IaaS vs PaaS
IaaS
Infrastructure as a service
Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is an instant computing infrastructure, provisioned and managed over the Internet. It allows you to quickly scale up and down depending on demand, and pay only for what you use.
IaaS helps you avoid the expense and complexity of buying and managing your own physical servers and other data-center infrastructure. Resources are offered as separate service components, and you only rent the ones you need for as long as they are required. The cloud computing service provider manages the infrastructure, while you purchase, install, configure, and manage your own software (operating systems, middleware, and applications).
PaaS
Platform as a service
Platform as a service (PaaS) is a complete development and deployment environment in the Cloud, with resources that enable you to deliver everything from simple cloud-based apps to complex, cloud-enabled enterprise solutions.
You purchase the resources you need from a cloud service provider on a pay-as-you-go basis and you get to access them over a secure Internet connection.
Just like IaaS, PaaS includes infrastructure—servers, storage, and networking—but also middleware, development tools, business intelligence (BI) services, database management systems, and more. PaaS is designed to support the complete web application lifecycle: building, testing, deploying, managing, and updating.
When to choose IaaS
if you are a startup or a small company which doesn’t wish to spend time and energy in procuring hardware and software
When to choose PaaS
when multiple developers are working on the development or when external parties are involved in the development process. PaaS brings in speed and flexibility to the development process
organizations which need complete control over their high performing applications
for organizations following Agile Methodology for software development, PaaS eases the challenges that come with rapid development and iteration of application
growing businesses which are not yet sure about their solution and don’t know what to expect from it over a period and hence do not want to commit to hardware/ software resources
when you wish to spread your Capital Investment – by providing the underlying solid infrastructure, PaaS model reduces the organization’s overhead costs
applications which see volatile demands, where scaling up or down is critical based on traffic spikes or valleys
Large organizations who want to customize applications
PaaS or IaaS – each of these cloud models offer specific features and functionalities and it is critical that businesses make a prudent choice based on their specific requirements.
Strategy & Planning
Whether you’re a big enterprise or a small business, any decision related to the Cloud should be regarded as strategic. It is of an utmost importance to understand that moving to the cloud (partially or fully), while brings a lot of advantages in terms of total cost reduction and flexibility, it also means you have to analyze it thoroughly.