SaaS, which stands for Software as a Service, enables users to access and utilize cloud-based applications via the Internet. Some of the most commonly known examples of SaaS are email, calendaring, and office tools like Microsoft Office 365. SaaS in cloud computing offers a comprehensive software solution that you can buy from a cloud service provider on a pay-as-you-go basis.
SaaS in cloud computing is fast replacing on-premises software because it’s more convenient and can be easily integrated into current SOPs and workflows without noticeable disruption. In addition, SaaS is much less expensive because the end users don’t have to pay for hosting and maintenance of software. Instead, they only pay subscription fees (monthly or yearly) to access and use the service.
Since SaaS is one of the preferred delivery models in cloud computing, we’ll take a detailed look into how SaaS operates and how it compares to other delivery models in cloud computing so that you can make an informed decision about using SaaS in your cloud computing-related processes.
Let’s start with some definitions.
Table Of Content
- What Does ‘as a Service’ Mean in Saas in Cloud Computing?
- How Does SaaS Work?
- Characteristics of SaaS Products
- Advantages of SaaS in Cloud Computing
- Disadvantages of SaaS
- Bare Metal Servers for SaaS
- Use Cases Of Bare Metal Servers For SaaS
- SaaS vs. Packaged Software
- Future of SaaS
- How Does RedSwitches Help Accelerate Your SaaS Ambitions?
- Conclusion
What Does ‘as a Service’ Mean in Saas in Cloud Computing?
Until just a couple of years ago, software developers used to sell standalone copies of their products to users. Now, the SaaS model allows them to easily manage distribution and maintenance of software for their customers. They handle front-end and back-end data of the product and deliver the software as a “service” rather than a standalone product.
This structure is often the first thing you’ll see when you start digging into the cloud computing advantages and disadvantages.
How Does SaaS Work?
In a typical SaaS implementation, a hosting provider offers the infrastructure for hosting and distributing the software. This is a great example of virtualization in cloud computing where users (including the software developers) often don’t work with physical resources.
In exchange for a monthly subscription, end users can access the service from any web-enabled device using just a web browser. Plus, users can use the APIs provided by SaaS apps to integrate the functionalities in other custom-built applications.
Examples of SaaS in cloud computing include:
- Digital Marketing Tools & Platforms
- Enterprise Resource Planning
- Customer Resource Management
Characteristics of SaaS Products
SaaS products are built for use by all users, regardless of their knowledge. In fact, many developers aim to make their products so easy-to-use that lay users in the industry could use the functionality to achieve their business objectives.
A quick look at all popular SaaS products will help you identify some common characteristics that are instrumental in the success of a SaaS product.
Always Available
As a general rule, a SaaS product is always up and running. This is made possible by the underlying service delivery infrastructure that is often managed by a high-end hosting provider. In addition, the developers also keep a close eye on the operations so that they can jump in and fix any issues that might arise and prevent users from using the product.
This high-availability is one of the important trends in dedicated servers and cloud computing industry that has contributed to the rise of SaaS in cloud computing as the predominant industry model.
Data Security
SaaS products generally collect a lot of information during the course of delivering services to the users. While most of the information is not sensitive, users often give out critical information that could explicitly identify them or cause a financial loss in case of misuse.
That is why security (particularly data security) is built into SaaS products at multiple levels. You’ll find several authentication protocols and encryption algorithms in SaaS products. In addition, developers often find ways to avoid getting sensitive user information to avoid any problems and comply with user-rights protection regulations. All these make SaaS in cloud computing a very secure model for users.
Flexibility
All hosted SaaS products face unpredictability. The volume of users and requests from individual users fluctuate over time. While developers can start predicting this workload as data accumulates over months and years, managing this workload and balancing resource allocation is an ongoing challenge. Many SaaS examples in cloud computing opt for bare-metal servers because these solutions offer the best mix of resource availability and flexible allocation.
Advantages of SaaS in Cloud Computing
When you compare SaaS and other traditional software delivery models (such as on-premises installations), you’ll find that SaaS offers virtualization in cloud computing as one of the most distinctive advantages. In addition, some other advantages that SaaS products brings to the game are:
- Businesses pay a small subscription fee and get all the benefits of investing in a costly in-house software support infrastructure.
- SaaS can help businesses achieve vertical scalability in using cloud computing services because SaaS products deliver connected features at nominal increase in usage fees.
- Automated software upgrades delivered by SaaS products ease operation burden and costs for in-house IT teams.
- SaaS applications are very adaptable and integrate seamlessly with other products and custom solutions used by the end users.
Disadvantages of SaaS
Like all external resources, SaaS products can introduce business risk where external vendors maintain SaaS products. In addition, SaaS products can have the following drawbacks:
- Problems can emerge due to frequent service interruptions or security breaches that are beyond the control of end users.
- Authentication and verification of users can add delays, particularly in the case of SaaS products that deal with sensitive data and must comply with multiple regulations.
