Software as a service (SaaS) is a software distribution model where consumers are able to access software applications hosted by a service provider or vendor through a public network usually the Internet. SaaS hosting by an established vendor can facilitate easier administration, global accessibility, convenient customisation, automatic updates along with better collaboration and compatibility.

In the following paragraphs we shall look at SaaS, Saas Hosting, SaaS characteristics and the various benefits and advantages associated with it.

Software as a service (SaaS) Explained

Software as a service (or SaaS) is a licensing and delivery model that is delivered as a service over the Internet. What it means is that you no longer have to spend money and other resources purchasing, installing and maintaining software and applications.  The software and applications are hosted on the cloud and can be accessed through internet via any internet enabled device.

SaaS, also known as on-demand software or hosted software as such frees you from the tension and complexity of highly technical software and hardware management. It is the job of the SaaS hosting provider to manage access to the application along with its security, reliability, installation, upgradation, updation and availability among others.

Some of the major benefits and features of SaaS model are as following:

Multitenant Architecture

SaaS model employees a multitenant environment wherein the entire users as well as applications share have a common infrastructure and code base resulting in better administration and collaboration. As the SaaS vendors as well as the clients are on the same code base there is no wastage of time working with different codes. The development period for new codes is drastically cut down as the vendors can innovate more quickly and respond more adequately to the changing requirements.

Easy Customisation Process

This is one of the most prominent advantages of SaaS computing model. Users can easily modify and customise applications to meet their own unique needs and requirements. Because of the way SaaS is architected, customisation carried out by a company leaves other clients totally unaffected. This results in safer and reliable updates with lower risk and adaptation cost.

Some of the major benefits that can be had by hiring the services of a quality SaaS hosting providers are as following:

Pay for what you use—suppose you need any particular software for a limited period say four months. With SaaS you are allowed the freedom of paying for software for only for that period. This is unlike other service model where you have to pay for the entire software subscription charge at the time of purchase.

Cross device compatibility-- SaaS applications can be accessed via any internet enabled device. This is an important feature as Internet nowadays is accessed through a variety of devices like smart phones and tablets.

An established provider of SaaS hosting also offer the advantages of easy accessibility from anywhere, high levels of scalability,  automated updates in addition to free of charge setups and additional hardware installations.