Nowadays, everyone is talking about online cloud storage and cloud backup solutions. Let’s have a look at the cloud computing and the cloud-based solutions. Since 2008, the cloud computing technology has gained a grip on various organizations and enterprises that were looking for data backup solution offering greater flexibility. However, a fact that it is not always possible for every company to achieve increased cost benefits via the cloud-based backup services.
Recently, in the first quarter of 2013, a survey conducted by one of the best online IT media firms Tech Target, showed that around 56% of cloud storage users are subscribers of cloud-based data backup solutions and is ranked as the most popular cloud-based storage choice for people. Also, as per the IDC report, the data backup and archiving solutions are graded as the most ideal function for private and hybrid cloud and the secondly preferred for public cloud. However, people in the industry have also observed that most of the companies that are benefitting from cloud-based backup are the companies with smaller environments and with minimum data to back up.
There are various barriers companies should consider in terms of bandwidth limitations, be it a small or large company. The experts in the industry also say that cloud backup solutions are much more effective and can solve issues in terms of costs and management, instead of creating them. Despite this, organizations and enterprises should consider the option of using cloud storage services.
Online Cloud Storage and Costs Benefit
bodHOST’s cloud-based storage solution is being used by organizations and enterprises mainly because of the convenience and reduced cost benefits. If you compare the on-site storage based on disk-to-disk or tape-to-disk, you will find that these are much more costly than those of the cloud-based storage services. Most of the companies that are benefitting from cloud-based storage solutions have a minimum of 2-3 TB of data. Well, the other companies may not receive much benefit as compared to the small companies just due to the cost of the Internet to be able to handle outbound transfer of data.
It is always better not to move the things that you can’t afford to be without. Hence, it is far better to have a local copy of your data on that you are backing up to the cloud. Even if the copy of the data is not up-to-date, it should be close to the updated version of your data. Some of the vendors even make use of the disk-to-disk-to-cloud (D2D2C), an approach to hybrid cloud backup, where the backup involves using local storage. However, it is great only if the cost of local storage is included in the overall cost of the solution.
Some people in the industry are still confused about the cloud and think that it’s a costlier solution than other traditional web hosting services. For such people, it can be a good example, where larger companies such as The National Democratic Institute (NDI), Seven Corners, MicroStrategy, F5 Networks DevCentral’s, eMix, and Columbia Sportswear with runaway data growth have successfully moved into the cloud.
The cloud can help companies to buy and install storage faster. Also, when you get into the cloud the cost of operating and managing storage looks more appealing. In case, if a sudden restore of the data is required, more bandwidth is demanded by the cloud. In such a case, organizations that are considering the cloud must plan to tier their data so that the most critical data is backed up as well and would be ready to access in an emergency.
Many companies think that getting operational funding in cloud computing is much easier than that of capital funding. Hence, it is far better to move to an Opex (operational expenditure) model and enjoy the benefit of using the pay-as-you-go model, if you can’t purchase a new system from EMC.
Mostly for small or medium-sized businesses, the pay-as-you-go model is appealing as it allows you to back up more and pay less.
Cloud Backup Solution and Greater Flexibility
The best thing about the cloud is the greater flexibility it offers in accessing the data from anywhere, anytime, and allowing you to move the data to an off-site location and automate the backups easily. It is not possible with traditional tools like tape.
If you look it from a management point of view, you will find that the cloud allows you to back up any files on any kind of schedule. It backups the changing files more frequently and allows you to recover the files with a tape robotic library.
When it comes to security, bodHOST has its encryption (security measures) rather than depending on a provider. It is necessary to have a careful read of the Service Level Agreements (SLAs). As it is the measure of availability, most of the time the advertised SLA doesn’t match the penalty clause. Hence, always go through the fine print of the SLA and make sure you are offered the same that is promised and mentioned in the SLA.
Also, remember that when moving to the cloud, the most important factors that should be considered are Security and Management. Before choosing a cloud provider, make sure that the provider will not disappear with your data. If the provider is willing to offer you their data center audit report, ask them to provide a copy of it.
It is recommended to get familiarized with a cloud provider’s SLA. Many cloud providers don’t use SLA, hence it is important to be careful when choosing a cloud storage provider. It is necessary to have an SLA in place to have answers regarding the data you are moving to the cloud.
Regardless of the bandwidth issue for large organizations, cloud backup services are going to be the best in terms of flexibility and cost-benefit.