Which characteristic allows resources in cloud computing to be dynamically allocated and released?

The correct answer is rapid elasticity, which refers to the ability of cloud computing resources to be dynamically scaled up or down based on demand. This characteristic allows organizations to easily adjust their resource consumption in response to changes in workload, ensuring that they have access to the necessary computing power when needed while not incurring unnecessary costs during periods of low demand.

Rapid elasticity enables users to allocate sufficient resources to handle peak loads and subsequently release them when they are no longer required. This dynamic allocation and release of resources are fundamental to the cloud model, as it promotes efficiency and flexibility, ensuring that resources are used optimally.

Other characteristics like self-service, resource pooling, and metered service play important roles in the cloud computing environment but do not specifically address the ability to automatically and dynamically adjust resource allocation in real-time based on varying demands. Self-service allows users to provision their own resources without requiring human intervention, resource pooling refers to the provider’s ability to serve multiple customers using a shared pool of resources, and metered service keeps track of resource usage for billing purposes. However, it is rapid elasticity that directly enables the dynamic allocation and release of resources.