SaaS (Software as a Service) refers to the process of hosting software on a third-party server and making it available to consumers as an online service. Customers in corporate environments use business applications or productivity tools from a provider rather than from the personal data center operated by their direct employer. SaaS differs noticeably from the previous business model, which required customers to make a single, on-demand application purchase that requires their hosting, implementation, and maintenance.
The SaaS delivery model is supported by a multitenant architecture that allows the distribution of several copies of a particular application from one physical server. Also, with related modifications, information, and access management, each consumer or company has its version of the software, which is derived from a joint code base. This software can be repaired, upgraded, and monitored centrally. Consequently, the software can be downloaded by a large consumer base or for a small number of customers and charged annually or monthly. So companies or customers are not required to make substantial initial investments in a permanent license, start a time-consuming deployment, commit to years of upkeep, improvements, and support agreements, and use the software at a much lower cost.
