> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://experience-digital-transform.gitbook.io/experience-digital-transformation/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://experience-digital-transform.gitbook.io/experience-digital-transformation/cloud-for-dpi/chapter-2/four-distinctions-to-keep-in-view.md). # Four distinctions to keep in view **Cloud is an operating environment, not a public service.** Cloud provides technical capacity and managed capabilities. The public service is the journey that residents, businesses or staff must be able to complete. An environment can be available while a service remains unusable because identity, data or an external connection has failed. **IaaS is a foundation, not an application platform.** IaaS provides controlled compute, storage, networking and identity boundaries. A platform uses those conditions to give application teams a more consistent way to run and connect their components. A team can use IaaS without a shared container platform, and it can use a platform that hides some IaaS detail. The layers still depend on one another. **A container is a package, not a recovery answer.** Containers make it easier to run and replace application components consistently. They do not restore records, repair identity relationships or decide whether users can safely continue a public process. Kubernetes helps coordinate containers, but it cannot provide capacity, data integrity or public accountability by itself. **A shared capability is useful only when its dependencies are understood.** Identity, notification, payment and data exchange can save many teams from rebuilding the same function. They also connect the reliability of several services. The question is not whether sharing is good or bad. It is whether the organisation understands the common dependency, knows who operates it and has credible arrangements when it fails. A dependable cloud environment is a set of connected conditions that let public services operate, change and recover while keeping sight of the people who depend on them. --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the following URL with the `ask` and `goal` query parameters: ``` GET https://experience-digital-transform.gitbook.io/experience-digital-transformation/cloud-for-dpi/chapter-2/four-distinctions-to-keep-in-view.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is what the user is ultimately trying to achieve, the reason they need the answer. Sharing it helps GitBook give you a better, more relevant answer. A goal is most helpful when it describes the outcome the user wants rather than restating the question. For example, with `ask=how do I create an API token`, a goal like `automate deployments from our CI pipeline` lets GitBook tailor the answer to that use case. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.