Nov 2010
What is Cloud Computing and why is it happening?
As is often the case with supposed new technology Grange would argue that this delivery model has existed for some years. It is a services computing model that delivers data, applications and services over the internet. Cloud computing takes data and/or applications off site, hosted by a third party and delivered on a pay per use basis.
Computing ‘on demand’ and ASP (application service provider) services have existed for some time but what is really driving the cloud today is its applicability to the current explosion of data. This is also fuelling massive growth in the consumer market with the demand for storage of video and photographs resulting in growth in cloud services.
Business now has to handle huge amounts of data and growing numbers of customers and employees who want access to it. This growth has coincided with global financial uncertainty and businesses now have to rethink their IT investments.
What are the financial advantages?
By deploying a cloud computing strategy, organisations save on the costs of their often under-utilised servers and storage hardware. This is particularly relevant to organisations that have spikes in demand such as seasonal trends.
Companies pay on a per-usage basis and take advantage of the cloud providers’ scalable offering with large processing and storage capabilities. This reduces capital outlay but may increase operational costs.
How do I start?
Virtualising existing IT infrastructure is a good start. Virtualisation has many benefits in terms of reductions in power, cooling and floor space. The abstraction of software from hardware enables an organisation to have the flexibility to move some of its ‘virtual servers’ to a cloud provider.
Another start is when investing in a new application; organisations should consider the costs of providing in-house infrastructure versus a cloud solution where one exists.
Is this right for my organisation?
From our experience, a good IT director will clearly understand the costs of their service delivery in terms of staff, third-party costs, power, cooling and accommodation. Any cloud solution can be evaluated against savings in these areas. Decisions on this basis can be made purely on price versus risk evaluations.
More complex, but just as important, are questions such as ‘does your business need increased flexibility around peaks in demand, seasonal trends, swings in usage and campaigns. Cloud computing may offer a cost effective method of delivering this flexibility.
Another consideration is based around risk, for example security and whether to use a public or private cloud. Clearly the private cloud will increase the expense.
How Grange helps customers to evaluate Cloud Computing…
Grange is able to provide customers with a risk assessment and business case based approach to evaluating cloud computing. If you would like Grange to help you to evaluate if cloud computing is right for your business, please contact us on the details below.
IT industry update
VMware reported year on year growth of 46% to annual sales fuelled by the appetite for its virtualisation technology both in-house and for datacenter/Cloud usage.
Announcements from ANZ, Barclays, Westpac, and an unnamed European competitor indicate that IT decision-makers are at last willing to make use of cloud services, albeit for non-critical applications and processes only. Barclays is to use a cloud-based environment to hold transactional data generated by contactless payments. ANZ, Westpac, and the anonymous European bank have also turned to the cloud for the ongoing development and performance testing of software, respectively working with iTKO (and its LISA suite), the VCE consortium (comprising VMware, Cisco, and EMC), and IBM to do so.