Cloud backup is the future for many organisations. Large and small business enterprises alike are turning to cloud backup (either private or public or a blended infrastructure) because it combines the best of all worlds: public cloud, private cloud and dedicated servers collaborating in any combination.
In this second instalment of our article series, Why the World is Moving to Cloud Backup we discuss and compare the different types of cloud backups.
Definitions
Private cloud – Private cloud services (also known as an internal or enterprise cloud) are used by one organisation and are not exposed to the public. The cloud itself is situated inside the organisation and is protected by a firewall to ensure only the organisation and its users have access to the data.
Public cloud – Third-party providers such as Amazon Web Services and Office 365 offer public cloud services over the public Internet, making them available to anyone to use or purchase. They may either be free or sold on-demand, allowing customers to pay per usage for the CPU cycles, storage, or bandwidth they consume.
Hybrid cloud – Hybrid cloud services use a blend of on-premises, private cloud and third party, public cloud services with interplay between the platforms. It is often referred to as the best of both worlds.
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Differentiation matrix
Attribute | Private | Public | Hybrid |
Tenancy | Single tenancy as only one organisation’s data is stored into the cloud. | Multi tenancy where more than one organisation’s data is stored in a shared environment. | A combination of both single- and multi tenancy where the data in the public cloud is still stored in a shared environment and where the organisation keeps the information stored in the private cloud private. |
Security | Only the organisation itself can see and use the data in the private cloud, which gives security-conscious customers peace of mind. | As anyone can use the public cloud’s services, and as physical resources are shared, some organisations are selective about which workloads would operate on this cloud. | The organisation’s users have exclusive access to the services running on the private cloud, whereas anyone can access the services running on the public cloud. |
Location of data | Inside the organisation’s network. | Anywhere on the Internet; where the cloud service provider’s services are located. | A combination of both. |
Capacity | Computing, storage and networking resources are dedicated to one organisation; limited supply matched to demand. | Comprise shared computing, storage and networking resources; limited supply but scalable to demand. | A combination of both. |
Cloud service management | The organisation’s own administrators manage and maintain the services. | The cloud service provider manages and maintains the services since the organisation is only using the service. | A combination of both. |
Hardware | The organisation must provide the hardware and must purchase the physical servers on which to build the private cloud. | The cloud service provider provides the hardware and ensures its operationality. | A combination of both. |
Deciding on the best cloud option for your organisation
Organisations typically use public cloud services for quick deployment, extending IT, cloud bursting for short-term projects and disaster recovery to ensure business continuity.
Some of the reasons why organisations use private cloud services include its compliance and security capabilities, for performance and control, and taking into account business size. The organisation, a hosting provider or a third party can manage a private cloud.
Hybrid cloud environments can keep data safe, secure and separate and allow data to move freely between private and public clouds. The hybrid cloud environment creates a flexible way to ensure increased options for data deployment.
Our next posts evaluates the advantages of cloud backup.
At Stage2data, we are Canada’s premier Cloud Solution Provider for a reason. In addition to being an excellent top tier service provider solution we are also the preferred choice for Canadian businesses concerned about data residency. The emphasis at Stage2data is on world-class service, bullet-proof security and bespoke solutions. If you want to find out more about the backup and disaster recovery services offered by Stage2data, please get in touch.
