Cloud databases

Summary

A cloud database is a database that typically runs on a cloud computing platform and access to the database is provided as-a-service. There are two common deployment models: users can run databases on the cloud independently, using a virtual machine image, or they can purchase access to a database service, maintained by a cloud database provider. Of the databases available on the cloud, some are SQL-based and some use a NoSQL data model. Database services take care of scalability and high availability of the database. Database services make the underlying software-stack transparent to the user. There are two primary methods to run a database on a cloud platform: Virtual machine image Cloud platforms allow users to purchase virtual-machine instances for a limited time, and one can run a database on such virtual machines. Users can either upload their own machine image with a database installed on it, or use ready-made machine images that already include an optimized installation of a database. Database-as-a-service (DBaaS) With a database as a service model, users pay fees to a cloud provider for services and computing resources, reducing the amount of money and effort needed to develop and manage databases. Users are given tools to create and manage database instances, and control users. Some cloud providers also offer tools to manage database structures and data. Many cloud providers offer both relational (Amazon RDS, SQL Server) and NoSQL (MongoDB, Amazon DynamoDB) databases. This is a type of software as a service (SaaS). Most database services offer web-based consoles, which the end user can use to provision and configure database instances. Database services consist of a database-manager component, which controls the underlying database instances using a service API. The service API is exposed to the end user, and permits users to perform maintenance and scaling operations on their database instances. Underlying software-stack stack typically includes the operating system, the database and third-party software used to manage the database.