Types of PaaS Solutions

Not all platform-as-a-service (PaaS) solutions are created equal. Which platform you choose should depend on your existing system landscape and skill sets, the types of applications you want to develop, the service delivery standards offered by the provider, and the associated costs. In general, there are four types of platforms:


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Social Application Platforms

Platforms like Facebook provide APIs so third parties can write new application functionality that is made available to all users.

 
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Raw Compute Platforms

Platforms like Amazon Web services provide storage, processor, and bandwidth as a service. Developers can upload their traditional software stack and run their applications on the Amazon infrastructure.

 
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Web Application Platforms

Platforms like Google provide APIs and functionality for developers to build Web applications that leverage its mapping, calendar, and spreadsheets plus YouTube and other services.

 
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Business Application Platforms

Platforms like Force.com provide application infrastructure specifically geared toward transactional business applications such as database, integration, workflow, and user interface services. For companies unwilling to compromise on scalability, reliability, and security, Force.com is the clear choice for a flexible platform that manages critical business processes.

 

Emerging PaaS Options

According to industry pundit Phil Wainewright, more PaaS choices are available besides the do-it-yourself option: Managed hosting, where a provider runs the infrastructure, hosts applications, and may offer SaaS-specific services; cloud computing, where you install and run pay-as-you-go applications on a virtual infrastructure; cloud IDE, where you build applications using the provider’s on-demand tools and collaborative development environment; and cloud application builders, where power users and designers looking for certain business applications can find everything from online database platforms to project management platforms.

CIOs Benefit from PaaS

Many CIOs are now extending SaaS beyond single-point applications for specific needs such as sales enablement or partner relationship management (PRM). They’re taking broader advantage of PaaS by migrating traditional data center operations to less-expensive, Web-centric computing environments.