Forward-thinking companies are turning to a hybrid mix of cloud services for the combined benefits of both public and private clouds. According to the 2019 State of the Cloud Report by RightScale, enterprises with a hybrid cloud strategy have grown 58% in 2019, which means that enterprises now recognize how versatile a hybrid cloud model is as support for their IT environments. Why are companies doing this? Here are some benefits of using hybrid clouds.
1. Security
On a private cloud, cloud computing resources are exclusively used and controlled by one company, while public cloud resources are owned and operated by third-party cloud service providers and delivered over the internet.
Public clouds are fundamentally more vulnerable to cyberattacks and various forms of data leakage than a private network. But with a hybrid cloud model, companies can leverage the security of a private cloud with the power and services of a public cloud as long as it is implemented correctly.
A private server can provide an additional firewall and allow administrators to monitor the cloud at a much higher level, allowing faster detection of compromised information. This is especially useful when your business handles sensitive customer data like social security numbers and payment information. In fact, a private cloud is often required to follow regulations on certain sensitive data.
2. Control
The hybrid cloud model gives IT decision makers greater control over both their private and public environments, enabling them to configure their network to best suit business needs.
Companies can pick and choose which data should be stored on a private server, for example, sensitive customer information and business-critical operations, while other forms like web-based emails and low-security reports can be stored on a public server. The IT staff has direct control over the structure of a private cloud, so they can still manage the access to that data and establish strict protocols for how critical assets will be managed.
Control across the hybrid cloud helps efficiently start and stop workloads and the apps associated with them. Automation is a key catalyst of end-to-end control because it provides an efficient means of scheduling resources and performing other functions associated with resource allocation.
3. Cost savings
Businesses can see cost savings in hybrid clouds. For example, when a garment business suddenly has a surge of orders during peak season, they can leverage public cloud offerings to offload some of the heavy usages and only pay for it when they need it. Companies can also procure standby resources or cheap public cloud resources for backup and disaster recovery plans.
Fewer on-premises servers mean lower energy consumption from powering and cooling the servers, thereby lowering energy bills. This also mean less management, which leads to more effective use of human resources.
Smart businesses also need to back up their website and data regularly, and hybrid clouds make these provisions possible without much added cost.
4. Storage
The storage space in the cloud is nearly infinite. Companies can decide how long they want to retain data locally based on their scalability needs. Restore files with ease whether they are on- or off-site, so you don’t need to worry about losing access to your data. This offers a great benefit to smaller businesses, in particular, because the cloud provides extra storage, especially if your local backup device has limited storage.
To embrace the hybrid model, organizations must understand how their established IT components will connect with the two clouds and how this new approach will bolster all business applications. It’s a tricky process that will go smoother with expert help from Simplified IT Consulting. Give us a call now.
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