The Cloud – It’s No Pie in the Sky
By Andy Pavone.
Starting to grow weary of hearing the term “The Cloud”? What is it exactly, and what does it mean for you and your business? Ask Google the question, “What is cloud computing?” and you will get more than 3.5 million answers. Here’s a small sample of what you’ll find. Cloud computing is…
…a style of computing in which dynamically scalable and often virtualized resources are provided as a service over the Internet.
…a type of computing that is comparable to grid computing, relies on sharing computing resources rather than having local servers or personal devices to handle applications.
…a general concept that incorporates software as a service (SaaS), Web 2.0 and other recent, well-known technology trends, in which the common theme is reliance on the Internet for satisfying the computing needs of the users.
…On-demand self-service Internet infrastructure where you pay-as-you-go and use only what you need, all managed by a browser, application or API.
Well, that didn’t clear things up one bit.
Taken together, these definitions describe just a few of the more common patterns of this increasingly diverse computing model. Obviously The Cloud is taking on many different forms, and attempting to pigeonhole it into a concise, commonly accepted definition is pointless. Trust me on this - because I’ve tried. To make things more complicated, service providers of all stripes are adopting (or hijacking) the term cloud computing, putting a new spin on their existing products and services in an attempt to stay relevant in this constantly evolving market space.
So I’m done trying to nail down a definition of The Cloud. Besides, which is more important – the definition of cloud computing, or understanding its practical business applications and the implications of working in The Cloud?
Recently, award-winning IT journalist Michael Vizard, on his IT Unmasked blog wrote, “…if we take a giant step back from all the hyperbole, some pretty obvious things start to emerge in terms of determining the immediate value of cloud computing.” [1]
For example, online backups, customer relationship management (CRM), or payroll applications may be considered non-strategic or require large capital expenditures and high levels of expertise to deploy and manage on-premise. In such cases, Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) providers are already delivering a wide variety of services via the Internet. Their target market covers the spectrum; from entry level, subscription based services for the SMB, to more robust and scalable applications for large enterprises. Even at the entry level, such SaaS applications are highly customizable, adapting to your specific business process and workflow needs.
However, consider a few words of caution. First, when it comes to putting your data in The Cloud, a “non-strategic application” should not imply non-strategic data. Be sure to understand the data security risks of using cloud computing. Ask your SaaS provider(s) the hard questions about how your data is being protected from unauthorized use, loss, or theft. Secondly, don’t confuse SaaS applications that are “highly customizable” with SaaS applications that are “easily customizable”. Such faulty assumptions can quickly shift all of the capital expense you avoided by using The Cloud, to contracting a developer to customize your application.
Vizard goes on to say that, “Arguably, the next big thing in cloud computing will be more specialized application services. A lot of IT organizations can’t afford to invest in supercomputer-class infrastructure. Yet, the business could benefit from access to some pretty compute-intensive analytic applications.”
This apparent shift in computing power, from PCs and individual or small clusters of servers to centralized processing hubs could just be the latest contraction in the centralization / decentralization cycle of computing. The potential that this holds has not gone unnoticed by those in the computer industry that will both enable it, and profit from it most - namely Microsoft, Google, and Apple.
A recent opinion in the The Economist magazine noted that, “These three giants are already preparing for battle…The rise in cloud computing…is changing the nature of competition within the computer industry…Each has its own global network of data centres. They intend to offer not just one or two services, but whole suites of them. [2]
However as Michael Vizard concludes, “Cloud computing is not an all-or-nothing proposition. What we are slowly migrating toward is a blended computing model that will combine the best elements of public cloud services with on-premise applications that will run on internal IT systems that use the same architectures as public cloud services.”
This “blended computing model”, selectively locating applications in The Cloud or on-premise, is what brings great IT flexibility for businesses of all sizes. For SMBs in particular, the ability to inexpensively and quickly deploy or scale a sales or client facing application helps level the playing field with larger competitors in the market. And for early adopters of the latest cloud computing advances, it can provide a competitive advantage over those struggling to fund and implement the same technology in-house.
Cloud computing has already proven its ability to reduce capital expenditures, speed up and ease application deployment, and bring more affordable enterprise-class IT capabilities to SMBs. What it will ultimately look like is the subject of vigorous debate and no doubt it will continue to play an increasingly important role in the world of business IT.
The Cloud is clearly not a pie in the sky notion, and prudent SMB leaders must find opportunities to use its capability to their competitive advantage.
Andy Pavone is the senior product manager of Harrisburg based InfoQuest Technologies, Inc., which specializes in hosted disaster recovery solutions for small and medium sized businesses. Contact him at
apavone@infoquest.com