What is Cloud Storage?
Cloud storage refers to the transfer and storage of files from physical assets like hard drives to off-site data centers that are either managed by the company or third-party cloud service providers. In order to access the files, companies will need a reliable Internet connection or a private network connection. If you opt for cloud services provided by third-party service providers, they will take care of hosting, protecting, managing and maintaining the privacy and integrity of your data along with all necessary infrastructure in the data center.
More and more companies are choosing cloud storage over traditional alternatives such as on-premise hard drives or servers because it is significantly more cost-effective and scalable in the long run. With physical assets such as on-premise storage area networks (SANs) and servers, scalability, exorbitant costs and space deficits will always remain significant challenges. The same is not true of data centers, especially software-defined data centers that leverage virtualization to enable companies to benefit from practically limitless scalability and agility. Cloud storage services offer elastic scalability that enables companies to use more or less of the infrastructure bandwidth as per market demand. It removes the burden of capital expenditure from organizations, as there is no need to maintain humongous and complex in-house storage networks. It also means that companies only need to pay for the infrastructure capacity that they actually use, instead of wasting money behind maintaining idle servers on premise. If your data volume trends upwards over time, you may need to pay more. But even this rise is insignificant compared to the costs involved in over-provisioning storage networks irrespective of demand. To know more about the cost structure associated with cloud storage and management, please contact Cloud Direct Connect.
Top Cloud Storage Misconceptions
Cloud migration can be time and resource-intensive
Many companies can baulk at the thought of the effort involved in cloud migration. This hinders them to opt for cloud even if they are keen to enjoy its benefits. This is particularly true for companies that have a long history of backing up their data using physical assets. However, for companies that are hesitant to take the first step in cloud migration by themselves, there are plenty of cloud service providers out there that provide end-to-end management of cloud migration with on-demand support. They can even help train your existing staff and upskill them to leverage cloud technologies strategically. Reputed service providers such as Cloud migration solution can also help companies choose the relevant migration options, firewall configurations, identity options, reverse proxy requirements, and more.
Cloud only makes sense for large enterprises
This is simply untrue. In fact, small and medium-sized companies can actually benefit from cloud services even better because they can finally get access to a level playing field with their larger counterparts. With cloud services, any small company can get access to industry-leading tools and technologies that would otherwise be prohibitively expensive. There is also no upfront cost involved in setting up a scalable infrastructure anymore as cloud-based infrastructure can easily keep up with any demand and fluctuations in the market. Most importantly, SMBs can leverage Cloud cost optimization at highly economical rates (monthly flat fee or subscription) that is a nominal cost compared to maintaining in-house resources, data centers and infrastructure. This enables small companies to grow faster and makes perfect sense to even start out with cloud-native tools and applications for even faster deployment, agility and scalability. Most importantly, cloud offers significant security benefits to small and medium companies that often lack the technical expertise and budgets required to shore up their defenses and keep up with evolving threats.
On-premise delivers better security than cloud
Many companies can be iffy about having to share hardware with other organizations, storing highly sensitive information offsite in data centers managed by third parties and more. However, given the scale of cloud adoption globally, cloud service providers have been doing their utmost to regularly update and secure their infrastructure. Recent data has also pointed out that most of the security vulnerabilities that exist in the cloud are a result of not paying adequate attention to security configurations in the cloud and misconfigurations. Companies must understand that ensuring cloud security is a responsibility shared between them and the cloud service providers. The owners of protecting any company’s valuable data ultimately falls to the data owner. It is critical for organizations to understand that and ensure that they have the right security configurations and information access management (IAM) solutions in place in their cloud infrastructure. Any cloud service already offers industry-leading security features such as firewalls, encryption and physical security of assets. In fact, the reputation of cloud service providers often hinges on their capability to protect company assets. However, companies must also ensure that they have done their part in leveraging the security features and correctly configuring their cloud environments. Companies can also benefit from the additional advantage that they don’t need to overextend themselves on maintaining the virtual machines and applications that can be managed remotely. Cloud service providers take care of the day-to-day maintenance and optimization of all the hardware in the cloud server centers.
About Ben Ferguson:
Ben Ferguson is the Vice President and Senior Network Architect at Shamrock Consulting Group, an industry leader in digital transformation solutions. Since his departure from Biochemical research in 2004, Ben has built core competencies around cloud direct connects and cloud migration solutions, SD WAN providers, enterprise-wide area network architecture, high-density data center deployments, cybersecurity and VOIP telephony. Ben has designed hundreds of complex networks for some of the largest companies in the world and he’s helped Shamrock become a top partner of the 3 largest public cloud platforms for AWS, Azure and GCP consulting. Stay connected at LinkedIn.