CLOUD MYTHS THAT COULD COST YOU: PART 1

As a key tool for businesses of all sizes, cloud computing is becoming mainstream as it’s a safe, reliable and efficient way to organise your IT infrastructure. There are risks, but there are also rewards for businesses of all sizes. Make sure you’re informed about cloud computing.

Myth: The cloud is less secure than on-site provision.
There are still people who believe that IT provision in-house and on-site is safer. This simply isn’t true and the first thing to recognise is that there are risks with both cloud and on-site IT. If someone is willing – and skilled enough – both can be compromised and both can be hacked.

There are pros and cons on both sides, but to say that the cloud is less secure than on-site provision is far from the actual case.

Myth: All projects and data need to be on the cloud.

The cloud is certainly a great tool for managing projects from multiple platforms, especially while traveling. However, the cost of migrating a project may exceed its benefit. The cloud is useful, but it shouldn’t necessarily be applied to every project. You may find that certain portions of your project actually benefit from being kept off of the cloud.

Myth: The cloud is your new data centre.

Most cloud decisions are not (and should not be) about completely shutting down data centres and moving everything to the cloud. In general, data centre outsourcing, data centre modernization and data centre strategies are related to, but not the same thing as the cloud. Once adopted, many organizations are also under the misconception that all data storage should be immediately transferred to the cloud. Look at cloud decisions on a workload-by-workload basis, rather than taking an all-or-nothing approach.

Myth: Strategy is a given with the cloud.

Many organizations may not have a clear strategy for using the cloud. The employees often feel like they must use it because their executives suggested it. The cloud is an extremely useful tool. However, as with any tools – you have to know how to use it in order to maximise your benefits and you should have a goal in mind when you (and your team) use it.

Check back later this month for more myths you could be missing.