Distributed cloud refers to a form of cloud architecture where computing resources and servers are deployed across multiple physical locations. Each location acts as a small-scale data center that hosts cloud compute, storage, and networking resources. These distributed data centers can be centrally managed from a single control plane.
Unlike centralized clouds, which deliver services from servers located in a specific, centralized location, distributed clouds route client requests to geographically closer hosting locations. This reduces latency and improves service performance.
The rise of distributed cloud computing has partly been driven by the increase of edge computing applications: processing occurring near devices such as IoT sensors, IoT endpoints, or mobile clients. Processing workloads closer to the edge requires server infrastructure with low latency, making distributed cloud solutions increasingly important.
Distributed cloud architectures are sometimes confused with hybrid or multi-cloud deployments. Below are the primary technical differences:
Hybrid cloud typically combines at least one public cloud environment (shared infrastructure accessible by multiple users) with a private cloud or on-premises data center dedicated exclusively to one organization. In contrast, distributed cloud involves deploying cloud resources across multiple geographically dispersed locations specifically chosen for their proximity to user populations. Unlike hybrid cloud setups (which may include both public and private cloud resources, each typically located at a central data center), distributed cloud places resources physically near users to ensure proximity and low latency.
Multi-cloud deployments involve using multiple cloud service providers, often integrating several different architectures—including public cloud platforms, private clouds, Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), or combinations thereof—for diversified services or redundancy benefits. In multi-cloud scenarios, resources can often span multiple provider regions around the world, without necessarily focusing on geographic proximity. By contrast, distributed cloud specifically emphasizes deploying resources geographically closer to end users. Furthermore, in distributed cloud, multiple geographically distributed resource pools are typically managed through a unified control plane.
Distributed cloud environments offer several technical advantages:
By deploying cloud resources closer to the user, distributed cloud architectures significantly reduce latency, improve response times, and enhance overall application performance—beneficial for edge computing scenarios.
Global network outages or performance degradations can be difficult to fully prevent. However, a distributed cloud architecture can mitigate such risks by providing redundant locations and alternative connectivity options, significantly reducing potential disruption from localized network outages.
Despite geographic distribution, distributed clouds often utilize centralized control planes, streamlining administration across multiple locations. This single pane of control allows efficient management, reduced operational complexity, and ensures consistent service scalability.
By leveraging managed distributed cloud services, operational complexity, such as system design, deployment, and administrative overhead, can be significantly decreased. Comprehensive governance can be automated or administered centrally, thus simplifying compliance management and aiding organizations in adhering effectively to compliance standards.
Distributed cloud deployments are especially suited for scenarios involving strict location or regulatory constraints. Resources can be positioned to ensure compliance with region-specific data privacy regulations or to meet geographical usage restrictions.