Cloud computing has completely changed the landscape of enterprise network environments. In fact, it has become a necessity for the modern-day enterprise. More and more businesses are turning to the hybrid cloud model. This is a mixture of on-premises private cloud and public cloud services. In this setup, workloads move between on-premises and public cloud deployments as computing needs and costs change. The hybrid cloud gives businesses more flexibility and more data deployment options.
Here are the top five hybrid cloud benefits.
1. Control
The hybrid cloud allows enterprises to have the privacy of the private cloud and the convenience of the public cloud. They don’t have to entrust all aspects of IT infrastructure to a third-party cloud provider. IT staff get to retain control of the critical processes and deal with the day-to-day management and maintenance of infrastructure.
2. Speed
A hybrid cloud is not necessarily faster than a purely public or private cloud. However, it allows IT to minimize latency and makes it much easier for data to get where it should be. Hybrid cloud environments can take advantage of edge computing architecture to speed up and locate critical services closer to users.
Normally, public clouds have to spread their resources to meet the needs of as many customers as possible. On the other hand, private clouds can be more purpose-built to minimize resource demands. Off-loading noncritical operations to a public cloud makes this possible. Users can, then, customize the private cloud portion of the hybrid cloud to help them get things done faster.
3. Security
Keeping data safe is usually a challenge in any networked IT setup. This is particularly true for public clouds even though providers go to great lengths to secure customer data. The problem is that public clouds are inherently more open environments than private clouds. Consequently, they’re more prone to cyberattacks and other forms of data leakage. A hybrid cloud deployment allows enterprises to leverage the security of the private cloud with the power of a public cloud. This is one of the key hybrid cloud benefits.
4. Scalability
The biggest challenge facing the private cloud is the capital investment required to set up, maintain, and expand the network. The public cloud has given enterprises the capacity to expand computing resources without investing in physical infrastructure. Previously, enterprises could only expand their operations as fast as they could afford to purchase new infrastructure. While there are advantages of having an in-house server, it limits the enterprise’s ability to take advantage of opportunities.
5. Cost
A hybrid cloud deployment can significantly lower the cost of IT. An enterprise may have to incur the cost of setting up both a private and public cloud. However, in the long run, it’s usually worthwhile. Enterprises also mitigate the potentially disastrous cost of moving assets between public cloud providers should a provider prove unreliable. In some cases, customers must fork out termination fees to move their data from one provider to another. And, even worse, providers are under no obligation to return customer data in a format that’s usable to the customer. With a hybrid cloud deployment, the private cloud stores critical data. It becomes easier to switch from one public cloud provider to another. This is one of the most important hybrid cloud benefits.
Conclusion
As the hybrid cloud becomes more widely adopted, enterprises are seeing the benefits of combining private networks with the versatility and power of the public cloud. Incorporating hybrid cloud architecture into the IT solutions of your organization is a worthwhile investment.
