Choosing the right cloud model for your business

Once you have determined that cloud computing will benefit your business, the next step is choosing the right cloud model. 

There are numerous options available and this part of the process can be confusing. 

In this blog, Myriad IT examines the key considerations and attributes of the main models.

 Control & customisation

Private cloud

With private cloud, the cloud is built and managed internally by the company. Private cloud is sought after by companies requiring a high degree of direct control over information and security.

Whilst private cloud offers the highest level of control and customisation, it is not always necessary for an organisation to invest in the establishment of a private cloud. A carefully selected 3^rd party vendor of public cloud may be able to meet control, customisation and security requirements through public cloud.

Public cloud

With public cloud, cloud computing services are provided by 3^rd party vendors. Customers share data centre resources and access cloud services via the Internet. Public cloud offers varying degrees of privacy and control depending on the vendor.

There are 2 models for the provision of public cloud:

 1.  Subscription style managed services

These feature pay-as-you go access to cloud services such as out of the box applications like ERP or CRM or packaged storage. It is common with this model that the provider takes ownership of data in the cloud and there is limited or no control over how services are provided. The advantage of these services are their relative simplicity and that users keep up with the latest features and functionality. 

2. Tailored services 

Some 3^rd party public cloud providers (such as Myriad IT), offer tailored data centre services with logically separated infrastructure and no rights to data stored. This enables customers to utilise cloud services for customised applications, tailor cloud computing services to meet specific business needs and retain control of when and if upgrades, patches and so forth are implemented.

 

Geographic location of data (within Australia)

The physical location of data may be an issue where: 

• Sovereignty of data is a requirement. For example many government organisations require that all data remain in Australia. 
• Geographically distinct data centres may be advantageous for disaster recovery. 

Security

We touched on security in our previous blog post. It is our view that most cloud vendors now have sophisticated security but poor implementation and configuration can leave unintended gaps in data or systems. Read the security blog post here.

Myriad IT
www.myriad-it.com
03-8530-8600

 

 

Worried about cloud security? Here's what you need to consider.

The recent hacking of celebrity iCloud accounts has once again shone the spotlight on cloud security. The decision to run systems and applications in the cloud introduces a number of security considerations. 

Most cloud vendors now have sophisticated security. It is important to note however, that poor implementation and configuration may leave gaps in security which unintentionally exposes data or systems.

In this blog post, Myriad IT sets out what key security considerations for evaluating cloud providers. 

 Key security considerations:

What data will be stored in the cloud?

Who else has access to the data and systems?

While the cloud provider may be compliant with security requirements, are the specific systems in the cloud properly secured in line with corporate policies?

How much rigour has gone into security planning?

Has the security been reviewed by technical and business risk experts?

What steps does the provider take to mitigate risk?

Is the provider able to demonstrate its capabilities (e.g. securitgy certifications, audits)?

Is the vendor willing to commit to you with a well defined SLA and set of standards?

If you have concerns about the security of your cloud, Myriad IT is here to help. Please contact us for a discussion.

Myriad IT
www.myriad-it.com