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Cloud Hosting Glossary

Cloud Computing Terms

Struggling to tell your APIs from your CDNs? Read our comprehensive cloud computing glossary covering the most common terms related to cloud computing.

Cloud Terms, Made Simple(r)

Struggling to tell your CDNs from your CSPs? Our glossary covers the basics!

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WordPress

WordPress is the world’s most popular open-source content management system...

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WordPress

WordPress is the world's most popular open-source content management system (CMS), currently used by over 40% of all websites across the globe. Originally launched in 2003 as a blogging platform, WordPress is now home to a range of ecommerce stores, corporate websites, forums and more. Many of the websites powered by WordPress will use a cloud hosting solution.

Application Example(s)

Brands like Sony Music, The New York Times and even Disney use the WordPress CMS for their websites. At Cloudways, we've been working alongside the WordPress community since 2011 (we currently host over 600,000 WordPress sites), empowering people and businesses to scale up their online operations with our managed WordPress web hosting solution.

Did you know that around 500 new websites are created using WordPress every day?! That's no surprise, since its versatility means it can be adapted to virtually any website design, layout or function imaginable, while its ease-of-use makes it an ideal choice for those with no web development skills. With over 30,000 visual themes to choose from and more than 55,000 plugins available to install, the WordPress platform is a fully customizable solution.

Developers Matt Mullenweg and Mike Little founded WordPress as an offshoot of their discontinued blogging tool b2/cafelog. b2/cafelog was written in PHP for use with MySQL. WordPress serves pages and media to a website front end and is written in PHP and connects to a MySQL or MariaDB database. The database contains references to written content and media files that have been uploaded to your server. Additionally, user data is kept there to control article access and permissions.

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WooCommerce

WooCommerce is an open-source ecommerce platform built specifically for WordPress....

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WooCommerce

WooCommerce is an open-source ecommerce platform built specifically for WordPress. It can be installed as a plugin and turn any WordPress site into a functioning online store, with in-built features such as payment processing, catalog management and storefront design tools. Most WooCommerce-powered websites will be hosted on the cloud.

Application Example(s)

Nearly 4 million ecommerce websites use WooCommerce to sell their products and services to online consumers, including popular global brands like Singer and Weber. Even the All Blacks rugby union team uses WooCommerce to power their official online store. Cloudways offers fast and reliable WooCommerce hosting plans for ecommerce merchants looking for a scalable solution.

WooCommerce is the most popular ecommerce plugin for WordPress users. Packed with ecommerce-ready features including thousands of unique store designs, WooCommerce integrates with many third-party applications and offers hundreds of free and paid extensions to augment your online store.

When WooCommerce's initial version was introduced in 2011, it quickly gained enormous popularity; within three years, it had reached 4 million downloads. In 2015, WooCommerce was purchased from WooThemes by Automattic. Since acquiring the plugin, Automattic has risen to the top of the WooCommerce development industry. Now, 28% of all online eCommerce stores are powered by WooCommerce.

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Virtualization

Virtualization is the basis on which cloud computing is built,...

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Virtualization

Virtualization is the basis on which cloud computing is built, and refers to the creation of a virtual (rather than physical) version of something; in computing, this means using specialized software to create virtual versions of operating systems, servers, network resources or storage devices.

Application Example(s)

Virtualization solutions include VMware, which specializes in the virtualization of servers, desktops, networks and storage. Microsoft's Hyper-V virtualization solution integrates with Windows and provides virtual versions of servers and desktop computers.

Virtualization is fundamental to cloud computing, since it allows several operating systems and applications to run on the same server at the same time. In combination with a cloud infrastructure provider, virtualization enables organizations to make more efficient use of their IT resources.

Through the use of software, virtualization can divide the physical components of a single computer, such as its processors, memory, storage, and other components, into several virtual computers, also known as virtual machines (VMs). Despite only using a small percentage of the real underlying computer hardware, each virtual machine (VM) runs its own operating system (OS) and functions like a separate computer.

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Virtual Machine

A virtual machine (VM) is a virtualized instance of a...

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Virtual Machine

A virtual machine (VM) is a virtualized instance of a physical computer that can perform almost all of the same functions, including running operating systems and applications, storing data and connecting to networks. Virtual machines access computing resources through a type of software known as a hypervisor.

Application Example(s)

A virtual machine has many uses within a cloud environment, including the delivery of Software as a Service (SaaS) applications, data backups, browser isolation, and cloud hosting solutions such as Cloudways.

With a virtual machine, a user can run several operating system instances on a single piece of hardware. This is because the software is distinct from the actual host machine, saving time, money and physical space. The ability of VMs to handle legacy apps reduces or eliminates the need for (and expense associated with) upgrading older apps to suit new operating systems.

