SaaS App Development Plays Hide-and-Seek With The ‘Cloud’

‘Cloud’ is just not the fluffy white thing above us. ‘Cloud Computing Platforms’ allow enterprises to comply with flexibility and manage risk and add SaaS to their portfolios of IT Services!

Creating and Managing cloud revolves around how you want your application to be, how will you manage it yourself, and how much help you need to get it through. With a spotlight on SaaS, here’s how the infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS) compare in terms of how it plays how in development.

[Please Note: We’ve emphasized ‘Cloud Computing Platforms/Environments’ as ‘Cloud’]

What is SaaS Application?

SaaS works through the cloud delivery model. It is a subset of cloud computing. But all SaaS models are not built on the cloud. A software provider hosts the application on his own servers, using the database, networking and computing resources or on the provider’s data center.
SaaS applications can be created on local servers and then deployed on cloud-based servers. Such SaaS applications are then accessed via web browsers.

What is SaaS Multi-Tenant Architecture?

SaaS applications can be built using single-tenant as well as multi-tenant architecture. It is a business structure in which many organizations share the same software to store data. In a multitenant architecture, a single instance of the software can be used by multiple customers. Each customer shares the same database and application. Multitenant architecture in cloud computing allows users to share computing resources in a public or private cloud. Simultaneously, every client is isolated from each other and remains invisible to other tenants. Offerings of one tenant are unknown to other tenants.

Where are SaaS applications hosted?

The application layer enables hosting for tenants (clients) and is primarily delivered for software as a service application (SaaS Apps).

Top Frameworks for SaaS Development in 2023

Stretching a traditional application to the cloud takes time, effort, money. Choosing a framework to develop an application on web and mobile platforms becomes the first step in such cases. SaaS business frameworks are flexible, scalable, transparent, and easily integrable with third-party applications. Symfony, Docker, ReactJS, Angular, Laravel, Vue.js, jQuery, Express.js, and Django are the best SaaS frameworks in 2023.

What benefits do SaaS apps offer?

Top SaaS companies chose this model due to following benefits:

• SaaS apps do not require any installation or setup.
• These can be scaled on-demand.
• They follow a flexible payment model.
• These can be accessed anytime, anywhere.
• Continuous development and improvement offer instant insights to customers about the most recent updates.
• Test the SaaS app before buying the subscription. SaaS apps enable a 3D view of all the functions and features before asking the users to commit.
• User data protection is a priority with SaaS app development.
• These are accessible to enterprise software.
• These can be accessible to any kind of user or business.
• SaaS software gives relevant insights into performance and workflows.
• App data is available globally without the need to stay connected to a specific workstation.
• It removes the need to deal with technical issues of physical computers.
• SaaS apps are hosted on the remote servers by third-party providers.
• SaaS apps are easy to customize, update, and monitor.
• It is based on single/multitenant architecture.
• There are no performance and maintenance problems.
• Customers need to subscribe (pay a certain fee) for the usage period only.

How does a SaaS Model work?

SaaS applications are sometimes called hosted software. Cloud computing transmits an application to multiple customers, irrespective of the location. It is based on a web-based delivery model, which does not require downloading/installing an app on each computer. In this case, vendors will require managing technical issues related to storage, servers, middleware, and data. It results in streamlined support and maintenance for the concerned organization. The most common examples of SaaS apps are (1) Email collaboration, (2) Calendaring, (3) Customer relationship management (CRM), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), and Document Management. Companies can choose to subscribe according to their level of usage.

How to go about SaaS App Development?

• Conduct market analysis, which involves checking on competitors and potential clients.
• Select an app monetization model
• Plan for security and reliability in advance
• Plan for 3rd-party integration
• Select an impressive technology stack
• Build a minimum viable product (MVP)
• Start the development

How do SaaS vs IaaS vs PaaS differ?

Application or infrastructure deployment can essentially be processed through

(1) Software as a Service (SaaS) – Software that is available through third parties over the internet
(2) Platform as a Service (PaaS) – Includes hardware and software tools available over the internet.
(3) Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) – Includes storage, virtualization, and networking.

All these three cloud computing models differ in concept, variances, and benefits. Every cloud models have its specific features and function accordingly. Irrespective of the cloud-based software for storage, a smooth platform allows for creating customized applications or imparting complete control over the entire infrastructure without having to maintain the hardware individually. But Regardless of which option you choose, cloud infrastructure is the future of business and technology. Popular examples of industries that are directly benefitting from rapid-scale cloud computing solutions: Real estate, Production, Hospitality, Insurance, Healthcare, Financial, Education, Automotive.

