Cloud infrastructures are becoming vital for businesses hoping to keep up with customer demand, competitors, and the continually growing world of technology. Whatever the business size, cloud computing offers innovative solutions to rapidly transform how companies work.  Many businesses are looking into cloud migration projects due to the versatility this can provide. However, not all clouds are equal, and it’s important for businesses to know the differences in cloud offerings to understand what would be most suitable for their requirement. So let’s look at which type of cloud is right for your business?

In simple terms, cloud computing allows a business to move all their data, documents, and applications, to a virtual location, and remove dependency on physical hardware. Depending on their cloud agreement, businesses may entrust the responsibility of software and hardware updates and maintenance to a third party – saving valuable time and money on maintaining physical on-premise hardware.

The cloud offers a range of versatile uses, and can be tailored, with expert advice, to suit a business’s specific requirements. If a business requires their employees to be able to work from any location, a public cloud solution that is accessible over a standard internet connection would best suit them. If a business required security compliance based applications to be hosted on their servers, or critical data, the private cloud is a perfect option. As a bonus, businesses are even able to combine these two factors and adopt a hybrid cloud, which can be built to allow flexibility, and complete security – comprehensive of all of a business’s needs.

Here’s the different type of cloud solutions, and which one may be best for you:

Public

Public cloud is the most commonly known type of cloud, and probably the most used in our day-to-day lives. This solution entails a cloud-based platform, whereby files, applications and data that are stored within it can be accessed over a standard internet connection –from anywhere at any time. This is great for businesses looking for complete flexibility, and the ability to up-scale or down-scale as they require. Whilst the public cloud is secure, this solution does lack the security features that are seen in private and hybrid cloud offerings.

Private

Private cloud is an ideal solution for businesses requiring complete security and assurance of where their data lives, and who is able to access it.  Files, applications and data which are hosted in the private cloud can only be accessed by known users and devices, making access virtually impossible for unknown devices or locations. This solution is suitable for businesses looking to host security compliant applications, or critical data. Although the private cloud is more robust than public cloud options, it is important to consider that all data hosted on the private cloud is immobile, and thus not as suitable for businesses looking for mobility.

Hybrid

Put simply, hybrid cloud combines the aspects of public and private cloud in to a ‘best of both’ approach. Businesses can host critical applications and data on a private cloud, while storing all non-critical documents and files on a public cloud – making it accessible to employees from any location. Additionally, businesses do not need to change their existing infrastructures with hybrid cloud. Existing infrastructures can still be run via a private network, while newer, less essential features can exist on a public cloud. For many businesses, simply moving all their processes to the cloud is not as easy as it seems, and so this is a great compromise for businesses looking to transition. What’s more, the hybrid cloud provides an ideal option for businesses who prefer the ability to host their hardware and infrastructure in-house. This is a great option for organisations who prefer to keep their infrastructure on-premise who still want to take advantage of the latest and greatest in cloud technology.

Whatever your business’ cloud journey, it’s important to do your research before signing up! You can read up on the importance of choosing the right data centre and transitioning to the cloud over on the blog or by watching our webinar.

Timico has a team of fully trained consultants who are able to support organisations looking to transition to the cloud. And with to our professional project management, and service delivery teams, we work in partnership with businesses to ensure their cloud migration project operates as smoothly as possible.