A virtual machine (VM) offers a separate environment where its own operating system and programmes can run without interference from the host system or from other VMs operating on the same host. A single computer can host numerous virtual machines, each running a different operating system and set of apps, without impacting or interfering with the others. Although the VM is still reliant on the physical resources of the host, these resources are virtualized, shared among the VMs, and can be reallocated as needed. This allows the VM to operate many environments at once and adjust to changing workloads.

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Vertical Scaling

Vertical scaling simply means “scaling up” (as opposed to “scaling...

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Vertical Scaling

Vertical scaling simply means "scaling up" (as opposed to "scaling out", which is what's meant by horizontal scaling); when scaling vertically, you stay on the same server but increase capacity and performance by scaling RAM, CPU and storage. This allows organizations to react and respond quickly to increasing demand.

Application Example(s)

If computational power is becoming a bottleneck or CPU and memory are reaching their maximum thresholds, then vertical scaling offers a quick and easy way to increase capacity and maintain performance. Cloudways uses the vertical scaling approach to allow clients to scale resources in just a few clicks.

Scalability is a key component of cloud computing, and most cloud providers work to a vertical scaling model when it comes to increasing processing power, memory and storage capacity. Vertical scaling offers complete agility, as businesses can respond quickly to increasing demands by simply adding resources as and when required.

An existing instance gains greater power as you scale a system vertically. This could enable faster storage devices like Solid State Drives (SSDs), more RAM, or more potent processors (CPUs). Vertical scaling is regarded as the simplest way of scaling, since on cloud systems like AWS where servers are already virtualized, upgrading hardware is frequently a simple matter. You need to perform very little (if any) extra software-level configuration. Learn more here

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User Experience (UX)

User experience (UX) refers to the quality of an end...

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User Experience (UX)

User experience (UX) refers to the quality of an end user's overall interaction with a product, service, system, website or application; and since cloud hosting can significantly boost the speed and performance of a website or application, it's key to offering a seamless and efficient UX.

Application Example(s)

Every time we interact with a product (including the websites or applications we use daily), we are having a user experience. Whether that user experience is positive or negative is likely to be based on a number of factors, including ease of use, efficiency and overall enjoyment. Cloudways has created a clear, intuitive interface with simple, 1-click settings to make it easy to understand and navigate.

Almost 9 out of every 10 users are less likely to return to a website if it offers a bad user experience. UX is critical to the success of an organization because it facilitates the workflows of many different users, maximizes customer lifetime value and creates meaningful engagement between a user and a brand.

User experience design (UXD or UED) encompasses all aspects of how a product, service, system, website or application is perceived by end users. This can include a well-structured architecture that presents information in a logical, organized manner, an engaging design and visual aesthetic, a high level of human-computer interaction (HCI), accessibility, ergonomics, utility and performance.

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Cloud Terms, Made Simple(r)

At Cloudways, we know a thing or two about cloud hosting. But we also know that not everyone is as clued up about cloud servers, hypervisors and virtual machines as we are. When it comes to cloud computing, there are many concepts, ideas and buzzwords to wrap your head around — some reasonably straightforward, but some bafflingly complex.

So if you’re wondering “What is a data center?” or “How does a public cloud work?”, you’re in the right place. You can even share or embed your chosen definition. Let’s start learning!

Jump to Glossary Terms

Frequently Asked Questions

Our easy-to-use cloud computing glossary is presented in a handy A-to-Z format. Simply find the term you’re looking for (whether it’s Application Monitoring, PHP, Virtualization, or something else entirely) and click on ‘Basic Definition’ to view a simple explanation of what the term means. If you’re looking for a little more information, just click the ‘More Detail’ option for a more detailed technical explanation. Simple!

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Our cloud glossary contains a number of key cloud terms, offering simple definitions that (mostly) anyone can understand. To give a little more context to each term, we’ve included some real-world examples and explained why we think these terms are so important in the world of cloud computing. The glossary aims to answer some of the most common cloud hosting questions, including the following:


  • What is cloud hosting?
  • How does cloud migration work?
  • How do you scale a cloud server?
  • What is PaaS?
  • Why is an SSL certificate important?
  • How can you host a WordPress site?
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Whether you’re a business leader thinking about cloud migration, a developer looking to get into cloud computing, or simply someone interested in learning more about cloud hosting, this resource can help you. Our comprehensive web hosting glossary suits all levels of expertise. For cloud beginners, there are simple definitions of key cloud hosting terms, while those with more technical expertise can delve into our more detailed explanations.

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Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting provider offering a range of cloud services, so it’s fair to say we know a lot about cloud hosting. For more guidance from our experts, you can visit the Cloudways blog for hundreds of helpful articles, case studies and how-to guides. Or, you can contact us to learn more about the various cloud hosting services we offer and/or get some bespoke advice.

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