Cloud computing – an introduction

The term cloud computing is almost as ubiquitous as the grey clouds in an autumn sky. But what is cloud computing? And what does it mean for your business?

What is cloud computing?

In its simplest terms, cloud computing means storing data and programs on a remote server, provided by a third party, and accessing them using the internet. This is instead of storing and accessing data and programs on your computer’s own hard drive or your company server.

The cloud has become a metaphor for the internet, and cloud also encompasses business services such as Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). SaaS is an application to which a business subscribes then accesses over the internet (for example, Microsoft Office 365). The business does not own the software but pays for its use, maintenance and all updates by a monthly or annual fee.

Advantages and disadvantages

One of the advantages of cloud computing is that there are no upfront capital costs of purchasing servers and creating a network infrastructure, and there are no maintenance or update costs for the equipment and some of the software. The capital costs are replaced by monthly operating costs, and you only pay for what you use. Cloud computing can also be scaled up (or down) quickly and easily, but this flexibility comes at a cost.

However, most medium-sized businesses that have been established for more than a few years have already invested in their own infrastructure. It is often much more cost-effective to maintain what they already have, than to drop it in favour of using cloud-based applications and data storage.

In addition, cloud computing requires a reliable, high speed internet connection. Although this is available to the majority of businesses, there is a greater dependency on service providers and the risk that a service may stop being supported. It is also important to know where the servers are located. We use secure UK-based data centres so that we can be sure that they meet the needs of British businesses.

Hybrid solution

We have found that, for many of our clients, a hybrid solution suits them best. It may be more cost-effective to use a hosted (cloud) email system, which can deliver a reliable, secure service, than running your own email server. However, other systems and aspects of data storage and access are often better served by your own company infrastructure. Each business is different and we use our experience of what we have seen to work well (or not so well) in different business scenarios to help you make decisions for your business. Cloud technology is evolving all the time, so we continually reassess the options for our clients. If you’d like to know more about which cloud solutions are appropriate for your business, then please contact us.