Editor's note
Cloud computer is not only the application scenario of computing power, but also the entrance to industry applications. As an engine of change, cloud computing provides efficient computing and storage capabilities, while bringing unprecedented flexibility, scalability, and innovation to a wide range of industries. In order to understand the current situation of the cloud computer industry and respond to the opportunities and challenges, Communications World Omnimedia has organized this special topic to discuss and analyze this topic with 100 billion yuan of industrial value with cloud service providers and industry experts.
The concept of cloud computers (also known as cloud desktops) appeared more than 10 years ago, and at that time, due to many factors such as networking, virtualization technology, and market demand, there was no specific product or solution.
Nowadays, the continent's network infrastructure has been continuously improved, and the world's largest and leading 5G network has been built, which provides the necessary conditions for the development of cloud computers. At present, there are many cloud computer entrants, such as China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom, Huawei, ZTE, New H3C, Alibaba Cloud, Amazon, etc. Cloud computers will become an emerging "blue ocean" market in the next few years, and will also provide more convenient services for users and enterprises.
As a new cloud computing service, cloud computers are widely favored by users
As an emerging industry in recent years, cloud computing is closely related to the development of cloud computing, computing power, and IT technology. In general, Cloud PC is a new type of cloud computing service composed of cloud terminals, transmission protocols, and cloud resources. It migrates the hardware resources and software environment of traditional PCs to the cloud, and provides remote access capabilities through virtualization technology, so that users can connect to virtual machines running on cloud servers through the Internet, so as to achieve cross-platform use anytime, anywhere.
Specifically, a cloud PC is a type of cloud computer that does not have hardware such as CPU, memory, and hard disk locally. Users only need a cloud terminal device, connected to a keyboard, mouse, monitor, and network, and can access their personal desktops on the cloud, and call various data and applications, and the experience is not much different from that of traditional computers.
Cloud PCs are managed and maintained by cloud service providers, so users don't need to worry about the maintenance and upgrades of hardware devices, thus reducing maintenance costs. At the same time, because the Cloud PC has the characteristics of cross-platform use, users can access the Cloud PC through the network on any device, without installing software or drivers on a specific device.
In general, cloud computer is a new type of service based on cloud computing technology, which has the characteristics of high flexibility, low cost, security and reliability, so it is gradually favored by more and more users.
Cloud computer adopts a new computing mode based on cloud computing technology, the principle of which is to enable the user's intelligent terminal devices (such as mobile phones, tablets, smart TVs, etc.) to connect to high-performance servers in the cloud through the network, so that these devices have similar functions as high-performance computers.
First, cloud computing service providers build hyperscale data centers in the cloud, which are composed of high-performance professional servers and form a powerful pool of computing resources. Users can connect to these cloud resources through terminal devices and use their computing, storage, and network resources on demand.
Secondly, virtualization technology is the key to the realization of cloud computers. Virtualization technology abstracts physical resources (such as servers, storage devices, and network devices) into cloud-based resources, and builds multiple virtual machines on top of these resources, each of which can run independent operating systems and applications. Through virtualization technology, cloud computer service providers can flexibly allocate and manage computing resources to meet the needs of different users.
Finally, the transport protocol is the "encrypted bridge" between the terminal and the data center. The user's terminal device and the cloud virtual machine need to transmit data and control instructions through the transmission protocol. These protocols should be efficient, stable, and secure to ensure the smoothness of user operations and data security. Common desktop transfer protocols include Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), Virtual Network Computing (VNC), and SPICE (Simple Protocol).
Digitalization accelerates the development of cloud PCs
In recent years, with the rapid improvement of network speed in mainland China and the impact of the new crown pneumonia epidemic, the demand for mobile office, online education, telemedicine and other needs has been growing, and the market scale of cloud computers has been expanding, and it has gradually been popularized and promoted to enterprises and individual users.
Li Wei, deputy director of the Institute of Cloud Computing and Big Data at the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, said: "The rise of the cloud computer industry is the result of digital transformation, technological innovation and increased demand. With the acceleration of digital transformation in mainland China, the demand for efficient and flexible computing resources has increased significantly. Cloud PCs provide a solution to access high-performance computing resources without relying on on-premise hardware, greatly facilitating the digitalization of various industries. ”
In addition, the continuous development of IT technology has also provided the necessary conditions for the popularization of cloud computers. "The rapid development of cloud computing, virtualization and network communication technologies has laid a technical foundation for the provision of cloud computer services. The maturity and application of these technologies have made cloud computer services more efficient, stable and secure, and met the basic requirements of the market for cloud computer services. Li Wei said.
From the perspective of market demand, the surge in demand for mobile office and online education has further promoted the development of the cloud computer industry. Cloud computing services provide users with a flexible remote work and learning platform, ensuring the continuity and efficiency of work and education activities.
In general, the rise of cloud computers is mainly based on the rapid development and popularization of cloud computing technology, as well as the improvement of network speed and the growth of demand for mobile office. With the continuous advancement of technology and the increasing variety of application scenarios, cloud computers are expected to be more widely used in the future.
Continental cloud computer has formed a diversified development pattern
The development of cloud computers in China has experienced a process of rapid growth from the initial stagnation at the beginning, and has now formed a diversified and fiercely competitive market pattern. The cloud computer market in mainland China is growing rapidly, with the number of solutions increasing from 1.31 million in 2017 to 2.55 million in 2021, with a compound annual growth rate of 18.12%, and a market size of about 15.19 billion yuan.
