The Cloud Makes Everything Easier, But Only If it’s Managed Properly

As an increasingly more important component of the modern technology infrastructure, the cloud can be a daunting new addition to any organization’s business strategy. Yet, many businesses still haven’t made the jump to the cloud, perhaps out of fear that their use of the cloud won’t significantly benefit them.

Basically, you can have an idea of how successful a cloud computing endeavor will be for your business, but you won’t know for sure until you take a risk and try it out for yourself. Many of the world’s top services, like Amazon and Netflix, have achieved mammoth success thanks to the advent of cloud computing. Your business can achieve a similar level of success in your chosen industry, but only if you’re willing to take new and daring risks with how you use your cloud solution.

That being said, you should still approach the cloud level-headedly by doing your research and understanding what exactly you want to achieve with your cloud solution. We recommend that you thoroughly consider each of these three unique cloud computing options.

The Public Cloud
Many SMBs are turning to the public cloud for their cloud computing needs. This is usually because the public cloud has the functionality that they need, without requiring the in-depth maintenance and management that an in-house computing system would require. This is the primary benefit of the public cloud; you get all of the base functionality of a cloud solution, without all of the hassle of managing it. Where it falls short, though, is the lack of additional security features that the private cloud offers.

Simply put, public cloud solutions are reliable, but by definition, pretty cookie-cutter. They are designed to support lots of customers and get a particular type of job done. The customers don’t have control over where specifically their data is hosted, what hardware it runs on, or how it’s protected.

The Private Cloud
Business owners who turn to the private cloud tend to be more controlling and security-minded than those who are fine with the public cloud. A private cloud tends to be hosted in-house on company hardware or managed externally at a secure data center. Private clouds offer more control over the configurations and setup of your cloud infrastructure, making it ideal for those who want to know exactly what’s going on with their cloud solution, and why. Plus, private clouds can be combined with additional security measures, like a Unified Threat Management (UTM) solution to optimize data protection, where the public cloud controls all of these things for you.

The Hybrid Cloud
Businesses that want the best of both the private cloud and public cloud have the option to use a hybrid cloud solution. These are designed with the ease-of-use of the public cloud in mind, but also allow for enhanced security management similar to the private cloud. It’s ideal for organizations that need a little bit of both, without compromising on functionality.

If you’re unsure about how your business should take advantage of the cloud, Preferred is happy to assist you. We can identify major pain points that can be addressed by cloud computing, and assist with the planning and implementation of your chosen hosted solution. To learn more, give us a call at 708-781-7110.