The Benefits and Drawbacks of Cloud Computing | iCeert Global

If you want to keep Pace with today's online marketplace or if you want to offer any digital service, cloud technology is essential. However, it is important to understand the positive and negative side of cloud computing before changing your approach, and understanding how to navigate the problems that could potentially arise.  Although cloud computing is a trending hot topic in the technology coterie of discussions, I wouldn't recommend jumping in before you understand what it is. In this post I will talk about the advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing and offer resources to help kick off your first project.

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Types of Cloud Computing

Although we are about to head into the pros and cons of using cloud computing, it's important to go over the three types of cloud computing:

• IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service): Renting equipment like servers and storage
• PaaS (Platform as a Service):  Tools to build and test applications on the web
• SaaS (Software as a Service): Using applications like Google Drive, Zoom over the web

Advantages of Cloud Computing

Here are some of the best reasons to consider the use of the cloud:

• Cost Savings
• Increased Reliability
• Staying Ahead of the Competition
• Improved Security

Let's break each of these down a little further:

1. Cost Savings

The initial set-up costs of cloud computing can be rather expensive, but overall, you'll shave off operating costs. The best part is that you only pay for what you use, such as storage space or features. In fact, Gartner is projecting worldwide spending on public cloud services will reach $331.2 billion in 2022.

2. Increased Reliability

Cloud providers have 24/7 customer support. If something goes wrong, the data you rely on can be transferred to another server quickly. Most cloud providers backup this reliability with service agreements that guarantee quick action, so your business doesn’t miss a beat.

3. Staying Ahead

Businesses today need to keep pace with the latest tools to remain competitive. Cloud computing gives you access to newer software without having to install or maintain it, which saves you both money and time.

4. Security

Complex and sophisticated security functions from cloud providers ensure that the data you use, share, and store is encrypted. Encryption makes the data coded for only authorized users to read. It makes it more secure and trustworthy than on-site encryption, where a data breach is easier to achieve. According to a study conducted by RapidScale, 94% of businesses reported significant security improvements when transitioning to the cloud.

Disadvantages of Cloud Computing

Here are some of the most common disadvantages of cloud computing:

1. Downtime

Downtime is defined as unserviceability from unavailability, which causes customer loss, data loss, and loss of revenue. Because cloud systems rely on the internet, you can’t entirely remove downtime from your plans. If you are not connected to the internet, you cannot access your cloud data, software, or apps.

To give a recent example, Google had an outage on August 20, 2020, lasting more than an hour. The outage had a ripple effect on many businesses and triggered widespread panic.

Best practices to lessen downtime:

• Consider using several regions with your cloud services, so your business won’t rely on one service and possibly incur downtime.
• Utilize a disaster recovery plan with a fast recovery time.
• Ensure your services are developed with recovery in mind.

2. Vendor Lock-In

Vendor lock-in occurs when it becomes difficult to switch from one cloud vendor to another. Vendor lock-in is often due to several promises made by cloud vendors to manage it all and offer ease of service - but without understanding what it means to move to another vendor, it's no wonder moving vendors is difficult. Some apps developed on one vendor will not work on another vendor, and geographic portability can become an issue, along with issues with synchronization, support, etc!

Best practices to remain vendor-locked:

• Use a multi-cloud approach (using more than one cloud provider).
• Develop apps that have some development flexibility, allowing you to move your apps to another platform if necessary.
• Ensure you fully understand what exactly you have committed to with each vendor cloud service before you become vendor-locked.

3. Limitations on Control, Flexibility

Because cloud service providers own, control and manage the cloud infrastructure, most customers have limited control over their data. The responsibilities of the cloud provider will be defined and limited in the end-user license agreement (EULA) and their policies as defined by the management of the platform, and this can be different depending on the provider. In most cases, customers have limited control over core administrative services and typically are only accessing applications, tools, and data residing on the cloud server. Also, customers could have limitations on how they interact with and manage their cloud deployments.

Key behaviors to maintain some aspect of control and flexibility include the following:

• Include descriptions of the cloud provider's responsibilities in your contract to reduce your risk of misunderstanding.
• Understand the flat fee structure, basic support, or advanced support for making cloud computing work for your organization.
• Understand the cloud infrastructure terms of Service Level Agreement (SLA) and how it connects to your agreements with customers.

4. SECURITY

There are differing opinions regarding security with cloud services. Cloud computing undoubtedly has myriad advantages, but there are also concerns, including the security of data. The obvious drawback is the risk of cyberattacks on data in the cloud. However, research from Gartner shows that, by 2025, 99% of data breaches and cyberattacks are going to result from mistakes or errors by customers.

How to obtain Cloud Computing certification? 

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Conclusion

Cloud computing has enormous benefits, with constant innovations dealing with its challenges. Understanding both positives and negatives allows companies to tap into cloud services to realize success. Up skill yourself with iCert Global's cloud computing courses to stay ahead of the game in the digital realm!

FAQs

 1.What advantages do cloud computing offer?

Cloud computing is useful because it saves costs, is easily accessible from anywhere there is internet, and allows businesses to grow easily.

2 .What are the disadvantages of cloud computing?

Cloud computing can have risks in security or rely on having a quality internet connection.

3. How do cloud computing help businesses grow?

It helps businesses grow by allowing them to easily increase or decrease their IT requirements as they expand or contract.

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