Hardware as a Service

What Does Hardware as a Service Mean?

Hardware as a service (HaaS) refers to managed services or grid computing, where computing power is leased from a central provider. In each case, the HaaS model is similar to other service-based models, where users rent, rather than purchase, a provider’s tech assets.

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Techopedia Explains Hardware as a Service

HaaS serves the following purposes in managed services:

  • Involves a contract for the maintenance and administration of hardware systems. This type of service may be remote or on site, depending on the hardware setup requirements.
  • Helps users manage hardware licensing requirements.

In collective computing environments, HaaS participants often use Internet Protocol (IP) connections to utilize the computing power of remote hardware. A user sends data to a provider, and the provider’s hardware performs necessary actions to the data and then sends back the results. These types of agreements help individual businesses lease computing power, rather than invest in additional on-site hardware.

Some of the most popular types of HaaS models are classified as cloud computing services, in which data storage media and even active computing hardware are components of a remotely provisioned service for users.

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Margaret Rouse

Margaret Rouse is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical, business audience. Over the past twenty years her explanations have appeared on TechTarget websites and she's been cited as an authority in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine and Discovery Magazine.Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages. If you have a suggestion for a new definition or how to improve a technical explanation, please email Margaret or contact her…