10 Jun Hybrid Cloud Hosting: How to Efficiently Move to the Cloud
The rapid rate of change seen in information technology over the last decade has introduced stunning new efficiencies and connectivity. The growth of cloud has been driving much of this innovation, but with those efficiency gains and improved connectivity comes more complexity. Hybrid cloud hosting is a simpler, cost-effective way for businesses to build and maintain their multiple-cloud infrastructure.
Hybrid Cloud Hosting Definition
Hybrid Cloud hosting is a method of leveraging cloud computing by partnering with a managed cloud hosting provider. According to Citirix, “Hybrid cloud is a solution that combines a private cloud with one or more public cloud services with proprietary software enabling communication between each distinct service.” In the case of hybrid hosting, some or all of the organization’s private cloud is hosted in the managed service provider’s servers.
The hybrid hosting service provider is instrumental in creating and designing your cloud architecture and may also deliver the software to connect your various IT environments.
Related Reading: What’s the difference between cloud computing and cloud storage?
Hybrid Hosting Advantages
Hybrid hosting provides businesses with the flexibility of hybrid cloud solutions without putting the strain and expense of architecting a complex cloud environment solely on your internal IT team.
“Hybrid hosting is a simple way to enable a business’s multi-cloud strategy”
With the right hybrid hosting provider, services will include a team of experts with core competencies in the following:
- Cloud architecture expertise
- Security expertise
- Cloud compliance expertise
- Performance optimization expertise
- Software hosting expertise
Hybrid hosting is a simple way to enable a business’s multi-cloud strategy. Other hybrid cloud hosting benefits include the following:
- Save on upfront capital expense for hardware/servers
- 24hr monitoring for security and performance
- Improved performance
- Internal IT will spend less time on cloud maintenance and more time focused on serving organizational needs
Related Reading: 6 Essential Cloud Migration Strategies
Why Hybrid Cloud?
Cost Control
Hybrid cloud helps consolidate costs, reduce capital expense and reduce server maintenance, particularly when you deploy it through a hosting service.
Flexibility and scalability
With less critical software and data in multiple public clouds and critical data and apps in an in-house or hosted cloud, businesses have unprecedented flexibility to scale, add locations and grow or shrink their staff as their needs change.
Security
Dedicated hosted cloud usually offers the highest industry standards of cloud security with higher levels of service and monitoring than a large public cloud.
Compliance Management
Compliance is getting more complex. With all your systems connected in a hybrid cloud, creating, implementing and maintaining a compliance framework across your digital assets is easier to manage than a hodgepodge of solutions and platforms.
Uniformity & Continuity
Standardizing data and IT management practices throughout a complex infrastructure is a challenge. As with compliance, the right hybrid hosting provider can help simplify hybrid or multi-cloud strategy so the internal IT team can focus on how digital assets can best serve the business.
Workload Flexibility
Hybrid cloud makes it easy to choose the best locations for different workloads. For example, tried-and-true accounting processes can stay in your dedicated servers, while experimenting with new creative technology for your marketing department can be sourced through SaaS.
Learn about: Rejuvenating Your Aging Accounting Software with Minimal Strain.
Hybrid Cloud Challenges and How Hybrid Hosting Solves Them
As we said before, multi-cloud IT environments are complex and therefore a major challenge for internal IT shops who also have to serve end-users’ daily needs. Partnering with a cloud hosting provider can reduce that strain by addressing these common challenges.
Compatibility
Making sure critical touchpoints between environments work reliably is tricky. Hybrid cloud hosting service providers can help. They also may be able to deliver solutions like virtual desktop hosting to create ubiquitous experiences across devices and platforms.
Latency and Bandwidth
Bandwidth and network latency are problems that face almost any internal hybrid cloud project. A hybrid hosting provider makes it their bread and butter to solve these issues.
Management
Managing and maintaining data and apps across platforms and cloud environments is time consuming and costly. Partnering with a hoster is a great way to offload some of that work.
When to Use Hybrid Cloud Hosting
Now is the right time to leverage hybrid cloud hosting. While very small businesses can get by with a bunch of SaaS tools and locally stored data, most businesses are already leveraging a combination of public cloud and internal networking. A hybrid hosting provider can help wrangle this jumble of digital assets.
If you are already using a combination of private and public cloud and are experiencing any of the following symptoms, you may be ready for Hybrid Cloud Hosting:
- Have legacy applications you need to access remotely
- Need to maintain high degree of flexibility and control over critical workloads
- Internal VPN is suffering performance issues
- Compliance requirements limit ability to use public cloud
- Latency and lack of bandwidth are slowing down process
- Experiencing too many outages and other problems with internal servers
Are you ready to learn more about dedicated hosting services?
Request a demo today to start a conversation about your cloud needs: