Cloud computing - we hear the term almost daily. But really, what cloud computing is all this? That seems to be a common question. In June this year, TELUS and IDC Canada released a study on cloud computing which surveyed 200 executives and business managers and IT in large Canadian Canadian companies (over 500 employees) in a wide range of sectors industrial. The study found that 63% of Canadian companies surveyed did not have enough or only had a basic level of knowledge to make decisions on whether to use a cloud service or your IT department.A recent article by eweek.com also indicates that there is great confusion about cloud computing. The article refers to a recent study commissioned by Citrix Systems, which included more than 1,000 adults in the US The study showed that most respondents thought that the cloud is related to the weather. 51% of respondents believe that the weather could interfere with cloud computing. Despite the confusion, the study also found that 97% of respondents are using cloud services today with examples such as online banking, shopping, social networking and file sharing. In addition, 59% of respondents indicated that they believe the "workplace of the future" will be in the cloud that is somewhat contradictory to the prevalence of cloud computing today.
This earlier view reflects what we found among our own customers. Knowledge of cloud computing is relatively limited and, as a result, organizations may be missing important opportunities to make your business stronger by reducing costs and risk. Our hope is that this article gives an idea of cloud computing to help evaluate your fit your business needs.
What is cloud computing?
First, it is helpful to understand that the term cloud computing wine. Most likely it originated from the use of a cloud image to represent a networked computer environment or internet.
A quick search on Google reveals a number of definitions for cloud computing. I like a definition to take Wikipedia defines cloud computing as the delivery of computing as a service whereby shared resources, software and information are provided to computers and other devices as a utility, similar to the mains, through a network that is most often the internet.
What are the different models of cloud computing?
To resolve some of the confusion surrounding cloud computing, it is useful to understand the different models of cloud services, of which there are three - software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS) and infrastructure as a service (IaaS).
SaaS flavor is best known cloud service. SaaS is sometimes referred to as software on demand. With SaaS, software and associated data are hosted in the center and typically accessed via the Internet using a browser. What are some examples of SaaS? MailChimp, the application we use to distribute our newsletters, is an example. Google Apps is another example is like Dropbox, and the list continues to expand.
PaaS offers the delivery of a computing platform and necessary to facilitate the deployment of applications without having to invest in the cost and complexity of hardware and software solutions. Examples of PaaS include Microsoft Azure and Google App Engine.
The IaaS service model allows customers to avoid purchasing servers, software, data center space and network equipment. Such resources are provided as a fully outsourced service. Examples of IaaS include Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud and Rackspace.
In addition to various models of cloud services, it is useful to understand delivery models through which cloud computing is distributed. The main delivery models include public, private, community and hybrid.
A public cloud provides the infrastructure and solutions for the general public and is usually owned by a large organization selling cloud services.
A private cloud is designed exclusively for a single organization. A private cloud can be managed by the organization that uses it, or a third party, and infrastructure can be located on the user's site cloud or elsewhere.
A community cloud is shared by several organizations and supports a community of users, usually with some common interest, such as regulatory concerns.
A hybrid cloud model consists of two or more clouds, for example, a public and private cloud, linked by technology to facilitate data sharing and portability. Egnyte, file storage and sharing service, is an example of a hybrid computing solution in the cloud.
What are some of the benefits of cloud computing?
Earlier this year I participated in a seminar that featured a roundtable CFO comment on what you think are the main benefits of cloud computing. The benefits mentioned include the following:
cost savings over the implanted facilities
Access from anywhere at any time through an Internet connection
less reliance on IT support
cloud solutions are often faster to implement than on-site solutions
cloud solutions enables organizations tend to buy a larger and much more functional product that would be cost prohibitive if similar functionality was acquired through a cloud solution not on site
IT can focus more on value-added activities compared to the management of IT infrastructure due to changes in management infrastructure cloud provider
cloud solutions typically contribute to the following:
more timely financial information
Optimization of business processes
Connection with employees and allow staff to work remotely
What are some of the risks and problems associated with cloud computing?
Despite the benefits, there are a number of common problems associated with cloud computing. It is very important to carefully consider the risks that could affect your sensitive information, whether you are evaluating cloud or on-site solutions. In doing so, it is also important to assess the risks associated with cloud solutions in the context of similar risks it could cope with their own alternatives in place.
The most common concern is security. For smaller and medium-sized enterprises organizations, security solutions in the cloud is often better than the solutions in situ because solution providers reputable cloud can invest in the skill set and abilities to cope developing and emerging threats. Many small and medium-sized organizations rely on part-time IT support or do not have dedicated IT support at all. This, combined with the constantly changing IT risk, would tend to suggest that most small and medium organizations simply can not keep up with threats to their information assets. To address security concerns, a cloud provider reputable should be able to provide appropriate security to the following:
Access to Data - There should be a stronger authentication process that all users must go to access your data
- Data transmission should be encrypted as it travels from your local site for the service provider cloud
Red - Strong security must be in place to protect the network cloud provider
Physical access - The cloud provider must be able to demonstrate strong controls on physical access to their facilities, where data will reside
-The Safety data cloud provider must be able to provide assurance that their data is encrypted when it is "at rest" in the cloud
Privacy and Compliance - Your cloud provider must be able to provide security that can protect the privacy of your information and comply with relevant rules and laws that may be relevant to your organization.
The availability of cloud solutions is another concern. It is important to assess the impact of a cloud solution becomes unavailable due to circumstances such as an Internet outage or a technical failure by the cloud provider. Again, these concerns should be discussed in the appropriate context. Internet outages, especially the elongated cuts tend to be rare. Cloud providers reputable more frequently can demonstrate very high performance levels of uptime, and if problems are available specialized resources to address them. How this scenario compared to similar risks associated with its alternative in place? What is your experience with downtime with on-site solutions and can get timely 24/7 help if you have a critical problem? Availability risks can also be mitigated by using a hybrid cloud model. Egnyte previously referred to as an example of a hybrid cloud model for file sharing and storage. With this option, you must go down internet, you can still have a local copy of the data available.
Access to data is a concern arises in two contexts. One is how can I recover my data if I leave my cloud provider. Another is what will happen if my cloud provider goes bankrupt. An answer to these questions should be readily available in your cloud provider and must be specified in the contract end user. It is very important to consider what format your data will be available if you are looking to retrieve your cloud provider. Consider, for example, that if a solution cloud-based accounting is used, data may not always be in touch with you in the same format that has been introduced.