While cloud computing is all the rage these days, there are several challenges to successfully implementing cloud services. Cloud computing is a continuously changing technology and individuals, small businesses, and large corporations need to educate themselves fully before committing their IT strategy.
Security and control always seem to be the biggest concerns with cloud computing. You first need to determine how important it is for you to retain control of your IT boxes and what impact a security breach would have on you or your business. When a company signs up to use a firm’s cloud resources, you are re-assigning control and allowing your provider to make changes to the infrastructure. You are also letting someone else manage your mission critical data which runs the risk of being compromised. Without true visibility into the cloud, it is difficult to say who has access to your data.
This also brings forth several legal issues that are very relevant to business owners shifting to the cloud. If your data is physically stored in a different country, your provider must be clear on the legal governance over the data. Would you have the financial means and resources to settle a dispute if it was under the jurisdiction of another nation? Trade secrets and privileged information may also be in jeopardy in the hands of the cloud vendor. How far will they go to protect you if summoned to court with all your stored data and access logs?
Don’t automatically assume cloud will bring about automatic improvements to your IT infrastructure. Like most technology, one-size does not fit all and diligence is the key here. Your cloud must be properly managed and designed to fit the needs of your business to reach the maximum benefits the platform provides. The agility of the cloud is its greatest benefit but to have the high resilience and scalability, you must design the applications from day one. Remember the old saying, ‘you only get out of it what you put into it.’
Do remember there are a few types of cloud architectures. A private cloud may be your best option to engineer your way over these hurdles.
