CCSP Cloud Concepts, Architecture, and Design Practice Question
A company wants to migrate its customer relationship management (CRM) system to the cloud and requires that the provider manages the underlying infrastructure, operating system, and middleware, while the company manages only the application and data. Which cloud service model best meets these requirements?
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Platform as a Service (PaaS)
In PaaS, the provider manages the infrastructure, OS, and middleware; the customer manages applications and data. IaaS would require the customer to manage OS and middleware; SaaS would have the provider manage applications as well.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Software as a Service (SaaS)
Why it's wrong here
In SaaS, the provider manages everything except customer data and access.
- ✓
Platform as a Service (PaaS)
Why this is correct
PaaS provides a managed platform where the customer focuses on applications and data.
- ✗
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Why it's wrong here
In IaaS, the customer manages OS, middleware, and applications.
- ✗
Function as a Service (FaaS)
Why it's wrong here
FaaS is a subset of PaaS focused on serverless functions; not the best fit for a full CRM system.
Quick reference
Cloud Service Model Comparison
| Model | You Manage | Provider Manages | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| IaaS | OS, runtime, apps, data | Hardware, hypervisor, networking | EC2, Azure VMs, GCP Compute Engine |
| PaaS | Apps and data | OS, runtime, middleware, hardware | Elastic Beanstalk, Azure App Service |
| SaaS | Data and settings only | Everything else | Microsoft 365, Salesforce, Workday |
| FaaS / Serverless | Function code only | Infra, scaling, runtime | Lambda, Azure Functions, Cloud Run |
| CaaS | Containers and apps | Kubernetes, OS, hardware | EKS, AKS, GKE |
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