Embracing the Cloud (Part One)

Migration to the cloud experienced extraordinary acceleration last year. It was time for companies to move from outdated and inefficient legacy infrastructures to the cloud to allow for more scalability, security, and reliability. Not to mention the cost savings it offers. But what is the cloud? What are the benefits and why should my business move to the cloud? These are all questions we’ll look at in Part one of a two-part series focusing on taking your business to the cloud.

“The cloud” in simple terms is any service or software that runs on the Internet as opposed to on your physical computer or device. Physical servers and storage located in data centres all over the world are accessible over the Internet, providing users subscribed to the service with the resources they require. By using cloud computing, users and companies do not have to manage physical servers themselves or run software applications on their own machines.

The cloud enables users to access files and applications from almost any device, because the computing and storage takes place on servers in a data centre, instead of locally on the user device. This is why a user can log in to their Instagram account on a new phone after their old phone breaks and still find their old account in place, with all their photos, videos, and conversation history. It works the same way with cloud email providers like Gmail or Microsoft Office 365, and with cloud storage providers like OneDrive, Dropbox or Google Drive.

By 2022, 50% of mission-critical applications will reside on cloud servers. The future of the cloud will provide innovation that impacts the user experience, ease of connectivity, operational simplicity, and security. It will allow us to easily work, attend school, and other virtual events from home or anywhere with an internet connection. But those aren’t the only benefits, some others include:

• Cost Reduction: no need to purchase expensive server equipment, take care of maintenance or pay substantial electricity bills
• Security: keep up with ever changing compliance regulations, with routine upgrades to services to ensure industry standards and compliance
• Reliability: reduce downtime and lower data loss risk
• Accessibility: utilize the cloud from any location as well as from any device, provided you have an internet connection, which means access to your data is always just a click away

Only you can decide what’s best for your business, but if your small business isn’t operating in the cloud, it may be time to rethink your strategy. Moving to the cloud can make your business more agile and competitive, provide an effective disaster recovery solution, secure your data, and save you money.
A solid cloud strategy is an effective way to grow your business; another is to partner with an experienced cloud solutions provider like Compu-SOLVE. Stay tuned for our next newsletter where we will go through the steps to take to start your journey to the cloud.