Platform as a Service, often simply referred to as PaaS, is a category of cloud computing that provides a platform and environment to allow developers to build applications and services over the internet. PaaS services are hosted in the cloud and accessed by users simply via their web browser.
Software developers, web developers and businesses can all benefit from PaaS:
- Software developers can take advantage of a PaaS solution to build an application which they are planning to offer over the internet or software to be sold out of the box
- Web developers can use individual PaaS environments at every stage of the process to develop, test and host their websites
- Businesses can develop their own internal software, particularly to create distinct ring-fenced development and testing environments
