Comparing Public, Private and Hybrid Cloud Environments
Choosing whether to invest in public, private or hybrid cloud can be a weighty decision, particularly if you’re just getting familiar with what the cloud is and how it can help your organization. Broadly speaking, migration to the cloud often offers cost savings, improved flexibility and agility, and quicker innovation.
Depending on which cloud environment you choose, these factors can vary in their delivery and scope, so it’s best to get a clear picture of each type of cloud environment. Here’s a quick review of each:
Public cloud: This is the version that most people think of when “the cloud” is mentioned. Public cloud is hosted by one of a few major service providers, and it allows companies to experience significant cost savings by sharing infrastructure, including bandwidth, hardware, and storage. When customers use public cloud, they only pay for the services they use, much like receiving a utility bill. There are no installation or maintenance costs, either.
The major drawback to public cloud is that it can’t handle the security requirements that some enterprises require, such as those in highly regulated industries like healthcare or finance.
Private cloud: By contrast, those that opt for private cloud will have sole access to dedicated infrastructure. Private cloud can be hosted either at an on-site data center or by a third-party provider. One of the benefits of private cloud is better security, and it also allows the environment to be tailored to the exact required IT specifications of the enterprise.
There are a couple of drawbacks to private cloud, including higher cost of installation. Also, while it provides better security, those same measures may make it less accessible for mobile users or from remote locations. Finally, private cloud restricts use to specifications in a detailed service level agreement (SLA), so it’s important to carefully assess the practices of the provider you choose.
Hybrid cloud: The clear benefit of hybrid cloud is the ability to optimize the environment by accessing both private and public cloud for each workload as necessary. A virtual orchestration layer can be added so that administrators can easily see how workloads are being managed and troubleshoot from a centralized point.
The drawback of hybrid cloud is that it can result in expensive sprawl, but integration and complexity can also create challenges. There may be compatibility issues across the infrastructure as administrators struggle to manage the various clouds, data and applications.
To learn more about the benefits and drawback of each type of cloud environment, contact us at Net Tel One Communications.
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