When it comes to operating dynamic IT environments, choosing the right cloud storage service that best fits your business model can be a bit cloudy. With so many types of cloud storage models, how is one to decide which is the best model that will meet your business objectives?
Because different business needs require different implementations, the first step to answering this all-important question is an internal requirements gathering before evaluating the ins and outs of each cloud storage product. Understanding the requirements and needs of your IT environment today, and applying a little foresight on how those trends will translate into the future, plays a critical role in selecting which cloud storage service will meet your critical business needs as your company evolves.
The article, “One Cloud Does Not Fit All - Finding the Right Cloud Storage Model to Meet Your Business Needs,” provides some key questions that organizations moving to the cloud need to answer before making that important business investment. Some of the considerations include:
- How fast is your content growing?
- How much storage capacity will you need over the next few years?
- What type of data does your users access, and how often do they access it?
- What security and compliance issues need to be addressed?
Answering critical questions around internal performance capabilities, personnel requirements and costs will help narrow down the type of cloud storage service model that meets your requirements for quality of service, service levels, scalability, data management and security. Additionally, plans need to be made on how these storage services will be operationally managed as their use continues to grow. Trying to add on management capabilities after the fact can be a painful and expensive exercise.
From a recent InformationWeek week article, Kevin Epstein, Drobo's VP of marketing, sums up the challenges of determining your local vs. online storage strategy,
"Having your data backed up in more than one place, not just on-site, is a fine thing…I think the recent media coverage simply highlights the fact that there is no perfect solution. To rely on any single solution--and I think most IT people would empathize with this--can be challenging."
Because there is no one-size-fits-all cloud storage model, figuring out what’s best for your business needs first, is essential to reaping the benefits that cloud storage can provide.
