# What is cloud computing? Cloud computing, often referred to as simply β€œthe cloud,” is the delivery of on-demand computing resources β€” everything from applications to data centers β€” over the internet on a pay-for-use basis. * Elastic resources: Scale up or down quickly and easily to meet changing demand. * Metered services: Pay only for what you use. * Self-service: Find all the IT resources you need, with self-service access. As the cloud has gained popularity and acceptance in the computing world, more and more businesses are making the switch. In fact, [75 percent of existing non-cloud apps](https://www.ibm.com/cloud/cloud-native-research/) will move to the cloud within the next three years. Cloud computing benefits continuously evolve with the addition of new services, the conducting of uncompromising research and the creation of innovations that relentlessly push the boundaries of the underlying technology and architecture. [Seven benefits of cloud](https://www.ibm.com/cloud/cloud-native-research/) from an enterprise architecture standpoint: * Cost efficiency * Choice * Scale: flexibility and elasticity * Speed * Integration * Audit and compliance * Business continuity planning While cloud computing brings great opportunity, it can also introduce challenges for business leaders and IT departments. By far, the most common disadvantages that continue to taint perceptions about cloud computing are security problems and inconsistent performance. The good news is that these challenges can be overcome with a cloud architecture built specifically for your workloads and through the efforts of a strong, reliable cloud service provider. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://tkssharma-devops.gitbook.io/devops-training/cloud-computing/what-is-cloud-computing.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.