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ABSTRACT
This paper discusses the concept of Cloud Computing to achieve a complete definition of what a Cloud is, using the main characteristics. It introduces the background and principle of cloud as well as grid computing and how they differentiate from each other. This paper elaborates the benefits of cloud computing, such as, it do not need user's high level equipment, so it reduces the user's cost. This paper pays much attention to the Grid paradigm, as it is often confused with Cloud technologies. This paper also describes the relationships and distinctions between the Grid and Cloud approaches. It shows the main difference between cloud and grid computing can be defined in terms of software and hardware. Grid computing provides the virtualization of software only but cloud computing provides the virtualization of both software and hardware.
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1. Introduction
Cloud Computing is associated with a new paradigm for the provision of computing infrastructure. This paradigm shifts the location of this infrastructure to the network to reduce the costs associated with the management of hardware and software resources [16]. Cloud concept draws from previously existing technologies (such as virtualization, utility computing or distributed computing) [29,18, 23].
The variety of technologies in the Cloud makes the overall picture confusing [18]. Moreover, the excessive publicity around Cloud Computing further vagues the message [11,23]. The Cloud is not the first technology that falls into hype. Gartner's Hype Cycle [12] characterizes how the hype about a technology evolves "from over enthusiasm through a period of disillusionment to an eventual understanding of the technology relevance and role in a market or domain".
Arguably, Cloud Computing is now in the first stage of this hype cycle, labeled as Positive Hype'. This reinforces the overall confusion about the paradigm and its capacities, turning the Cloud into an excessively general term that includes almost any solution that allows the outsourcing of all kinds ofhosting and computing resources.
Yet, the notions of transparent access to resources on a payper-use basis, relying on an infinitely and instantly scalable infrastructure managed by a third-party, is a recurrent idea.
The example of what has happened with the Grid illustrates the need of a crisp definition for Clouds: although there are well-known Grid definitions in which Foster...