Cloud meets the edge

One of Gartner’s top 10 strategic technology trends for 2018 is edge computing, a computing topology in which information processing, and content collection and delivery, are placed closer to the sources of this information. Connectivity and latency challenges, bandwidth constraints and greater functionality embedded at the edge favors distributed models. Enterprises, particularly those with significant IoT elements, should begin using edge design patterns in their infrastructure architectures, says the US research firm.

While many view cloud and edge as competing approaches, cloud is a style of computing where elastically scalable technology capabilities are delivered as a service and does not inherently mandate a centralised model.

David Cearley, vice president and Gartner Fellow says, “When used as complementary concepts, cloud can be the style of computing used to create a service-oriented model and a centralised control and coordination structure with edge being used as a delivery style allowing for disconnected or distributed process execution of aspects of the cloud service.”