5 Major benefits of Platform as a Service (PaaS)

There are a lot of companies that are transferring their company's hardware and software to the internet. This has all been possible due to Cloud. The various Cloud services like SaaS, PaaS and IaaS have streamlined the way businesses conduct its work process. 

Platform as a Service (PaaS) is an efficient cloud computing delivery model that can provide an application development resources without having to worry about computing resources. Traditionally, organizations need to procure servers and then development teams use those servers for development, testing. However, with the availability of PaaS, developer need not worry about procurement of server hardware, rather developers can simply launch PaaS resources, develop their custom code, test, and package for production migration. Organizations need to pay only for the usage of PaaS services, after usage these services can be terminated to stop billing. With the help of PaaS, software's operating system, security systems and firewall management are very efficient. The following are some of the advantages of the Platform as a Service model: 

1. Reduction in operating cost 

PaaS eliminate the need to invest in expensive hardware, development tools. All resources like a basic server, OS, development tools are available as a package that can be launched, and developer can develop their code without worrying about procurement of servers, development tools etc. There is no need to add up any extra hardware tools or independent tools, performing of low-level work or pay any type of expenses for unseen downtime. PaaS helps development teams control their overhead expenses. The cost of prototyping is significantly reduced. 

2. Effective scalability 

Scalability of resources on demand is one of the biggest advantages of cloud computing. For a business, it is very important to keep up with the growing demands of its customers. However, to cater to growing demands, companies need to scale up its computing resources. Traditionally, it is very challenging to upscale the computing resources in a short span of time. IT department need to get approval for procurement of additional servers. CFO need to budget for additional purchases. Cloud computing is the best solution for this genuine business problem. Cloud computing allows businesses to scale up computing resources whenever there is peak demand and terminate resources when not required and reduce billing for cloud resources. PaaS cloud offering enables users to focus on development, prototyping, designing new products just by launching pre-configured environments where users do not have to worry about computing resources. 

3. Platform Maintenance 

If there is an application deployed on an on-remise server then there is always a need to update, patch operating system, install security updates etc. which are not even directly linked with the application itself. Specialist team need to be deployed to maintain platforms. With so many external dependencies it becomes very challenging to upgrade technology frequently as the major drawback is that you will not be able to get on with the current improvements and new features where you might end up on an outdated stack or you might also face security issues. PaaS cloud offering enables automated security patches and updates. This makes sure that the application is working on the latest update, patch and there are no security vulnerabilities. PaaS eliminates the need to maintain specialist team to maintain environments on regular basis. Thus, there is tremendous cost saving. 

4. Flexibility 

Platform as a Service is known to be one of the most sought-after cloud computing service for not only large to medium scale companies but also for freelance creative developers that need computing resources to quickly prototype their ideas and develop a solution. PaaS offers many readily available tools which saves significant amount of time. It also helps the developers to conceptualize, design, and develop their own software application without any dependency. 

5. Ready for the future 

PaaS helps companies to be ready for the future with capabilities, new features and bug fixes that are automatically instantiated in the cloud. Through this, the focus will be on the important aspects of business rather than IT work.