With tech advancements occurring in the world, it seems that they are endless especially in the app development sphere. Cloud-based app development is one of the hottest trends paced in the last few years. One of the most agitative things that cloud providers offer is the ability to build, test, and deploy apps using cloud frameworks.
Developers are trying hard to keep up with the ever-changing times. Here are the things you need to know before creating mobile software in the cloud.
Cloud computing in 2017
Cloud-based software development has changed the IT practices, but nowadays the second wave for private, public, and hybrid clouds is entering the app development market.
And what is the difference between private, public, and hybrid clouds? Public clouds are the most common cloud solution. They are usually owned by third-party cloud service providers. Microsoft Azure, Google, Amazon, and others. These resources are shared by thousands of people. Google reported that the number of users had reached 1 billion by 2017.
[easy-tweet tweet=”Hybrid clouds are a mix of the features peculiar to both public and private clouds.” hashtags=”Cloud, Hybrid”]
Private cloud solutions are privately owned by one organization or business offering specific security controls. Â They are supposed to be a more safer development environment than public clouds. As a rule, app entrepreneurs use private clouds for sensitive processes and thereafter, public clouds for simple tasks.
Hybrid clouds are a mix of the features peculiar to both public and private clouds. Simply put, hybrid clouds are more complex solutions. For example, such clouds come useful when a company needs to keep confidential information secured, but at the same time, general information needs to be stored in a public cloud. That’s it with the clouds. Our next step is to find out what makes cloud-based software development come forward.
Benefits of developing mobile apps in the cloud
Let’s remember how things are done when it comes to mobile app development. A team usually starts with estimating the project and decide whether they can develop it or not, and if not, a team needs to acquire both the manpower and technology for the project.
And when it comes to cloud computing, it can provide a way where infrastructures are available to everyone who is interested. And if your business needs grow up, the development infrastructures increase, too. You pay for the services you use. It’s a cheap option while there is no need for investing in in-house hardware and development tools. So cloud computing is a low-cost development solution.
A few years ago it took months to get prepared for a project, and now developers can start coding within a couple of clicks. So the primary advantage of building apps in the cloud is its speed.
Moreover, you don’t need to worry about hardware and software, infrastructure and storage, maintenance and other resources required to create and set up the apps. Instead of taking care of the things mentioned above, the developers can focus on tech issues.
Things to consider before creating an app in a cloud
Along with the bespoke benefits of cloud computing such as speed, agility, flexibility, and reduced costs, there are a few things to watch out when deciding on cloud-based software development solutions.
Constancy
Constancy and reliability are two major issues to consider when it comes to development in the cloud. The sad fact is that even using the biggest cloud providers, there is a risk that your app won’t be accessible 24/7. For example, Pinterest and Netflix were down due to the massive hacking attacks on Amazon’s servers.
Advice: Always have a backup plan for your services. There should be the ability to deploy the app in all cases. Keep in mind, there will be always a chance that an outage may occur. Most companies have a recovery plan for on-site tech facilities, so why not to have such a plan for cloud services?
Security
It’s obvious that putting data and apps to clouds and especially public ones has lots of hidden risks.  As an IT entrepreneur, you should foresee all the risks and think well before deploying data to the clouds as they are prone to hacking attacks.
Advice: Consider if data is less sensitive for you company, and then deploy it to public clouds, in other cases use private ones.
Keep learning
There are lots of things that are new to developers especially for those who develop apps in the clouds. For example, the configurations that you use locally are difficult to replicate in the cloud. If it’s your first time of developing an app on the cloud, be ready to learn some new things like SQL, command line tools, XML, etc.
Advice: There are lots of eBooks and handbooks on cloud computing available on the Internet. Some of them are free. Never miss a chance to talk with developers experienced in cloud computing.
Restrictions on licensing
The terms of cloud usage differ from provider to provider. Some providers are very strict with what you are allowed to do and not.
Advice: Read carefully what you are signing to avoid additional mulcts that may occur due to the violations of terms.
Integrations with on-site apps
It’s quite a challenging task even for cloud-proficient developers to integrate existing apps with cloud-based ones. As a rule, such problems occur due to the access failure. Cloud providers, especially of public clouds, don’t grant access to cloud technologies, infrastructure, and other platforms.
Advice: Look for the ways to integrate the existing apps with the cloud ones without the access to the cloud infrastructure. Find how to get around this by utilizing the APIs of your provider.
Platforms for cloud app development
There are quite a lot of cloud service providers that allow developers to develop, test, and deploy the apps. These are the best cloud providers:
- Amazon Web Cloud
- Google App Engine
- Salesforce Platform
- Rackspace
- Microsoft Azure
Summing up
Cloud app development remains a challenging task for many developers, but still, it’s only at its early stage of development. With years to come, it will take the app development market. It may take a little time to get used to special aspects of cloud computing. But it’s worth learning since cloud computing offers much more benefits such as speed, flexibility, low maintenance costs, agility, and others. Get prepared for the changes and improvement long before they occur.