We're used to hearing about cloud computing, multi-cloud, and hybrid cloud. Now we can add "super cloud" and "sky computing" to the list of phrases that describe the next ten years of computing.

Even though it's hard to believe, given how common cloud computing
is now, it's only been natural for the past ten years or so. But at the time, it changed the way people thought about IT networking and infrastructure.

In the simplest terms, it means giving users access to computer storage, processing power, and applications through the Internet so they don't have to buy, install, and maintain their hardware and software.

In that time, we've seen a multi-cloud rise, where businesses and organizations pick and choose services from different cloud providers, and hybrid cloud, where both cloud and on-premises solutions deliver infrastructure.

But technology is always getting better, and recently, new terms like "supercloud" and "sky computing" have come up to describe what the next step in the development of "infrastructure as a service" might be.
But what do they mean, and what benefits do they give businesses and other groups? Let's take a closer look at them and look at some of the ways they could be used.

What Are Supercloud and Sky Computing?

These terms mean the same thing: the next step in the evolution of cloud computing, which will be spread out among many providers. It will combine other models, such as edge computing, into a single user experience and infrastructure. "Distributed cloud" and "meta cloud" are two different names that are sometimes used.

This is necessary because, even though many companies have moved to multi-cloud, the different cloud providers sometimes need to work better together. In other words, a business that wants to use multiple clouds may have to manage multiple cloud environments, each acting in some way like a separate entity. For example, this can make it hard to move applications or data from one cloud to another.

The supercloud concept suggests adding another layer of abstraction that works the same way no matter what cloud platforms are running below it. This is the supercloud, where applications can run in containers or virtual machines and connect to any cloud platform below.

The result is separate cloud environments that work as if connected, letting software, apps, and data move freely between them.

This means a business could have service contracts with Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure. The infrastructure could then be changed through the supercloud interface to move services between these platforms or servers in different parts of the world as needs change.

This could be helpful when services need to be sent to a new group of users in a new area or when a particular data center gets too busy. The whole application can be "lifted and moved" to a new data center or cloud provider that is more convenient.

In many deployments, supercloud combines the best parts of hybrid and multi-cloud, giving access to on-premises infrastructure and other models like edge computing. The important thing is that it can be accessed and used through a single user interface. This means the user doesn't need to know where the data is stored, or the applications are running; they always have the same experience.

As well as making internal infrastructure, systems, and processes easier to manage, moving to supercloud models should make it easier for companies to share tools and data with clients and partners, even if they use different platforms.

What's Hard About Supercloud and Sky Computing?
Security is one of the biggest problems with setting up supercloud infrastructure. This is because different cloud providers might use other security protocols, and any data or apps that need to work across multiple providers will need to be set up in a way that works with all of them.

When you use more cloud services, there are more places where your data could be exposed to possible security breaches. Creating automated solutions that run in the supercloud layer to offer protection no matter what cloud service or on-premises infrastructure is used will be a top priority for those building the foundations for supercloud systems.

At its core, cloud computing is meant to be the last step on the road to making IT infrastructure like any other commodity. Ion Stoica and Scott Shenker, two professors at the University of California, Berkley, wrote a paper in 2021 called "From Cloud Computing to Sky Computing" that explains this goal.