In cloud computing, a Federated Cloud refers to the interconnected cloud services from different providers that are managed as a single, unified computing environment. This model allows organizations to use and move between different cloud services as needed, increasing flexibility and reducing vendor lock-in.

Federated Cloud works by using standard APIs and protocols to allow different cloud services to communicate and work together. This can involve sharing data, coordinating tasks, or moving workloads between different cloud environments. It also enables benefits such as improved reliability (through redundancy), increased flexibility, and the ability to avoid vendor lock-in.

Consider a company that uses a public cloud service for its customer-facing applications due to its scalability and a private cloud for its internal applications due to its enhanced security.

By using a federated cloud model, the company can manage and coordinate these different cloud services as a unified platform. This means the company can take advantage of the best features of each cloud service, while managing them all as a cohesive system.