Edge Computation and Cloud Computing Technology Comparison

At present, cloud computing is the trend of the industry. For cloud computing, all data must be aggregated into the back-end data center. In the role of "cloud, management, and end-point", cloud computing is more focused on "cloud" and is the place for ultimate data analysis and application.

However, in the edge calculations, the "edge" is the physical area where the "end" is located. In this area, if it is possible to provide resources such as network, calculation, and storage for the “end”, it is clear that real-time and other business needs can be easily satisfied. This is the biggest difference between “edge computing” compared to “cloud computing”. "Edge calculation" also puts special emphasis on the role of computing.

Cloud computing is a centralized computing service that leverages shared data center infrastructure and economies of scale to reduce costs in the simplest form. However, due to the number of router hops, packet delay caused by the introduction of virtualization technology or server delay in the data center is a key issue in cloud computing migration. The concept of edge computing has become increasingly hot in recent years, and edge computing is also an innovation driver in OpenStack. force.

Edge computing is a decentralized computing architecture that processes the operations of applications, data, and services from the central node of the network to the edge nodes of the network logic. The edge operations are originally completely decomposed by the central node to handle large services, cut into smaller and more manageable parts, and distributed to edge nodes for processing. The edge node is closer to the user terminal device, which can speed up the data processing and transmission speed and reduce the delay.

Edge computing covers a very wide range of technologies, including peer-to-peer, grid computing, fog computing, blockchain, and content delivery networks (CDN). Edge computing is very popular in the mobile space and is now almost everywhere.

In many cases, edge computing and cloud computing are symbiotic. With the development and application of technologies such as Internet of Things, virtual reality, and augmented reality, there will be data explosion in the future. Relying solely on cloud computing for data transmission and processing will cause huge network delays. Edge computing will process data at the edge nodes to effectively reduce data transmission and processing, but remote storage through cloud computing is still crucial.

Cloud computing carries the high expectations of the industry. The industry generally believed that the future computing function will be completely on the cloud. However, with the growth of access devices, the bandwidth becomes more and more difficult when transmitting data and obtaining information. Especially with the development of the Internet of Things, cloud computing cannot meet the needs of the growth of networked devices and smart devices. With distributed edge computing, transmitting data between different devices through smart routing and other devices and technologies can effectively reduce network traffic and reduce data center load.