It's a fact - cloud computing has transformed the way businesses operate, offering cost effective, scalable and secure solutions for storing data and running applications - a far cry from traditional methods used for storing and processing data. Whether migrating existing systems or developing a brand new cloud based solution from scratch, moving to the cloud can boost efficiency, reduce costs significantly and ultimately support business growth.
Switching to the cloud - whether wholly or partially - can provide companies of all sizes and industries with a wide range of advantages.
Let's take a look at some of them here:
Cost Savings – First and foremost, cost savings. Depending on a business's current infrastructure, these savings can range from modest to highly significant. Savings are achieved through reduced hardware and maintenance expenses, particularly for businesses still relying on on-prem storage.
Scalability – Cloud computing is incredibly scalable, adapting to changing business needs by increasing or decreasing resource availability as required.
Remote Working – Another core advantage of cloud based services is that it allows employees to work from anywhere. This is of course particularly important today more than ever, with the remote/hybrid working models that have become the norm in the post covid world.
Security – Cloud based services benefit from sophisticated built-in security measures, along with additional security features that can be purchased as add-ons, reducing the need for physical security mechanisms such as firewalls.
Disaster Recovery – Disasters do happen and loosing critical data is more common than we are comfortable with. Cloud solutions typically offer backup and recovery options to prevent catastrophic loss.
As with most technologies, there is no one size fits all solution. Different companies have wildly different needs, budgets and regulations they have to comply with, so it is important to understand what options are available and who they might suit.
There are three main options for cloud deployment - all of which cater to customers who have specific needs, limitations or restrictions that they need to consider.
A cloud environment dedicated to a single organisation. It provides greater control and security compared to public cloud services and is often used by businesses with strict data security and compliance policies.
Hosted by third party providers such as Azure, AWS or Google Cloud, the public cloud is both cost effective and scalable, offering access to a wide range of services. It suits most businesses providing they do not require private infrastructure.
A hybrid model enables businesses to store sensitive data on a private cloud or on-prem whilst utilising public cloud resources for scalability and cost efficiency. It is ideal for organisations with regulatory or security requirements that prevent full cloud adoption or full use of public cloud.
Just as there are different cloud deployment models, there are also multiple cloud service models:
IaaS provides the foundations of cloud infrastructure including virtual servers, storage and networking. Businesses retain control over operating systems and applications whilst conveniently outsourcing their hardware maintenance to the cloud provider.
PaaS offers a development environment in the cloud providing infrastructure, operating systems and development tools. It allows businesses to build, test and deploy applications without needing to worry about underlying hardware and software management.
SaaS delivers ready built software applications over the internet negating the need for installation and maintenance by the purchasing company. Businesses can access applications from any device with an internet connection.
A move to the cloud does not all have to be done at once. In fact, many businesses choose to move groups of, or even single applications or databases, during 'each phase' in order to mitigate risk. It goes without saying, careful planning is absolutely essential and with that in mind, let's take a look at what steps businesses should take when moving their systems to the cloud.
A good place to start with any project is defining the outcomes that are to be achieved and a cloud migration project is no exception. Whether it’s cost savings, an increase in productivity or more flexible working, having specific, measurable objectives will help the organisation guide the selection of the right cloud solution(s). It’s also an opportunity to consider the business's growth ambitions and what it's future requirements may be.
Understanding the organisation’s current infrastructure is critical. What hardware is in use? Which applications are essential to operations? Identifying these factors helps determine what can be moved, what needs restructuring and where potential challenges may arise.
Once the goals and current environment are clearly defined and understood, businesses should then be in a position to create their migration plan. This plan should outline the timeline, required resources, the order in which the assets will be moved and ideally a rollback plan should there be issues.
Next of course comes the move itself. Companies can choose to take a phased approach with regards to the users and rollout each stage to this pilot group before the rest of the users. Testing and feedback after each stage is imperative as this will provide opportunities to identify and resolve issues early on and reduce the risk of any problems causing issues to the remainder of the plan.
Once migration is complete, continuous monitoring and user feedback help ensure performance meets expectations. There are also opportunities for performance and cost optimisation in the new environment.
These steps provide a general overview of cloud migration, though specific processes may vary depending on the organisation’s needs.
We've already covered what cloud platforms offer, so now let’s take a look at some of the leading providers and the types of businesses they benefit most:
Microsoft Azure is a cloud computing service and as the name suggests, part of the Microsoft portfolio. Azure offers a wide range of services including cloud storage, virtual machines, databases, networking and advanced analytics tools.
Best for -
Azure is particularly well suited for businesses that already use Microsoft tools and systems. It's integration with Microsoft’s wider software ecosystem is beneficial for businesses in pretty much all sectors and small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) that are looking to scale and/or use a cloud based model can also benefit from Azure’s flexibility.
AWS is another widely used cloud platform and also offers a wide range of services including computing power, storage options and machine learning tools. It also provides more advanced services such as artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and serverless computing.
Best for -
AWS is ideal for large enterprises or businesses with complex infrastructure needs. Its scalability makes it a great choice for businesses that need to handle high volumes of traffic or that require advanced computing resources. In addition - tech companies, startups and organisations looking for sophisticated technologies will benefit from its broad service offerings.
Google Cloud Platform is not as widely used as AWS or Azure (yet) but well known for its powerful data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence capabilities. It provides computing and storage solutions, along with innovative tools like BigQuery for large scale data analysis and Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) for containerised applications.
Best for -
GCP is perfect for businesses that rely heavily on data analytics for their day to day operations or need to process large datasets in real time. Tech companies, startups and businesses in fields such as e-commerce, media and scientific research all fit the profile. Additionally, businesses that prioritise AI and machine learning projects will find GCP’s tools very beneficial.
*It should be noted that there are a number of other cloud computing providers that offer similar services but for the purpose of this page, we've used the top three by market share as of 2024.
Our experienced developers have been working with cloud technologies for years, making us well-positioned to help organisations transition. From micro-businesses and SMEs to large public sector organisations, we understand the complexities of cloud migration.
We always provide an unbiased, comprehensive set of options tailored to your requirements and working environment. Our team actively works to minimise risks and maintains transparency throughout the process. We can support you at every stage - from mapping out your current environment to training users and everything in between.
Whether you have firm plans in place to make the move or whether you're just casually entertaining the idea, we'd love to have a chat with you to see how we can help you on your journey.
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