Multi-Cloud and Hybrid Cloud: Benefits for Your Business

In today's rapidly changing business environment, speed is essential for success. Businesses need to be able to quickly adapt to new market conditions, customer demands, and technological advancements, Multi-Cloud and Hybrid Cloud service are pivotal to how fast a company can scale to meet demands. 

A few years back, spanning new servers in the control room was massive work, which was very slow and expensive as more servers must be installed and connected. This made the system easy to attack due to more complex connections and vulnerable open ports.  

A study by IDC found that businesses that use cloud computing are more profitable than businesses that do not.

Cloud computing can help businesses achieve agility by providing a scalable, flexible, and secure platform for running applications and storing data.

According to a study by Gartner, 83% of all workloads will be in the cloud by 2025, and this is critical as more workers work from different time zone and more businesses no longer target a particular market. Anyone not having a scalable and seamless platform will be knocked off. 

There are two main cloud computing types: Public and Private. A public cloud is a service provided by a third-party vendor and accessible over the Internet. 

Private Cloud 

This is a service hosted on-premises and only accessible to the organization that owns it. this means the server and all its dependencies are stored within the organisation. 

While this a highly dangerous and can crumble a business as anything that affects the server, the company is handicapped. 

Here are some examples of companies that collapsed due to servers being destroyed or hacked. 

• British Airways lost 500,000 customer records in a 2018 data breach. The breach was caused by a vulnerability in the airline's on-premises servers.

• Marriott lost 339 million customer records in a 2018 data breach. The breach was caused by a vulnerability in the hotel chain's on-premises servers.

• The Heartland Payment Systems lost 130 million customer records in a 2008 data breach. The breach was caused by a cyberattack on the payment processing company's on-premises servers.

• TJX Companies lost 94 million customer records in a 2007 data breach. The breach was caused by a cyberattack on the retailer's on-premises servers.

• The Hannaford Bros. lost 4.6 million customer records in a 2007 data breach. The breach was caused by a cyberattack on the grocery store chain's on-premises servers.

These are just a few examples of companies affected by data breaches caused by vulnerabilities in their on-premises servers. Data breaches can have a devastating impact on businesses, and they can lead to financial losses, lawsuits, and damage to reputation.

In addition to data breaches, on-premises servers can also be affected by fires, floods, and other natural disasters. If an on-premises server is destroyed or damaged, it can result in data loss and business operations disruption.

Multi-Cloud 

This is a strategy that uses multiple public cloud providers. This can provide several benefits, such as:

• Improved scalability and flexibility: By using multiple providers, businesses can scale their resources up or down as needed and choose the best provider for each workload.

• Reduced risk of downtime and data loss: By using multiple providers, businesses can reduce the risk of downtime and data loss by spreading their workloads across multiple providers.

• Cost optimization: By using multiple providers, businesses can often negotiate better prices and get access to more features and services.

A few companies using multi-cloud strategy include:

• Netflix uses a multi-cloud architecture to deliver its content to customers worldwide. To host its content, Netflix uses Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP). This allows Netflix to scale its infrastructure up or down as needed and to deliver its content to customers with the highest possible quality.

• The New York Times uses a multi-cloud architecture to host its website and store its content. The New York Times uses AWS, Microsoft Azure, and GCP to host its website and store its content. This allows The New York Times to scale its website up or down as needed and to deliver its content to customers with the highest possible quality.

Hybrid Cloud 

Hybrid combines a public cloud with a private cloud. This can provide several benefits, such as:

• Increased security and compliance: By hosting some workloads on-premises, businesses can improve their security and compliance posture.

• Better workload management: By combining public and private clouds, businesses can better manage their workloads and ensure they run on the most appropriate platform.

• Improved disaster recovery: Businesses can improve their disaster recovery capabilities by having public and private cloud workloads.

Some major companies that use this strategy include: 

• Bank of America uses a hybrid cloud architecture to power its online banking services. Bank of America uses AWS for its public cloud needs and its data centres for its private cloud needs. This allows Bank of America to improve its security and compliance posture and reduce costs.

• Coca-Cola uses a hybrid cloud architecture to power its supply chain management system. Coca-Cola uses AWS for its public cloud needs and its data centres for its private cloud needs. This allows Coca-Cola to improve its agility and reduce its costs.

• Delta Air Lines uses a hybrid cloud architecture to power its reservation system. Delta Air Lines uses AWS for its public cloud needs and its data centres for its private cloud needs. This allows Delta Air Lines to improve its performance and reduce its costs.

Choosing the Right Cloud Strategy

There is no one-size-fits-all answer to which cloud strategy is best for a particular business. The best strategy will depend on the specific needs and requirements of the business. Some factors to consider when choosing a cloud strategy include the following:

• The size and complexity of the business
• The type of workloads that need to be hosted
• The security and compliance requirements of the business
• The budget of the business

Tips for Successful Implementation of Multi-cloud or Hybrid Cloud

There are several things that businesses can do to ensure a successful implementation of multi-cloud or hybrid cloud. These include:

• Develop a clear plan: Before implementing a multi-cloud or hybrid cloud strategy, businesses should develop a clear plan that outlines the strategy's goals, the resources that will be needed, and the steps that will be taken.

• Choose the right providers: When choosing cloud providers, businesses should carefully consider the needs and requirements of their business. They should also consider the providers' security, compliance, and performance.

• Implement a cloud management platform: A cloud management platform can help businesses to manage their cloud resources more effectively. It can help businesses track costs, monitor performance, and troubleshoot problems.

• Train employees: Employees working with the cloud should be trained to use it effectively. This training should cover topics such as security, compliance, and performance.

Conclusion

Multi-cloud and hybrid cloud can provide businesses with several benefits, such as improved scalability and flexibility, reduced downtime and data loss risk, and cost optimization.

However, some challenges are associated with multi-cloud and hybrid cloud, such as management complexity, security concerns, and cost. 

Businesses should consider their needs and requirements carefully before adopting a multi-cloud or hybrid-cloud strategy.

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