Types of Cloud Computing

Cloud computing enables companies to create and connect to large pools of organizational databases, thus enabling flexible and convenient access to the organization’s informational resources. This is especially suitable for today’s internationalized business models. The bottom line is thus that all companies today are somehow looking into cloud computing as a sustainable option for their applications, data and file storing needs.

Types of Cloud Computing

There are four types of cloud computing that these companies can choose from, including public, private, hybrid and community cloud. Each of these types of cloud computing has its unique set of characteristics that determine whether they are relevant depending on the needs of the company in question. This means that before choosing a type of cloud computing the company needs to evaluate their needs and decide on what to expect from the cloud computing.

Private Clouds

The private clouds are on the other hand dedicated or created and operated specifically for a given organization. They could be hosted and managed internally within the organization or externally through a third party depending on the needs of the organization in question. The On Premise Private cloud is where the cloud is hosted within the organization and their IT department takes responsibility for all the incurred costs and required activities of running an maintaining the cloud. The externally hosted private cloud on the other hand implies outsourcing the cloud computing service to a third party without having to share the infrastructure with another organization. Either way, the company here is reassured of security and privacy and this type of cloud computing would work best for an organization that values the privacy and security of their databases. It is however rather expensive. Such organizations can meet the cost by also providing cloud computing services to other organizations at a fee.

Hybrid Clouds

A hybrid cloud incorporates all the above mentioned cloud computing types in one bundle to provide the convenience of reaping the advantages of each type of cloud computing. In this kind of cloud, you use two or more clouds, spreading out your cloud computing needs against the numerous types for more effective services. You can also host other organizations given the vast opportunities that are created especially when you merge a public and a private cloud to create a private cloud that has been augmented with the unlimited resources of a public cloud. The challenge is that you will need both on premise infrastructure and off site server based infrastructure. Hybrids are thus expensive to set up but cheap to manage as you can offer cloud computing services to many other organizations at a fee.

Public Clouds

The public clouds have a rather low level of security and available variances because the cloud here is operated by one service provider who offers access to the cloud through the internet. The public cloud is however convenient in cases where there are a lot of users which would imply a serious standard workload. Also, the public cloud is very cheap seeing as he cost is spread out across all the users. Google for example is able to provide cloud computing services at almost no cost at all. If your company needs an incremental capacity, has a huge workload for applications and is not keen on high levels of security then the public cloud will serve you well.

Community Clouds

This involves a private cloud that is shared by a number of organizations and either managed by all these organizations or by a third party. Ordinarily, these organizations must have a shared set of cloud computing requirements in order for customized cloud characteristics to work effectively for all of them. This kind of cloud computing is best for large organizations that have numerous independent departments, like governments and international organizations like the UN.

Conclusion

Companies have to pick out a cloud computing type based on their needs and expectations with respect to cloud computing. At this point, all companies have to be considering the concept of cloud computing seeing as it is not only convenient but also highly economical in terms of enabling them to work seamlessly across the globe. Whether you settle for a public, private, community or hybrid server, cloud computing is the way to go in business but it will only work if it is relevant to your organizational needs.

Cloud Computing Benefits for Small Business

A small business owner who has no idea of what cloud computing is may have a hard time accepting cloud computing. But after going through the detailed benefit I have laid down below am sure the reader will be left convinced that cloud computing is the best for the small businesses. In the past computer user had only of accessing and using their information on the computer that is running it on a physical computer through software downloaded to it. Nevertheless, with cloud computing the computing service are based on the internet. The benefits include improves cash flow and increased efficiency.

Flexibility makes cloud computing also a favorite for business owner since it is able to meet they demand. Using cloud computing means that the business no longer needs a disaster recovery plan, this because cloud computing is able to provide solutions to issues faster taking a quarter of the time spent by other business that are non cloud.

The automatic software updates saves the business time and resources that would have been spent doing it. The security update is done by the service providers as well as maintaining the server.

No capital expenditure needed with cloud computing since it is typically pay as you use thus only a minimum start up cost is needed. Document control whereby the employees can chat as they work on a single document is another advantage of cloud computing. This process makes collaboration stronger thus improving on efficiency.

Another advantage is data security no matter what happens to the machine the data can still be used as it saved on the server. Other benefits include the fact that it increases competitive advantages for the business and it is environmental friendly in that there a decrease in carbon footprint.

Cloud: Is My Company Data Safe?

Currently, the cloud has received plenty of praise for saving companies from the burden that storing data brought. However, this has not come without a fair share of criticism and concern and more so because companies do not like it when they are not in full control of their valuable data. Question like the security of the data stored on the cloud have kept on popping once in a while which has become a major concern. However, the answer to such a question is not a definite yes or no because the security of the data stored on the cloud is not solely the responsibility of the service provider, but the user also has a role to play. However before getting into the roles for a cloud user it is worth mentioning:

Safer Cloud

Before treading any further, it is important to note that while the internet has been around for a sufficient amount of time and is almost reaching adulthood, Cloud services are merely toddlers and to say that they can be able to operate without a sufficient amount of problems and loop holes would be putting up a façade.
With that said, the cloud offers a much more safer environment to store company data as opposed to some of the traditional methods that had been used like locking up documents or using safe deposit boxes. This put the data at high risk of unforeseen circumstances like robberies and fire but with a cloud, there are a number of security levels that ensure that the data stored herein is much safer.

How do you ensure data is safe?

As stated earlier, the security and safety of the documents and data that is stored on the cloud does not solely lie on the shoulders of the service provider. There is also a sufficient amount of responsibility that lies on you and you should be sure that you take this seriously. This will definitely enhance the safety of the cloud and the data that you store in there. The user here, would have to accommodate and support the following in order to ensure safety of their data in the cloud.

Tokenization

Even though still in its infancy, this is emerging as a way for leading edge companies to protect their data. In this method, randomized tokens replace the data that is being saved on the cloud. They formulate a table that matches the encrypted values with the original values to make sure that the data is readable again. Since there are no formulas involved, it makes it much harder for one to gain unauthorized access to the data stored. The best thing about tokenization is that it allows the data to be usable from the company’s perspective but it is still secure from an IT perspective meaning unlike in encryption, you do not have to forego one to achieve the other.
Your company data is not only at risk of being compromised from external threats, it is also as potent from internal risks and without the proper tools in place, chances are, it will only be a matter of when not if. With the help of data loss protection tools which are also known as data leak prevention, extrusion prevention or information loss prevention tools, you can be able to make sure that you data is much safer. These work on a set or rules which are set by the business making access harder if the right protocol is not followed. Depending on the contents of the file and the rules that have been set by the business, they are able to establish tag critical information which stops users from being able to access the files. These are also able to protect data rest hence you are able to rest more easily.

Encryption

The greatest risk that cloud service suffer is hacking. While you might not be able to deter this, you can make sure that whoever comes across your data is not able to use it by encrypting it. This will also prevent the cloud service providers to see what you are storing in there. However, this will mean that you will also need to necessary tools to decrypt the data and you will also before going usability for security. While some of the cloud services will offer you encryption service, an extra layer of security for reassurance would do you some good.

Know your provider

This is one of the simpler duties that you can have and it is evident that it is among those that you might not have to invest heavily in. however, it can save you a lot of trouble and ensure you trust the right providers with your data improving its safety on the cloud. Understanding and know in the track record of a given company is very vital and you should make sure that at no given moment you do not overlook this.
The safety of your company’s data on the cloud lies solely in your hands and you have the power to make the answer to such a question be a yes and if you do not play your part, then the safety of your data on the cloud can be in a horrendous state.