Why You Should Implement a Multi-cloud Computing Strategy

More than 50% of organisations use more than one cloud vendor. There are many advantages to this, including reducing downtimes and improving server reliability. But what are the challenges, and what are the key benefits for your business? Read on to find out more.

What Is a Multi-cloud Strategy?

Multi-cloud strategy is the use of more than one cloud computing provider or service. In deployment, organisations implement multi-cloud computing and storage strategy via a combination of different public or private infrastructure as a service (IaaS) offerings.

Different businesses deploy multi-cloud computing and storage in different ways. Some work from and allow for collaborations between teams on one server, while offering real time services to their clients on a different server. The choice of strategy depends on the business model and goals of each organisation. That notwithstanding, there are rich benefits to derive from implementing a multi-cloud storage strategy.

Why a Multi-cloud Strategy?

Multi-cloud computing and storage strategy has numerous benefits. Multi-cloud helps organisations become more flexible, and cuts down the cost of deploying cloud computing and storage infrastructure based on the value of services vis-a-vis the operational needs of the organisation. Most importantly, multi-cloud can be used to provide a failover environment to keep your business running in case of a downtime from one provider’s network.

Flexibility

Businesses change over time. As they do, their data management and computing needs evolve as well. The only way to reap the full benefits of your growth is to make sure your cloud computing is at pace with your development. Multi-cloud helps you achieve this by providing computing resources and space for different classes of data and needs on different platforms. Different forms of data also require different levels of security and clearance for access. Mission-critical systems and data often require more complex and expensive infrastructure. Lumping them all up in one server would not be ideal. With a multi-cloud strategy, though, you could deploy different computing resources from different providers for them, at different price points to keep your business functioning optimally.

Avoiding Vendor Lock-in

Vendor lock-in is when a client is not able to transition between rival services. Issues of compatibility sometimes mean you can’t move data around without having to change the format. With a multi-cloud strategy, your data is stored in multiple locations and can be pulled up to be used at any time without the need to download them to a physical location. Multi-cloud also means you can move said data around easily and quickly to areas where they are needed most.

Optimising Costs No Matter The Location

The multi-cloud strategy can help you shave a whole lot on the deployment costs for cloud computing and storage systems. Cloud providers tend to have different pricing strategies. Some can be expensive in areas others are cheap. Rather than expending more cash to deploy all features of a particular cloud, you can sample specific bits from different platforms at lower costs.

Also, outbound traffic from your cloud servers are quite expensive. Costs of moving data can be cheaper in America than in other places on some cloud platforms. If you operate and collect data from different parts of the world, a single cloud service would cause your costs to spike at peak times. The best alternative would be to use different cloud platforms for different locations to cut costs and boost efficiency.

Improving Availability and Reducing Downtimes

Organisations use multi-cloud to hedge against localised infrastructure failure. A compromised system on one platform could be mitigated with access to the other, ensuring businesses maintain zero or low downtimes.

When cybercriminals attack your website using a Denial of Service (DoS), bringing your site back online could be difficult. With a multi-cloud system, however, you are able to leverage on the availability of a failover solution to bring your systems online quickly. The IT department can seamlessly shift traffic to other available servers during attacks while the problematic server is repaired. This way, your business doesn’t suffer any damages.

Having multiple cloud servers also reduces the dangers of Single Point of Failure, aka, SPOF. When you host your server on one cloud, hackers are able to concentrate their attacks on one server till they break through. A multi-cloud strategy, however, builds your redundancy and spreads your components across different servers.

For these reasons, multi-cloud strategy could serve as the basis for your disaster recovery plan.

Challenges of Multi-Cloud Strategy

Managing multi-cloud platforms comes with a unique set of challenges. For one, you would have to implement security protocols across each platform. That in turn raises the possibility of misconfiguring your settings especially where processes are not uniform across platforms. It is therefore important for businesses to be proactive in maintaining the security of their data. Creating a culture of security in your workforce would also help keep your data safe and the cost of operating a multi-cloud lower.

The same strategy that allows you to have servers across different geographies makes you liable to rules in those jurisdictions as well. Moving data across clouds doesn’t make you immune to privacy laws. It is therefore important to implement a hybrid infrastructure in addition. With hybrid, you are using both public platforms in addition to your on-premise servers. The on-premise server allows you to address residency implications of your data.

Despite these challenges, the benefits of multi-cloud can not be overemphasized. The flexibility and business continuity it guarantees is definitely worth all the hassle, and you should make sure you are choosing the right offer to secure the future of your business.