In a cloud environment, which term describes the process of dynamically allocating resources as needed?

The term that describes the process of dynamically allocating resources as needed is elasticity. In the context of cloud computing, elasticity allows for the automatic provision of computing resources in response to changing demand. This means that when there is an increase in workload, additional resources can be provisioned automatically, and when the demand decreases, those resources can be released, thus optimizing the use of resources and controlling costs.

Elasticity is a key characteristic of cloud services, enabling businesses to efficiently manage their applications and workloads without the need for manual intervention to scale resources up or down. This dynamic provisioning ensures that an organization can respond promptly to variations in workload demand, maintaining performance levels without overcommitting resources.

Scalability, while related, refers more to the capability of a system to handle an increased load by adding resources horizontally (adding more machines) or vertically (adding power to existing machines). Virtualization refers to the creation of virtual versions of physical resources, allowing multiple virtual machines to run on a single physical server, but does not inherently involve dynamic resource allocation. Redundancy pertains to the duplication of critical components or functions to increase reliability but does not directly address the allocation of resources based on demand.