Glossary of terms

On-Demand Self Service

On-Demand Self-Service is one of the essential characteristics of cloud computing, and it refers to the ability of cloud consumers (individuals or organizations) to provision computing resources, such as servers, storage, and applications, as needed, automatically and without human intervention from the cloud service provider.

Definition

On-Demand Self-Service is a cloud computing feature that allows users to provision and manage computing resources automatically, without requiring manual intervention from the cloud service provider’s staff.

Main Features

1. Automation: Users can provision and manage resources through web-based interfaces, APIs, or command-line tools, eliminating the need for human interaction with the service provider.

2. On-Demand Availability: Computing resources are available and can be provisioned as needed, without delays or pre-planning.

3. Self-Service: Users have direct control over the resources they need, enabling them to scale up or down as per their requirements.

4. Metering and Billing: Resource usage is monitored, measured, and billed based on consumption, ensuring users only pay for what they use.

Scope of On-Demand Self-Service

The scope of On-Demand Self-Service in cloud computing extends to various types of computing resources, including:

1. Virtual Machines (VMs) or Instances: Users can provision and configure virtual machines with desired specifications, such as CPU, memory, and storage.

2. Storage Services: Users can allocate and manage storage resources, such as object storage, block storage, or file storage, as per their needs.

3. Networking Resources: Users can configure and manage virtual networks, load balancers, firewalls, and other networking components.

4. Databases: Users can provision and manage different types of databases, such as relational, NoSQL, or in-memory databases.

5. Analytics Services: Users can access and utilize analytics tools, data processing pipelines, and other data-related services on-demand.

6. Application Services: Users can deploy and manage various application services, such as web servers, application servers, or containerized applications.

7. Security Services: Users can provision and configure security services like identity and access management, encryption, and threat detection.

On-Demand Self-Service is a fundamental characteristic of cloud computing, enabling users to have greater control, flexibility, and agility in accessing and managing computing resources as per their dynamic needs, without relying on manual processes or delays from the cloud service provider.

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