Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is a widely used cloud computing platform for several reasons, including their convenient, easy-to-use tools and services. Our comprehensive guide will explore Google Cloud Platform in more detail, which also serves as an introduction to cloud computing technology in general.
The following are the topics covered in this article include:
- What is cloud computing?
- Why use Google Cloud Platform?
- What is Google Cloud Platform?
- Google Cloud Platform components
- Ferrero use case
- Hands-on GCP exercise
What Is Cloud Computing?
Cloud computing is the use of hardware and software components in an off-premises location to deliver a service to a network. Users can access files and applications from any device that can access the internet.
Read more: Highest Paying Cloud Certifications for 2023
Some features and capabilities include:
- Cloud providers can pull the computing resources to provide services to multiple customers with the help of a multi-tenant model
- Cloud computing proves an on-demand self-service, which helps administrators monitor performance
- Servers are maintained easily and there is nearly zero downtime
- Users can access cloud data and upload it on the cloud from any device with a solid internet connection
- Cloud environments can be modified according to the user’s requirements and is easily accessible
- Clouds are highly secure, making data breaches more unlikely
- Migrating to the cloud eliminates the need to buy on-premises infrastructure
- It offers pay-as-you-go pricing, meaning you only pay for the resources you use
Why Use Google Cloud Platform?
GCP is popular for many reasons, including:
1. Competitive Pricing
- Pricing is one of the significant factors that make Google Cloud stand out among the other cloud providers
- Google Cloud offers a monthly pricing plan
- Google Cloud pricing provides committed use discounts
- In this plan, if you commit to purchasing a specific amount of vCPUs and memory for one or three years, you can get a discount of up to 57 percent
2. Speed
- Google Cloud provides its Google Cloud and Google App customers network speeds of up to 10Tbs
- The network has connections throughout the world in United States, Europe, main cities in Japan, major hubs in Asia and much more.
- The low-latency network processes data in less time, leading to high customer satisfaction
3. Big Data
- Google has many innovative tools for cloud warehousing like BigQuery and real-time data processing tools like Google Cloud Dataflow
- BigQuery is a data warehouse that enables massive processing of data at high speeds
- Google has also launched new machine learning and Artificial Intelligence tools
What Is Google Cloud Platform?
Google Cloud Platform is a set of cloud computing services that Google offers, which runs on the same infrastructure that Google uses for its end-user products, such as YouTube, Gmail, and more. Google Cloud Platform offers a variety of services, including:
- Compute
- Network
- Machine learning and AI
- Big data processing
Google Cloud Platform Components
Several components and services are an important feature of Google Cloud Platform; let’s dive into each one individually and learn more about what they provide.
1. Compute
The compute service enables compute and hosting the cloud. The various services under this are as follows:
- App Engine
- Compute Engine
- Kubernetes Engine
- Cloud Functions
- Cloud Run
2. Storage and Database
The storage and database service enables the application to store media files, backups, or other file-like objects. The services include:
- Cloud Storage
- Cloud SQL
- Cloud Bigtable
- Cloud Spanner
- Cloud Datastore
3. Networking
The networking service enables us to load-balance traffic across resources, create DNS records, and much more. Some of the services include:
- VPC
- Cloud Load Balancing
- Cloud Armor
- Cloud CDN
- Cloud Interconnect
- Cloud DNS
- Network Service Tiers
4. Big Data
The big data service enables us to process and query big data in the cloud. A few of the included services are the following::
- BigQuery
- Cloud Dataproc
- Cloud Datalab
- Cloud Data Studio
5. Developer Tools
The developer tools service includes tools that enable software and application development.
- Artifact Registry (beta)
- Cloud SDK
- Cloud Code
- CloudBuild
- Cloud Scheduler
- Cloud Tasks
6. Identity and Security
This service deals with security and authentication:
- Cloud Identity
- Cloud IAM
- Cloud Data Loss Prevention API
- Security Key Enforcement
7. Internet of Things(IoT)
You can leverage GCP to create IoT environments with the following tools:
- Cloud IoT Core
- Edge TPU
- Cloud IoT
8. Cloud AI
Cloud AI comprises services related to machine learning, which also encompasses:
- Cloud AutoML
- Cloud Natural Language
- Cloud Speech-to-Text
- Cloud Text-to-Speech
- Cloud Translation API
- Cloud Vision API
- Cloud Video Intelligence
9. Management Tools
This domain includes services related to management and monitoring. The services under this are as follows:
- Cloud Deployment Manager
- Cloud Console
- Cloud Shell
- Cloud APIs
10. API Platform
The few services under this are as follows:
- Maps Platform
- Developer Portal
- API Analytics
- Apigee Sense
- Cloud Endpoints
Ferrero Use Case
Ferrero is one of the most famous chocolate brands and ranks third among worldwide chocolate and confectionery producers. It was founded in 1946 in Italy.
Challenges
- Ferrero is sold in nearly every supermarket and is known for its high quality. As the success of the brand increased, several challenges arose
- The company needed data storage, processing, and an analysis system for their vast customer database
- There was a significant gap between the company and its customers because the company relied on data provided by third-party sales partners and distributors
- Ferrero wanted to create a digital ecosystem where there was a direct point of contact with its customers and also a foundation for an innovative, data-driven marketing strategy
Solution
- BigQuery was the answer to Ferrero’s challenges since it was capable of super-fast and efficient data analysis
- Using Google Cloud Platform’s BigQuery, business analysts at Ferrero were able to store and analyze massive data sets in a very reliable, fast, and affordable manner
- Reports on consumer behavior and sales patterns were easy to build and automate
- The analysis also enabled Ferrero to adapt advertising across various marketing channels to serve the customers’ needs in a better way
Result
- Ferrero could divide its database into real-time, actionable consumer clusters to generate more accurate user profiles
- Ferrero also personalized its marketing strategies to match the users’ preferences and needs
- Google Cloud Platform completely tailored the website, mobile content, and advertising
- Google Cloud Platform created very cost-effective media buying strategies
I highly recommend GCP to anyone looking to gain a deeper understanding of GCP. It’s a valuable investment of time and money, and I’m confident you’ll come away with the skills and confidence to succeed in your field.
I recently completed GCP and I must say it was an incredible learning experience! The course was well-structured, easy to follow, and covered everything in this course.
The instructor,Navin Gupta, was knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and provided excellent support throughout the course. The video lessons were engaging, and the hands-on exercises helped me apply the concepts to real-world scenarios.