WHAT IS EDGE COMPUTING, PROS AND CONS OF EDGE COMPUTING

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Dec 22, 2020

What is Edge computing ?

Edge computing is a distributed computing paradigm that brings computation and data storage closer to the location where it is needed, to improve response times and save bandwidth

What is edge cloud?

Although the terms are used interchangeably, edge computing and edge cloud refer to slightly different things. Edge computing primarily refers to the physical compute infrastructure that is positioned on the spectrum between device and hyperscale cloud, and supports various applications. However, edge cloud is the virtualised infrastructure and business models on top of compute. And like cloud, edge cloud is flexible and scalable. Unlike static, on-premise servers, it has the capacity to handle sudden spikes in workloads from unplanned increases in end-user activity. It also helps scale when testing and deploying new applications so a great solution for enterprise. Again, the efficiency and scalability are cost benefits here. Telco edge is suited to applications that are mobile as it can scale up and down as well as move across different telco edge locations.

Does edge need 5G?

There is significant overlap in the use cases for both, such as AR and VR, autonomous cars, industry 4.0, IoT etc. Although edge computing supports these low latency applications, 5G enhances it by improving throughput and reducing latency. In some cases, we need both to achieve latency that’s below 10 milliseconds. But there are still challenges for 5G as telcos will deploy gradually at first and focus on major cities. For this reason it could undermine adoption of applications such as enterprise AR. Telcos can combine edge compute with 4G to create workarounds in areas where 5G is yet to be rolled out.

Edge computing vs cloud computing

Public cloud adoption has grown exponentially across enterprises so telcos that want to offer telco edge services should draw lessons from the cloud players’ success. Telcos shouldn’t see telco edge as a competitor to existing cloud solutions. Instead they should partner with existing players, for example AWS, Azure and Google, to create solutions that can be easily adopted. This could mean offering telco edge via a cloud provider platform. Telcos will also get value from being able to manage workloads up (to the cloud) and down (to the device or premises) seamlessly. Cloud computing is a catalyst for industrial transformation, edge computing should be a key part of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) planning to enable and accelerate digital transformation. Edge compute is an exciting area that’s gaining momentum. Telcos and vendors will need to consider the business models carefully if they’re to monetise the opportunities and apply the best edge solutions for their company.

Advantages:

It offers high speed, reduced latency better reliability which allows for quicker data processing and content delivery.
It offers better security by distributing processing, storage, and applications across a wide range of devices and data centers, which makes it difficult for any single disruption to take down the network.
It offers a far less expensive route to scalability and versatility, allowing companies to expand their computing capacity through a combination of IoT devices and edge data centers.

Disadvantages:

It requires more storage capacity.
Security challenges in edge computing is high due to huge amount of data.
It only analyse the data.
Cost of edge computing is very high.
It requires advanced infrastructure.