RachelModern business needs to integrate technology into their operations if they are to succeed in the competitive modern markets. But an organisation can’t just go about purchasing all kinds of technology, hoping that it will improve their operations. If you are going to adopt a new solution, it is important to first consider whether there are enough ways to apply it to your organisation in order for it to be worthwhile.
What is Cloud Computing
Cloud computing is by far one of the most popular technology solutions that businesses tend to look at adopting nowadays. Most people agree that it is a highly valuable solution to integrate, but it is not enough to simply take others’ word for it – any business looking to integrate cloud computing with their infrastructure should consider the different applications of the technology that they can take advantage of. We discussed this with TechQuarters, a provider of managed IT services London based companies have been working with for years, in order to adopt cloud computing. In particular, TechQuarters are Microsoft Partners, which means they are proponents of the Azure Cloud Platform. But with that said, there are many different cloud computing providers out there.
4 Common Uses for the Cloud in Business…
One of the reasons why cloud computing is such a popular solution is due to the number of ways in which it can be used in a business context. According to TechQuarters, cloud computing is steadily replacing most other conventional business technology solutions – like servers, on-site databases, and even PC workstations. Below is a list of four common applications of cloud computing that are popularly implemented by businesses.
- Infrastructure as a Service
This is probably the most common application of cloud computing for businesses. Infrastructure as a Service (or IaaS) is where a business uses a public cloud service (like Azure or AWS) to host their data, apps, networking solutions, and more or less every part of their IT infrastructure. This is possible due to technology called virtualisation, which means that servers and other forms of compute resources can be replicated in a virtual cloud environment. IaaS enables a business to becoming fully remote and highly agile, because they can access their critical infrastructure from anywhere, at any time.
- Platform as a Service
After IaaS, you have platform as a service (PaaS), which is a similar service, though it is less granular. Rather than building everything from the ground up, using the raw resources provided by the cloud service, PaaS offers businesses a slightly more specialised environment where they can build and deploy their own platforms and applications, for use by their clients.
- Cloud Applications
An increasing majority of business applications nowadays are cloud applications. This is also known as Software as a Service (SaaS), which is simply where the application and all of its components are hosted in the cloud. The only part of the cloud infrastructure that end-users access with cloud apps is the software user interface. When we spoke about this with TechQuarters, they mentioned that the IT support Manchester businesses – and other businesses around the UK – often involves them recommending the use of cloud applications, because they are much more reliable, and less prone to technical difficulties.
- File Storage
This is another very common use of cloud computing in business. The primary benefit of cloud file storage is the fact that files can be accessed from anywhere, at any time, provided one has an internet connection; and with the larger providers (like Azure), the sky is the limit in terms of how much storage you need. Nearly all file types can be stored in a cloud environment, so businesses will rarely have issues in that respect. Furthermore, if security is a high priority, cloud storage can be configured with highly conditional access, if need be. Using the same principles, cloud storage can also be used as part of a backup service, which is useful for disaster recovery.
Julia
