Cloud orchestration: What is it and how does it work?

Cloud orchestration is the automated management and coordination of multiple cloud services and applications across various cloud platforms, unifying them into a seamless business process. It involves the orchestration engine, resource management, workflow automation, service integration, monitoring, security and policy enforcement, load balancing, and recovery and backup, all designed to optimize cloud operations and enhance performance. Unlike cloud automation, which focuses on automating specific tasks within a single environment, cloud orchestration handles complex interactions across multiple cloud systems. Tools like Kubernetes and Terraform cater to deep infrastructure management, while platforms like Zapier offer application-level orchestration without requiring extensive coding. Depending on the needs, businesses can implement single-cloud, multi-cloud, or hybrid cloud orchestration to ensure their cloud operations are efficient, coordinated, and resilient.