Cloud Storage and Object Storage Fundamentals

Study Flashcards Play Quiz

Questions and Answers

What happens to older versions of an object in Cloud Storage if versioning is not enabled?

New versions will always overwrite older versions.

What is the purpose of enabling versioning in Cloud Storage?

To keep a detailed history of modifications, including overwrites or deletes, of all objects in a bucket.

What is the primary concern when controlling access to stored data in Cloud Storage?

Ensuring security and privacy by controlling access to stored data.

What are the two components of an access control list (ACL) in Cloud Storage?

Scope (defines who can access and perform an action) and permission (defines what actions can be performed). Signup and view all the answers

What is object storage, and how does it differ from file storage and block storage?

Object storage is a computer data storage architecture that manages data as 'objects' and not as a file and folder hierarchy (file storage), or as chunks of a disk (block storage). Signup and view all the answers

What is the role of IAM in controlling user access to objects and buckets in Cloud Storage?

IAM roles are inherited from project to bucket to object, controlling user access. Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of lifecycle management policies in Cloud Storage?

To manage the cost of storing and retrieving large amounts of object data. Signup and view all the answers

What is contained in an object stored in object storage?

The packaged format contains the binary form of the actual data itself, as well as relevant associated meta-data (such as date created, author, resource type, and permissions), and a globally unique identifier. Signup and view all the answers

What is an example of a lifecycle management policy in Cloud Storage?

Deleting objects older than 365 days or keeping only the 3 most recent versions of each object in a bucket. Signup and view all the answers

What types of data are commonly stored as objects?

Data commonly stored as objects include video, pictures, and audio recordings. Signup and view all the answers

What is Cloud Storage, and what are its key features?

Cloud Storage is Google's object storage product, allowing customers to store any amount of data, and retrieve it as often as needed. It's a fully managed scalable service. Signup and view all the answers

What is the benefit of using versioning and lifecycle management policies together in Cloud Storage?

It allows for fine-grained control over data storage and retrieval, reducing costs. Signup and view all the answers

What are some primary use cases for Cloud Storage?

Primary use cases include serving website content, storing data for archival and disaster recovery, and distributing large data objects to end users via Direct Download. Signup and view all the answers

How are Cloud Storage files organized?

Cloud Storage files are organized into buckets. Signup and view all the answers

What is the significance of bucket location in Cloud Storage?

The ideal location for a bucket is where latency is minimized, such as storing data in a region closest to the majority of users. Signup and view all the answers

What is the nature of Cloud Storage objects, and how are changes made to them?

Cloud Storage objects are immutable, meaning they cannot be edited; instead, a new version is created with every change made. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Cloud Storage

Cloud Storage is a service that offers developers and IT organizations durable and highly available object storage.

Object Storage

Object storage is a computer data storage architecture that manages data as objects, not as a file and folder hierarchy or as chunks of a disk.
Objects are stored in a packaged format containing the binary form of the data, associated meta-data, and a globally unique identifier.
Meta-data examples include date created, author, resource type, and permissions.
Unique keys are in the form of URLs, enabling interaction with web technologies.
Examples of data commonly stored as objects include video, pictures, and audio recordings.

Cloud Storage Features

Allows customers to store any amount of data and retrieve it as needed.
Fully managed scalable service with various uses, including serving website content, storing data for archival and disaster recovery, and distributing large data objects to end users via Direct Download.
Primary use is for binary large-object storage (BLOB) for online content, backup and archived data, and storage of intermediate results in processing workflows.

Buckets

Cloud Storage files are organized into buckets, which require a globally unique name and a specific geographic location for storage.
Ideal location for a bucket is where latency is minimized, such as a Google Cloud region or multi-region (e.g., EU multi-region) that matches the user base location.

Object Immutability and Versioning

Storage objects are immutable, with new versions created for every change made.
Administrators can choose to either allow each new version to overwrite the older one or keep track of each change made to a particular object by enabling versioning within a bucket.
With versioning, Cloud Storage keeps a detailed history of modifications (overwrites or deletes) of all objects contained in that bucket.
Versioning allows listing archived versions, restoring an object to an older state, or permanently deleting a version of an object.

Access Control and Security

Controlling access to stored data is essential to ensuring security and privacy.
IAM roles and access control lists (ACLs) help conform to security best practices, ensuring each user has access and permissions only to necessary resources.
IAM is sufficient for most purposes, with roles inherited from project to bucket to object.
ACLs provide finer control, consisting of a scope (who can access and perform an action) and a permission (what actions can be performed).

Lifecycle Management

Cloud Storage offers lifecycle management policies to control storage costs.
Examples include deleting objects older than 365 days, deleting objects created before a specific date, or keeping only the 3 most recent versions of each object in a bucket with versioning enabled.