Glossary

What is a cloud database?

A cloud database has many of the same functions as a traditional database but is built and accessed through a cloud platform. A cloud database typically requires no installation or provisioning as these services are inherent to the cloud model.

There are several ways customers can consume databases in the cloud. They can self-manage, i.e. install and manage the database themselves on the public cloud. Many prefer to offload some of that overhead and expertise and choose a cloud managed service where the vendor can run a custom implementation of the database but on the customer’s cloud account. And finally, the database-as-a-service (DBaaS) model runs fully on public cloud infrastructure, shifting all of the management responsibilities, including hardware provisioning, software updates, and maintenance, entirely to the database software provider, on the database provider’s cloud account.

A cloud database service can support relational and non-relational databases. It is accessed through a web interface or an API provided by a vendor. Cloud databases are considered easy to use and can be accessed from anywhere. Users only pay for what they use and can take advantage of many enterprise capabilities such as cluster failover, disaster protection, backup and recovery, data replication, reporting, and so forth.