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Cloud computing has changed many aspects of how businesses operate. Whether you have started using cloud technologies or not, the chances are that your competitors already use them and have gained all the advantages of cloud computing. The main question here arises: Why bother? Well, today, we will share the “Why” with you. We will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using cloud computing for your business.
First things first, let us start with what cloud technology is.
Cloud Computing
Information technology has impacted how businesses operate in today’s world. That’s why almost all businesses today have an IT department for various reasons. One of these reasons is the management of all the business’s files, information, and data on the business’s physical hardware or any other traditional IT infrastructure. Yes, this facilitates business operations. However, it is costly, which adds more restraint to the business, especially when there is a need for more infrastructure or physical IT equipment.
Here is where cloud computing shines, as businesses can access computing resources such as hardware, storage, databases, networking, and even software from cloud service providers through the Internet. Simply put, it is like outsourcing the IT department, which is a massive cost reduction.
Cloud computing services make it easy to manage these resources through a wide range of software apps that can control cloud data access with many levels of control and customization options.
The main question here would be, okay, that is great, but what if I want to control not just the business data? I also wish to control the infrastructure. Well, fear not, you can do that through IaaS (infrastructure as services), as there are a wide range of types of cloud service such as:
- IaaS (infrastructure as a service)
- PaaS (platform as a service)
- SaaS (software as a service)
Now that you know about cloud computing technologies, let’s explore their advantages and disadvantages.
The Advantages of Cloud Computing
Flexibility and Scalability:
Using the cloud for your business gives you excellent flexibility. Your business can scale up and add more resources as needed or use fewer resources without investing in cloud infrastructure.
This factor affects a business’s ability in many ways, especially for small businesses; scaling up is easy and cheaper. Scaling down won’t be trouble as well and can be an easy process, so the business can still be competitive without much loss, which helps business continuity.
Cost savings:
With the ease of scalability and flexibility comes the power of cost efficiency. This advantage is one of the best, especially for small businesses or those on a tight budget, because cloud computing allows you to pay for only what you use.
This way, there will be no need for dedicated infrastructure, which requires a team for maintenance or installation of a cooling system.
Accessibility:
Besides cost efficiency, cloud computing will enable you to access any data stored in the cloud easily. Not only is it easy to access data, but it can also manage accessibility levels. This can be determined by who can access what through different authentication methods, such as two-factor authentication, to prevent unauthorized access, which should cover any privacy concerns you may have.
Managing the data with many access levels allows for better collaboration between teams. Each team can easily access data and operate it efficiently. Using collaboration tools and cloud solutions will allow the business to collaborate efficiently.
Backups:
Cloud computing prevents data loss through backups. Most cloud computing providers have backup solutions for your data, preventing data loss from your business in an emergency, such as hardware failure or any other catastrophic failure for any physical infrastructure.
Not only does it benefit you by preventing data loss, but it also ensures that if you need to review an old system or roll back to a previous version, your backup will contain everything you need and be easy to retrieve.
Security:
In addition to backing up data, which already adds additional security, cloud computing provides another security advantage: ongoing maintenance—without any maintenance costs—and software updates. You won’t have to hire a maintenance team to run check-ups on your physical servers.
Cloud providers take the security issues off your shoulders. They are concerned about security, so they provide a high level of security to the cloud platform. This is a massive advantage because they hire top security experts and deal with any security risks or cyber attacks. So, there is an expert team to deal with any security concerns you might have.
Those were key advantages that could make a considerable difference between businesses. Of course, like any technology, there are also some key disadvantages besides these numerous advantages. They are not major issues, as you can get over any of the drawbacks of cloud computing, and we will share with you our suggestions on how to do so.
The Disadvantages of Cloud Computing
The need for the Internet:
Because vendors provide cloud technology as a service, it can be accessed only with an internet connection. It should be a stable internet connection and cannot be operated offline.
There is also a risk that the vendor will lose its internet connection, which is also called downtime, as most cloud service suppliers experience potential downtime.
Look for a very high uptime vendor to bypass such a problem.
Limited control:
I have mentioned that data accessibility is much easier, which is an advantage. Supposedly, easier data access means better control.
Yes, that is the case, but we are discussing infrastructure and physical access. Yes, you can determine what you need and request an increase or decrease in the required hardware, but customization is gone now.
While such a disadvantage might not be of great concern for a small business, it is likely a problem for companies with complex needs.
Integration difficulties with an existing business:
Attempting to integrate a running business with cloud technology might be a challenging task that requires some engineering expertise.
Switching from one cloud provider to another is called a migration. It can also be a problem known as “vendor lock-in.”
This phenomenon is not much of a concern for small businesses because this problem appears to involve enormous amounts of complex data.
Search for a vendor with an expert support team to aid you in such problems, and provide seamless integration process.
We suggest Hostinger, for its unique range of applications, which gives you many attractive options to choose the best that suits you. And they have all the sugeestions to deal with all disadvantages of the cloud. Here is the link for the cloud startup plan which is a suitable solution for startups.
Summary
Let’s summarize the advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing.
Cloud computing advantages
- Flexibility
- Scalibility
- Cost reductions
- Accessibility
- Backups
- Security
Cloud computing disadvantages
- Requires a stable internet connection
- Limited control
- Integration and migration complexity
Conclusion
Cloud computing is like any other technology; it has pros and cons. As long as you can avoid its cons, they don’t affect you, or their impact does not draw back your business. It is recommended that you go for it to obtain all the numerous benefits of cloud computing for your business and add a competitive edge.
