The cloud computing and SaaS markets are booming. Forrester Research has estimated that come 2020, the cloud computing market will be a $241 billion behemoth. While a host of cloud vendors have already made a big splash both in the market and with the IT channel, there are a handful of companies that are well on their way to being just as well-known.

These emerging vendors are tackling cloud computing and SaaS from all angles, whether it is through cloud management or a suite of software apps. The cloud computing and SaaS markets show no signs of slowing, so get in on the ground floor and get to know these emerging cloud vendors now.

Abiquo is rounding up a cadre of partners and MSPs to spread the word about its cloud management software — which it says changes the management processes of virtualized environments in a fashion that is hypervisor-agnostic and standards-based.

With its MeghaWare software products, CloudOptix enables multivendor public or private clouds and lets users and partners connect and unify them into a custom hybrid solution. MeghaWare opens the door for various partners to target the hybrid cloud model.

CloudPassage kicks cloud security up a notch by offering SaaS plays to secure cloud servers. The company’s Halo offerings give users and partners the ability to protect servers across various types of clouds, whether they are private, public or hybrid.

CloudSwitch’s goal is clear: It wants users to run enterprise applications in the cloud simply and securely in the same way they manage on-premise apps and without the need for re-architecting; and it has assembled a team of partners to get it done.

The brainchild of ex- Amazoners, Nimbula calls itself a cloud OS and its Infrastructure-as-a-Service software offering, Nimbula Director, was built to deliver Amazon-like services to enterprises and service providers by enabling management of on- and off-premise resources.

OS33 targets MSPs with its cloud computing IT delivery automation platform. The company’s goal is to arm MSPs with tools to deploy, host and sell cloud offerings and manage, provision and deploy cloud applications via a single Web interface.

SOASTA has made a splash in the past several months with its CloudTest play, which comes in several flavors and gives users and partners the ability to test the performance levels of cloud environments, whether they are public, private or hybrid.

Taleo’s cloud-based talent management platform combines its ondemand talent management tools with a huge ecosystem of customers, partners and candidates to let firms bulk up business through talent acquisition, performance and compensation management.

Veracode wants security VARs to offer its cloud-based application risk management offerings that leverage its binary code analysis, dynamic Web assessments and developer e-learning for accurate and affordable verification of application security without pricey tools or source code.

From CRM to Web conferencing, Zoho.com’s 22 online applications hit the business, productivity and collaboration sweet spots. Zoho Applications are used to run business processes and manage information all from the cloud, without bulky hardware or software.