- While SaaS providers ask end users for feature recommendations and make their development roadmaps public, chances are that some end users might not need the features released by the developers.
Bare Metal Servers for SaaS
Bare-metal servers give users privacy, transparency, and excellent control because of isolated, client-only “computing instances.” The servers can handle heavy workloads that are typical of popular SaaS products that deliver services to thousands of users.
We make it extremely easy to host SaaS apps and make them available to users all over the world, thanks to high performing bare-metal servers that ensure dedicated resources and scalability without breaking the bank. RedSwitches bare metal servers can be fully customized to host your development stack.
Use Cases Of Bare Metal Servers For SaaS
When compared to other hosting solutions bare-metal servers offer significant speed and performance-focused advantages such as resource availability and customization. SaaS in cloud computing is among the most resource-intensive products because of the large volume of concurrent users.
Here are five scenarios where bare-metal servers outshine the competition
Databases
Large databases that handle a lot of queries are best hosted on bare metal servers. By hosting these databases on bare-metal servers, SaaS developers eliminate most security risks and get continued high-performance, regardless of the users at the application’s frontend.
Fintech
The speed, effectiveness, and resources offered by bare-metal servers enable Fintech apps to deliver the expected level of functionality to all users. In addition, bare-metal servers often offer the required level of security that Fintech SaaS products need to comply with the data security regulations.
Adtech
The rise in mobile and social media usage has led to a boom in the digital advertising sector. Many AdTech businesses struggle with inefficiency on public cloud platforms despite their heavy reliance on real-time big data analytics for improved targeting and performance. Bare-metal servers offer the performance and flexibility they need for delivering product features without any interruptions.
AdTech businesses can scale up their analytics-intensive workloads and experience consistent performance and lower costs by migrating to RedSwitches’ bare metal servers.
MarTech
MarTech is the umbrella term for SaaS in cloud computing that facilitates the development, communication, and optimization of marketing campaigns.
Planning, deploying, and measuring the impact of marketing campaigns generate a lot of data in areas such as attribution and budget allocation. Delivering sustained performance and latest features is the key to the success of MarTech SaaS products. Keeping up with the ever-evolving MarTech landscape can be daunting for any marketer. So, marketers must invest in bare metal servers to support their organization’s growth.
EduTech
Classrooms are evolving in a variety of ways because of the entry of EduTech technologies. EduTech tools like robots, VR classes, and gamified learning encourage greater participation and retention.
Now, hosting IoT-based digital classrooms developed by educational institutions is possible through RedSwitches bare metal servers where it’s readily available to students from any location.
The promise of mass customizability in education has been a driving force behind the rise of the EduTech sector.
SaaS vs. Packaged Software
Choosing between packaged software and SaaS is an important decision that impacts the sustainability and growth of your business. We recommend you go through the following table and discover how SaaS works in cloud computing environments
| Software as a Service (SAAS) | Packaged Software |
| The subscription includes regular updates and access to the latest features | The one-time price often doesn’t include major new features that you might need to purchase as add-ons. |
| Future-proof in most respects, because of public development roadmaps and user input | You might need to buy the software again in a couple of years because of the lack of backward compatibility |
| Integrates easily with existing infrastructure with minimum disruptions to operational flow | You might need to pay for integration within your existing workflow |
| No requirement for in-house servers or hardware | You might need to pay for additional hardware infrastructure for hosting these software |
Future of SaaS
The future of SaaS is bright, thanks to the cost and operations-related business benefits of the popular cloud computing delivery model. SaaS products will continue to be in high demand as market entry barriers get removed and businesses continue to focus on automation and improved user experiences.
It’s projected that by 2025, 85% of all businesses will use cloud-based services for their app needs. At the moment, this usage lies around 70%. That’s a very promising sign for SaaS development and hosting businesses.
More than ever, the business world is rewarding innovation, and businesses that deliver SaaS solutions for specialized business requirements have a huge market waiting for them.
How Does RedSwitches Help Accelerate Your SaaS Ambitions?
RedSwitches provide various solutions and features to aid companies in migrating seamlessly to the cloud. RedSwitches is an expert in building and maintaining heavy-compute, high-bandwidth, completely customized Bare Metal servers for companies launching SaaS applications. These servers are available at unbelievably low costs and come with server administration and 24/7 customer support.
RedSwitches can provide speed and connectivity no matter where you do business.
Learn more about Red Switches bare-metal server and how they add value to SaaS based products.
Conclusion
For many businesses, SaaS based products are essential for maintaining operations and building an awesome user experience. These products add great value to all stages of business without requiring huge investments in software development, hosting, and maintenance.
We at Red Switches provide the best-in-class bare-metal hosting infrastructure for SaaS products so that they can deliver uninterrupted services without worrying about scalability, performance, and security.
Get in touch with us now for hosting or migrating your SaaS product on Intel and AMD-powered infrastructure.