Points of Difference	Software as a Service (SaaS)	Platform as a Service (PaaS)	Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
What is it?	Software as a service is also known as cloud application service. It is the most common cloud computing model adopted by businesses. SaaS applications directly run through a web browser and do not require downloads and install on the client side.	A Platform as a service is also called a cloud platform service and it offers a framework to build custom applications. It calls enterprises and third-party providers to manage all servers, networking, and storage.	Infrastructure as a service also known as cloud infrastructure helps monitor computers, networks, and storage, and allows businesses to purchase resources on demand and as needed instead of having to buy hardware.
What is the advantage?	SaaS applications reduce the time and money spent on tedious tasks like installing, managing and upgrading software; and allow developers to focus on more important matters.	PaaS applications can be developed at less cost and can be deployed fast. These are scalable, highly available, customizable, reduce coding effort, automate business policies, and can be easily migrated to the hybrid model.	This is the most flexible cloud computing model. It is easy to automate, easy to network, easy to deploy and has enormous processing power. It might require you to buy hardware based on your needs, to scale the business.
What are the main features?	SaaS apps can be managed from one central location. These are accessible over the internet and hosted on a remote server. All the updating is done on the server and remote clients are not responsible.	PaaS applications are built on virtualization technology so that the resources can easily be scaled up or down when required. It provides numerous services to assist with the development, testing, and deployment of apps. It seamlessly integrates with web services and databases.	IaaS is the most flexible cloud computing model. It makes it easy to automate the deployment of storage, networking, and processing power, and servers. It enables buying hardware resources on-demand to scale the business.
When to use?	It can be implemented by startups; for short-term projects, when saving costs is the priority, for the apps that are not often required like taxation software. It is suitable for apps that need both mobile and web access.	PaaS streamlines workflows, speeds up development, and imparts flexibility to the entire project. It reduces costs and simplifies any development challenges.	Use IaaS within your business model when you are unsure how your app will play out. The cost factor is indecisive. Also when you feel like scaling your services with the competition. When you know that multiple users will be using a single piece of software. When your requirements are dynamic and you plan to change accordingly.
Example	Google Workspace, Dropbox, Salesforce, Cisco WebEx, Concur, GoToMeeting	Windows Azure, AWS Elastic Beanstalk, Heroku, Google App Engine, Force.com, Apache Stratos, OpenShift	Linode, DigitalOcean, Google Compute Engine (GCE), Rackspace, Cisco Metapod, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure

What is XaaS: Everything as a Service

XaaS offerings are controlled in its entirety by clients. It allows businesses to innovate, and sustain the sale beyond the initial product purchase. It is a critical enabler of the autonomous digital enterprise.

Other similar services include: (1) AI as a service, (2) Database as a service, (3) Business Process Management as a service (BPMaaS), (4) Functions as a service and (5) Testing as a service

Which technologies are involved in SaaS App Development?

IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS are based on a shared responsibility model.

Cloud Provider	Cloud Consumer
Physical Infrastructure Network Virtualization	Operating System Application Data Service Configuration

Cloud migration simulators help in migrating a traditional application to the cloud. It reduces the time, complexity, and cost of cloud migrations and improves the accuracy of the planning with the Cloud Migration Simulator. It lets you compare the costs and resource requirements of leading service providers to evaluate and right-size workload migrations.

In Conclusion: You’re In Control – Match IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS to your Needs

Software As A Service (SaaS) proclaim that the mobile app development solutions have to pay annual, half-yearly, quarterly, and monthly fees instead of buying a license to use the service. It greatly differs from other cloud computing models like PaaS, IaaS, and XaaS. You do not have to install a SaaS application on your system; you can simply access it via mobile phone or your web browser. SaaS apps are globally accessible via internet connection. The users can still use the app while the app is in development, beta, production, common build environment, testing environment, analysis and design environment. The developers can simultaneously work on the updates. Cloud infrastructure makes SaaS apps accessible – to be deployable in both private and public clouds.

Top Mobile app development companies offer high-end SaaS Development services to enterprises to build successful offerings for their customers at affordable costs. Follow us to stay updated with the best SaaS development companies!