Understanding the Concept of SaaS in Cloud Computing

One of the most popular forms of cloud computing development services is software-as-a-service (SaaS). Here’s an easy SaaS narrative: a software delivery prototype in which a service vendor packs applications for clients and makes them usable to these clients using the internet.

SaaS is among the three main types of cloud services, besides infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) and platform-as-a-service (PaaS).

What is SaaS?

Software as a service (or SaaS) is a kind of service that is ready to deliver applications via the Internet.

As opposed to installing and managing software, you just access it through the Internet, saving yourself from complicated software and hardware supervision. 

SaaS application developments are sometimes called Web-based software, on-demand software, or hosted software. Whatever the name, SaaS applications run on a SaaS provider’s servers. The provider manages access to the application, including security, availability, and performance.

What does ‘as a service’ mean?

Consider the difference between valet parking and renting a parking spot. Valet parking is a service, while a parking spot is a product, even though both provide the same benefit to the customer: a place to leave their car.

Traditionally, software vendors sold their software to users as a product. Nevertheless, they deliver and support the software for their customers, through the cloud. They hoard and keep the databases and code that is essential for the application to work, and they operate the application on their servers. Thus, SaaS is more like a service than a product.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

We also recognize SaaS as “On-Demand Software”. It is a software distribution model in which a cloud service provider hosts services. These services are accessible to end-users over the internet and they are not obliged to install any software on their machines to make use of these services.

SaaS suppliers that serve the following services:

Business Services: SaaS Provider delivers multiple business services to launch the business. SaaS Business Services encompass Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Customer Relationship Management (CRM), billing, and sales.

Document Management: It is a software application delivered by a SaaS vendor to set up, maintain, and follow electronic documents.

Example: Samepage, Slack, Box, and Zoho Forms.

Social Networks: As we are all aware, the common public uses social networking sites, so social networking service vendors use SaaS to their advantage and deal with the public’s data.

Mail Services: To deal with the uncertain number of users and load on e-mail services, various e-mail providers provide their services adopting SaaS.

Characteristics of SaaS in Cloud Computing

Here are the features of the SaaS service model:

• SaaS offers software accessible over the Internet.
• The vendor manages the software applications.
• Licenses can be subscription-based or usage-based and are charged repeatedly.
• SaaS applications are economical since they do not call for any upkeep on the end-user side.
• They are accessible whenever required.
• We can scale them up or down at brief notice.
• They are systematically enhanced and renewed.
• SaaS provides a distributed data model. Hence, multiple users can experience a single instance of infrastructure. We do not require it to hard code the usefulness for individual users.
• All those taking part work with the same version of the software.

Advantages of SaaS Cloud Computing Layer

1. SaaS Is Easy to Buy

We base SaaS pricing on a monthly/annual fee subscription, which allows businesses to avail business functional capabilities inexpensively, much less than licensed applications.

Contrary to traditional software, which is marketed as licensed-based with initial expenses and usually a voluntary running support fee, SaaS suppliers are valuing the applications employing a subscription fee, more often than not a monthly/annual fee.

2. One to Many

Usually, they present SaaS development services as a one-to-many model, meaning multiple users share a single instance of the application.

3. Less Hardware Required for SaaS

We host software remotely, so companies do not require investing in extra hardware.

4. Low Maintenance Required for SaaS

Software as a service gets rid of the demand for installation, set-up, and periodic care for the companies. The basic set-up price for SaaS is mostly less than the firm’s software.

SaaS merchants value their applications according to some usage guidelines, such as the number of beneficiaries practicing the application. SaaS does simple to supervise and automatic upgrades.

5. No Special Software or Hardware Versions Required

All users are going to have an equivalent version of the software and often access it through a web browser. SaaS diminishes IT support expenses by outsourcing hardware, software support, and maintenance to the IaaS provider.

6. Multi-Device Support

We can access SaaS services from any equipment, namely desktops, laptops, tablets, phones, and thin clients.

7. API Integration

We can comfortably combine SaaS services with other software or services through conventional APIs.

8. No Client-Side Installation

We can access SaaS services from the service provider exploiting the internet network, so we do not require any software installation.

Disadvantages of SaaS Cloud Computing Layer

1) Security

Since we store data in the cloud, security may be a concern for a few users. Cloud computing is not safer than the in-house station, although cloud computing developers are trying to improve this aspect.

2) Latency Issue

Since we store data and applications in the cloud at a changeable distance from the end-user, there is a probability that there is possibly higher latency when communicating with the application in comparison with local deployment. Hence, the SaaS model is not good enough for applications whose application response time is in milliseconds.

3) Total Dependency on the Internet

Most SaaS applications are not accessible to users without an internet connection.

4) Switching Between SaaS Vendors Is Hard

Changing SaaS merchants require the laborious and tedious job of transferring the extensive data files over the internet and later changing and transferring them into another SaaS as well.