Microsoft 365 FundamentalsDescribe cloud conceptsEasy
A small business is looking to migrate its on-premises customer relationship management (CRM) application to the cloud. They want to minimize upfront hardware costs, reduce ongoing maintenance, and pay only for the resources they consume. Which cloud service model best aligns with these requirements?
- AHybrid Cloud
- BInfrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
- CPlatform as a Service (PaaS)
- DSoftware as a Service (SaaS)
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: D. Software as a Service (SaaS)
SaaS provides a complete, ready-to-use application managed by the cloud provider, eliminating the need for the customer to manage infrastructure, platforms, or even the application itself. This directly addresses the requirements for minimal upfront costs and reduced maintenance.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Hybrid Cloud is a deployment model, not a service model, and involves a mix of on-premises and cloud resources.
- B. IaaS provides virtualized computing resources but still requires the customer to manage the operating system, applications, and data.
- C. PaaS provides a platform for developing, running, and managing applications without the complexity of building and maintaining the infrastructure, but the customer still manages the application.
Software as a Service (SaaS)
A cloud service model where a complete application is hosted and managed by the cloud provider and made available to users over the internet.
- Users access via a web browser or client application.
- Cloud provider manages all underlying infrastructure, platforms, and application maintenance.
- Typically subscription-based pricing.
Memory trick: I P S: Infrastructure, Platform, Software – think of building blocks.