provided by Cloud Services Providers

Cloud Service providers ensure robust controls to secure their infrastructure, to protect client data. As virtual systems build over the cloud Infrastructure need also to be secured and it comes with shared responsibility and compliance. Cloud Data center environment comes with audit friendly features and standards to ensure client satisfaction about their data security. The IT infrastructure that CSP provides to its customers is designed and managed in orientation with security best practices and a variety of IT security standards due to economies of scale, including but not limited to the following:

AWS (Amazon) Security Certifications /Accreditation 

• Cloud Computing Compliance Controls Catalogue (C5)
• FedRAMP Partner Package
• Global Financial Services Regulatory Principles IRAP Package
• ISO 27001:2013 Certification and Statement of Applicability (SoA)
• ISO 27017:2015 Certification and Statement of Applicability (SoA)
• ISO 27018:2014 Certification and Statement of Applicability (SoA)
• ISO 9001:2015 Certification
• MAS TRM Guidelines Workbook
• PCI DSS Attestation of Compliance (AOC) and Responsibility Summary
• PSN Connection Compliance Certificate (CoCo)
• PSN Service Provision Compliance Certificate
• Quality Management System Overview
• Service Organization Controls (SOC) 1 Report
• Service Organization Controls (SOC) 2 Report
• Service Organization Controls (SOC) 3 Report
• SOC Continued Operations

 Microsoft Azure Security and Compliance Certifications / Accreditation 

• ISO 27001, FedRAMP, SOC 1 and SOC 2.
• The Content Delivery and Security Association (CDSA)
• Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS)
• The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) Cloud Controls Matrix (CCM) CSACCM
• EU Model Clause
• FDA 21 CFR Part 11(The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Code of Federal
• Regulations (CFR) Title 21 Part 11)
• FedRAMP(Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP)
• The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
• FIPS 140-2. Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) Publication 140-2
• The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
• IRAP (Australian Government Information Security Registered Assessors Program)
• ISO/IEC 27001/27002:2013
• Multi-Level Protection Scheme (MLPS) is based on the Chinese state standard issued by the Ministry of Public Security
• Multi-Tier Cloud Security Standard for Singapore (MTCS SS),
• Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards (DSS) version 3.0
• TCS CCCPPF Trusted Cloud Service certification developed by the China Cloud Computing Promotion and Policy Forum (CCCPPF)
• UK G-Cloud. 

Google Security and Compliance Certifications / Accreditation

• SSAE16 / ISAE 3402 Type II:
• SOC 1
• SOC 2
• SOC 3 public audit report
• ISO 27017, Cloud Security
• ISO 27018, Cloud Privacy
• FedRAMP ATO for Google App Engine
• PCI DSS v3.2
• HIPAA
• CSA STAR
• MTCS Tier 3 Certification (Singapore)
• Google Cloud Platform and the EU Data Protection Directive 

IBM Security and Compliance Certifications / Accreditation

• FedRAMP
• FISMA
• FFIEC
• SOC Reports
• ISO 27001
• ISO 27017
• ISO 27018
• Cloud Security Alliance
• PCI Compliance
• HIPAA
• HITRUST Assessment
• GSMA (DAL09, PAR01)
• CJIS Standards
• EU Model Clauses
• Privacy Shield
• IBM ISO Management System Certifications

Related Read:

• What is Cloud Computing?
• Understanding Cloud Security & Data Protection in Cloud

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Reference Links: Azure , AWS  ,Google ,IBM

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Cloud Computing

Cloud Computing atmosphere is all about getting compute for e.g. (Storage, Software, Platform, CPU, RAM, Processor, network, Cluster etc.) using Internet anywhere, anytime and in any size. Cloud provides unlimited compute services with pay as per use model. Cloud bring best in breed technologies mesh to provide high availability, high durability and high capacity with minimum time frame, in simple words your traditional data center (DC) would have flew down from on-premise to somewhere with big giants Cloud Service Providers DC like Google, AWS, Azure etc.

Benefits of Cloud Computing

There are many benefits of Cloud Computing. It is a big shift from the traditional way businesses think about IT resources.

1. Time -Most cloud computing services are provided on demand, so even vast amounts of computing resources can be provisioned in minutes, certainly with just a few mouse clicks, giving businesses a lot of flexibility and taking the pressure off capacity planning
2. Cost – Cloud Computing removes the investment expense of procurement of hardware and software and setting up and running onsite datacenters—the racks of servers, 24/7 electricity for power and cooling, the IT experts for managing the infrastructure, Hardware maintenance, Physical security etc.
3. Scalability -The benefits of cloud computing services include the ability to scale elastically. In cloud speak, that means delivering the right amount of IT resources—for example, computing power, storage, bandwidth—right when it’s needed and from the right geographic location.
4. Productivity-On-site data centers typically requires high maintenance, technology upgrade and heavy investment as it need lot of “racking and stacking”—hardware setup, software patching and other time-consuming IT management tasks. Cloud removes the need for many of these tasks, so IT teams can spend time on achieving business goals. Moving to the cloud gives access to enterprise-class technology, for everyone anywhere anytime.
5. High Performance-The biggest cloud computing services run on a worldwide network of secure datacenters, which are regularly upgraded to the latest generation of fast and efficient computing hardware. This offers several benefits over a single corporate datacenter, including reduced network latency for applications and greater economies of scale. You can increase any amount of storage and processing capacity with pay per use model.
6. High Reliability– Cloud computing makes data backup, disaster recovery and business continuity easier and less expensive, because data can be replicated at multiple redundant locations on the cloud provider’s network.
7. Security – Cloud computing gives you greater security when your hardware like laptop, mobile, tablet etc. are lost, damage or stolen this occurs as your data is stored in the cloud, you can access it no matter what happens to your machine. And you can even remotely wipe data from lost devices so it doesn’t get into the wrong hands. Cloud Ensures minimum disruption to Business.
8. Disaster Recovery – Cloud provides best DR solution for any businesses, cloud-based backup and recovery solutions save time, reduce large upfront investment due to global presence and economies of scale. Cloud service provider features like tiered storage, multiple Availability zones, Data replication etc. can be leveraged to design optimum DR and BCP solutions.

Types of Cloud Offerings

Cloud Computing services majorly  falls into three categories:

• Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS),
• Platform as a Service (PaaS)
• Software as a Service (SaaS).

IaaS – Infrastructure as a Service

Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is a form of cloud computing that provides virtualized computing resources over the internet following pay per use model . Or we can say traditional on-prem data center services on rent for e.g. IT infrastructure—servers and virtual machines (VMs), storage, networks, operating systems.

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

Platform-as-a-service (PaaS) represents cloud services that provide platform or environment for developing, run, manage testing, delivering and managing applications on-demand online anytime. PaaS ensure ready to use development & testing platform without the complexity of building and maintaining the infrastructure. PaaS is designed to make developers and clients life easy by leveraging pre-configured systems, templates, software’s ready to build mobile or web applications  and with no hassle of setting up or managing the underlying infrastructure of servers, storage, network and databases needed for development.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Software-as-a-service (SaaS) is a process for delivering software applications over the Internet, on demand and typically on a subscription basis. With SaaS, cloud providers host and manage the software application and underlying infrastructure and handle any maintenance, like software upgrades and security patching. Users connect to the application over the Internet, usually with a web browser on their phone, tablet or PC. To see more on SaaS, refer to Azure

Top Cloud Service Providers

As per Forbes below are the list of top 10 Cloud service providers

1. Microsoft Azure
2. AWS
3. Salesforce
4. SAP
5. IBM
6. Google
7. Oracle
8. Workday
9. Service Now
10. VMware

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