A vast majority of data being manufactured, consumed, and analyzed is now found on the internet. Businesses, no matter the scale, all rely on digital storage of some sort that helps them arrange, organize, and process data. Not only that, a business company compiles a large amount of data over time that becomes a bit difficult to manage or store somewhere. Sure, hard drives, local storage, and disks may be an option and have been that way for some time; but there is a new kid in town.
Conventional data storage methods cost a lot of money, space, and resources just to keep them running. A local server, for example, requires its own room with regulated temperature 24/7, routine maintenance checks for the condition of hard drives, and a lot of money just to keep them running the entire time. Cloud storage is the future, and it is perhaps the data system that makes everyone’s lives easier. Within cloud storage is a specific type called the hybrid cloud. What is hybrid cloud, then?
A quick dive into cloud storage
Cloud storage is basically storing your data somewhere off-site, on business servers that are cared for by other companies. Such data stored is accessible by the company through the internet or the ‘cloud.’ This is more cost-effective and less resource intensive for the typical user; as was stated earlier, it is hard to maintain your own set of servers. A hybrid cloud, then, is a specific type of cloud engineering.
To understand it, one must first understand the difference between a public and a private cloud. What was described earlier is a public cloud, where all your data is stored in a secure yet public server that is not in your ownership at all. A private cloud is the opposite, which is basically you owning your own server and running it for yourself with the help of a storage company. A hybrid cloud is a mix of the two, often having a little bit of storage room for the private cloud and a majority of the data being stored in the public cloud.
Why choose a hybrid cloud?
There are different reasons why one should choose a private or a public cloud; combining the best of both worlds, however, offers a compelling reason for most situations. The main benefit of a hybrid cloud is its ability to change and adapt to the type of business needs you have. For example, a business with a lot of stored data that is not being used routinely (also known as called storage) may benefit from a larger amount of the partition being stored in a public cloud. Since latency, speed, and ease of access is not an issue, placing a majority of the files in a public cloud within a hybrid cloud situation is entirely possible.
The opposite also runs true. If your company has seasonal spikes where you’d need to gather and retrieve data as quickly as possible, then latency and speed are of the essence. Availing of a hybrid cloud plan where your private cloud partition is larger than your public cloud is a good way of doing it since in-house private servers are very easily available for your company to access and move data from.
Another advantage is cost savings. Since your company could have adjustable plans that best fit your business needs, there is no resource leak by which you’re paying for something that is totally unnecessary. You could choose a specific partition that allows for maximum cost-efficiency while achieving the storage amount and latency speeds you need.
Why not use a public cloud for everything?
Perhaps this question may come to your mind. Why not leave it to a third-party data storage company to handle all your data? For one, speed and latency issues are still present in a public cloud. This may cause you to have trouble retrieving data whenever traffic is on full blast on different occasions, such as the holiday season. Maintaining a balance of the two – the epitome of a hybrid cloud is still the best option for you as a business company to store, manage, and deal with data.
