CODEWITHSUNDEEP
cloudobject-storagecloud-storage
A.Dumas
A.Dumas

Reputation: 3307

What is the concept behind cloud storage and object storage?

I want to understand these programming cloud models/concepts: storage and object storage but fail to find sourced that explain these concept clearly.

In general wikipedia explains cloud storage as

[...] a model of computer data storage in which the digital data is stored in logical pools. The physical storage spans multiple servers (sometimes in multiple locations), and the physical environment is typically owned and managed by a hosting company.

where is is the source for this definition? and do I understand it correctly that with logical pools that is meant as virtual Partition that could even span across hard drives.

and concerning the object storage I found that it can be understood as alternative to block and file storage. are there source that explain these models abstractly.

Upvotes: 1

Views: 104

Answers (2)

D. An
D. An

Reputation: 11

Object storage and cloud storage are two very different but interlinked terms.

To put it simply, object storage is one form of cloud storage. While cloud storage is a general term for storing data on the internet, object storage refers to a method of storing data that makes the data most easily and quickly accessible.

Object storage is an organizational schema that uses data lakes to store data. It enables users to store an influx of data types at any scale without a formal schema. Rather than using tables, object storage stores every piece of information---files, tables or any unstructured information---in the form of objects in a flat environment.

There are no tables or folders or any other form of hierarchical structure. Instead, each object is assigned a unique tag or identifier using metadata management, which speeds and facilitates data retrieval. Also, data access is further simplified by providing an application programming interface (API) in which users can send HTTP requests to retrieve any information stored in the object storage.

Cloud storage is a more general term for storing data on the internet. Instead of requiring massive hard drives for offline storage, cloud storage enables you to keep any type and amount of data on the cloud. It saves you the enormous amount of time and money you would have otherwise spent implementing a custom offline storage system.

Cloud storage systems offer different types of organizational schema. We have already discussed object storage earlier. Another storage method uses data warehouses, which store information in the form of relational tables that then can be queried with languages like SQL to access information.

Today, there are many cloud storage providers, including large brands like Amazon and Google. All cloud storage providers promise high-level security, ease of access and low costs. For example, Amazon Simple Storage Service offers a pay-as-you-go model with high performance in terms of speed, security, and scalability, which is beneficial for companies of all sizes.

Upvotes: 1

Vitaly Isaev
Vitaly Isaev

Reputation: 5815

I'm not sure if these papers address your questions directly, but they helped me to understand how object storages are designed:

  1. What is dispersed storage?
  2. IBM Cloud Object Storage Concepts and Architecture
  3. How the Yandex Cloud works: Elliptics (in russian, but also visit http://reverbrain.com/elliptics/ for english docs)

Also, from my point of view, the terminology is not stable yet. The entity which is called virtual partition, logical pool in one storage may be called as group, virtual bucket and so on in other storages.

Upvotes: 0

Related Questions