What is the difference between IaaS, PaaS, and SaaS?

Answer

These are the three main cloud service models, distinguished by how much the provider manages. **IaaS** (Infrastructure as a Service) provides raw compute, storage, and networking, such as virtual machines, leaving the operating system and applications to you. **PaaS** (Platform as a Service) adds a managed runtime and tooling so you deploy code without managing servers. **SaaS** (Software as a Service) delivers fully managed applications over the internet, where you only configure and use the software. The trade-off is control versus operational burden: IaaS gives the most control, SaaS the least.