In this context, nearly 100 domestic enterprises such as China Mobile, China Telecom, China Unicom Huawei, ZTE, Ascend, Weixun, Alibaba Cloud, Sangfor, Ruijie Network, Cloud Times, Kirin Xin'an, Inspur Cloud and other enterprises have entered the cloud computer industry (see Table 1) and launched their own cloud computer products and solutions.
In 2022, China Mobile released cloud computer products, which can achieve multi-scenario unbounded office across platforms and terminals, and reduce the total cost by two-thirds compared with traditional personal computers with the same configuration...... From a market perspective, cloud computers are gradually ushering in a wide range of needs in different industries and fields. Li Wei said that with the acceleration of enterprise digital transformation, the demand for cloud computers in the enterprise-level market continues to grow, especially in remote work, data analysis and cloud collaboration. At the same time, the demand of individual consumers for cloud gaming, online education and other services is also rising, which promotes the expansion of cloud computer services to the to C market. In addition, as users demand more and more service quality, the market competition is becoming more and more fierce, prompting service providers to continue to innovate to provide higher quality and more personalized services.
From the perspective of industry diversification, the application of cloud computers has penetrated into many key industries, such as education, healthcare, manufacturing, etc., to promote the digital transformation of these industries. At the same time, with the advancement of technology and changes in market demand, cloud computers are expected to play a role in more emerging fields (such as smart cities, autonomous driving, etc.), showing their great potential in the digital upgrade of the industry.
Cloud PCs are significantly economical, but they face security and standards challenges
In the course of more than ten years of development, the high-tech development achievements represented by cloud computing and artificial intelligence have been integrated into the cloud computer industry. As an emerging industry, cloud computers have significant advantages, although the current market size is far less than that of traditional personal computers.
Li Wei believes that compared with previous electronic products, cloud computers have the following four advantages.
One is convenience and flexibility. Cloud PCs provide unparalleled ease of use, allowing users to access their cloud desktops and applications from anywhere with an internet connection, enabling a truly mobile approach to office and learning. At the same time, according to the change of demand, the cloud computer allows users to increase or decrease computing resources at any time, showing a high degree of flexibility.
The second is economy. Cloud PCs help users save high hardware investment and maintenance costs, users do not need to buy high-end physical equipment, just pay for the cloud services they use on demand. This pay-as-you-go model dramatically reduces IT costs and is especially suitable for small and medium-sized businesses and individual users with limited budgets.
The third is security. Cloud PCs enhance the protection of data by storing it in a relatively secure data center. Compared with on-premise storage, cloud computers benefit from the physical and cyber security measures of professional data centers, effectively reducing the risk of data loss and leakage. At the same time, the centralized management and maintenance mechanism also ensures the timely implementation of system updates and security policies.
Fourth, reliability. The server clusters behind Cloud PCs provide powerful computing power, ensuring that even the most complex applications run efficiently. In addition, cloud service providers usually promise up to 99.99% service availability, ensuring business continuity and a stable user experience.
Although cloud computers have obvious advantages over traditional personal computers, their future development also faces many challenges, and it is necessary to continue to make efforts in products, scenarios, talents, and security.
According to Li Wei, in terms of products, although the cloud computer market is growing rapidly, the user experience is still limited by the stability of the network and the connection rate; in the scenario, the breadth and depth of the cloud computer application scenarios need to be further improved to meet the needs of more industries and professional scenarios, especially in the pursuit of higher production efficiency in the enterprise environment; in terms of security, with the expansion of services and the deepening of applications, more complete and reliable data storage and processing methods should be explored to protect the security of user data, which is a problem that cloud computer enterprises need to continue to pay attention to and solve。 These challenges require the industry to continuously carry out technological innovation, improve the service system, strengthen cooperation with the government and industry organizations, establish a flexible and updatable cloud computer technology standard system, and jointly promote the healthy development of the cloud computer industry.
Cloud PCs will meet the needs of more scenarios and develop towards standardization
With the gradual improvement of cloud services and the continuous progress of technology, the cloud computer industry will usher in new growth and form a new "blue ocean" market. In the future, Cloud PCs will be able to provide more efficient, secure, and flexible computing services to meet the diverse needs of users ranging from individuals to large enterprises.
On the one hand, the continuous progress of cloud computing, virtualization and network transmission technology enables cloud computers to provide efficient and scalable computing resources to meet the needs of users of different scales, and on the other hand, the popularization and application of 5G network and high-speed broadband technology have significantly reduced the latency of cloud computer services and improved user experience. These technological advancements have provided strong support for the cloud computing industry, enabling it to adapt to the growing market demand and complex application scenarios.
In addition, the development of standards in the cloud computer industry is also continuing to advance. The reporter learned that the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology actively responded to the needs of the industry, compiled the "Cloud Desktop Technical Capability Specification" and other standards, and based on this to standardize the performance of cloud computer services and products, so as to promote the development of the cloud computer industry in the direction of standardization and standardization.
*This article was published in Communication World Issue 940 March 25, 2024 Original title of Issue 6: "Unlocking the 100 Billion Yuan Market: Innovation and Opportunities for Cloud Computers"
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Author: Sun Tian Editor/Layout: Gai Beibei Reviewer: Wang Tao Mei Yaxin Producer: Liu Qicheng
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