What is a cloud server?

Cloud servers are virtual servers offered by cloud service providers. They provide scalable per­for­mance, high security, and the full range of func­tion­al­i­ties of physical servers, all without the need for main­te­nance.

What does a cloud server do?

Whether for scalable data pro­cess­ing in growing busi­ness­es, location- and device-in­de­pen­dent col­lab­o­ra­tion, or big data storage and analysis, the cloud is now essential for many tasks. Virtual servers, commonly known as cloud servers, play a crucial role in cloud computing and cloud hosting.

Cloud servers are based on the computing resources of physical servers and are hosted by cloud service providers. Typically, these are part of cloud server networks that offer scalable ca­pac­i­ties for workloads, per­for­mance, and storage.

What functions does a cloud server offer?

Cloud servers use vir­tu­al­iza­tion tech­nolo­gies to create virtual instances of physical servers. Vir­tu­al­iza­tion with a hy­per­vi­sor enables this by dividing physical servers into multiple virtual servers, ab­stract­ing computing power. Virtual servers function in­de­pen­dent­ly and offer a range of ca­pa­bil­i­ties, including:

• Pro­cess­ing, storing and analyzing data
• Executing ap­pli­ca­tions
• Creating backups
• Hosting websites
• Setting up de­vel­op­ment en­vi­ron­ments
• Location and device-in­de­pen­dent col­lab­o­ra­tion

How to use a cloud server?

Cloud servers are offered by third-party cloud service providers and are hosted at the provider’s data centers rather than on-premises. You access these virtual servers via the internet, which elim­i­nates the need for tasks like main­te­nance, servicing, and mon­i­tor­ing. This setup allows both small and large companies to use cloud servers without facing technical hurdles.

Various hosting plans are available for use. Depending on the plan, cloud providers offer on-demand or cus­tomized server plans with monthly, annual or usage-based billing. Provision can take place in various models such as IaaS, PaaS and SaaS. They differ as follows:

• IaaS: In­fra­struc­ture-as-a-Service, or IaaS for short, refers to rented IT in­fra­struc­ture con­sist­ing of elements such as cloud servers, networks and data storage. Apart from the hardware provided, you’re re­spon­si­ble for managing and im­ple­ment­ing ap­pli­ca­tions, operating systems and databases.
• PaaS: Platform-as-a-Service, or PaaS for short, is hardware provided with a virtual platform con­sist­ing of cloud servers, networks and storage as well as software such as operating systems, mid­dle­ware and databases. PaaS can be un­der­stood as a pre­fab­ri­cat­ed basic structure with the necessary building blocks. You save yourself the main­te­nance, care and setup of servers, storage space or databases.
• SaaS: With Software-as-a-Service, or SaaS for short, you use ap­pli­ca­tions provided by third-party providers and hosted on cloud servers via cloud computing. This allows you to use ap­pli­ca­tions and software quickly and without local in­stal­la­tion, adapt them flexibly and leave the main­te­nance of hardware and software to SaaS providers.

Possible ap­pli­ca­tions for cloud servers

Private or business ap­pli­ca­tions and use cases for cloud servers include:

• Data storage: Cloud servers provide storage volumes for business, customer, or project data in a paperless office with flexible scal­a­bil­i­ty. Access to these storage volumes is available from any location and device.
• Data backup: Due to their scal­a­bil­i­ty and security, cloud servers are ideal for securing important data and managing automatic backups.
• Web hosting: Whether for hosting websites and online stores, providing online ap­pli­ca­tions and gaming servers or running CMS systems – cloud servers are ideal for web hosting.
• Data analysis, machine learning and AI: Cloud server networks can be used to process large volumes of data thanks to their powerful per­for­mance that doesn’t rely on their own physical in­fra­struc­ture. This is why de­vel­op­ers also use cloud en­vi­ron­ments when it comes to machine learning and ar­ti­fi­cial in­tel­li­gence.
• De­vel­op­ment en­vi­ron­ment: Cloud servers are utilized for in­te­grat­ed de­vel­op­ment and test en­vi­ron­ments due to their user-friend­li­ness and ease of in­te­gra­tion.

How do cloud servers differ from other servers?

Cloud servers provide highly flexible options for both business and personal use in cloud hosting and cloud computing. However, companies should un­der­stand how server models like VPS and Hybrid Cloud differ from tra­di­tion­al cloud servers. Our overview offers a concise com­par­i­son:

When searching for suitable server models, follow our tips in our large server com­par­i­son.

All the benefits of cloud servers at a glance

By opting for cloud servers, you benefit from the following ad­van­tages:

Scal­a­bil­i­ty

Thanks to flexible server networks, cloud servers offer near-limitless scal­a­bil­i­ty. You can easily upgrade or downgrade resources, adjusting storage space, workloads, and per­for­mance to meet your needs. This flex­i­bil­i­ty is ideal for ac­com­mo­dat­ing business growth or on-demand computing power.

Security

With pro­fes­sion­al main­te­nance, updates, and resource dis­tri­b­u­tion, cloud servers offer high re­li­a­bil­i­ty and minimal error rates. Automatic updates address security vul­ner­a­bil­i­ties, and server locations in Europe (if you select this option) ensure com­pli­ance with GDPR, BDSG, and GoBD data pro­tec­tion reg­u­la­tions.

Cost ef­fi­cien­cy

Cloud servers eliminate the need for time-consuming and costly main­te­nance of physical servers, including personnel expenses. They also offer tailored server solutions with flexible usage and cost plans suitable for small, medium-sized, and large companies.

Ver­sa­til­i­ty

Cloud servers allow for de­ploy­ment from any location and on any device, sup­port­ing a wide range of web projects, de­vel­op­ment en­vi­ron­ments, and in­te­gra­tion into existing company systems, including remote work setups.