Embracing the Cloud: Unlocking the Top Benefits of Migrating from On-Premise Infrastructure
Moving from on-premise to the cloud can offer numerous benefits for businesses and organizations.
Most of the businesses, nonprofits, and local governments we help move to cloud platforms see both tangible and intangible benefits shortly after deployment. Whether they focus on improved availability and reliability, easier secure access to files, lower capital expenditures, or the benefits of improved collaboration and access to video conferencing services, very few businesses regret the move.
Top Benefits of Moving From On-Premise to Cloud
- Cost Savings: Cloud services eliminate the need for upfront capital expenses on hardware and data center infrastructure. Instead, businesses can opt for a pay-as-you-go model, where they only pay for the resources they use. This cost-effectiveness can significantly reduce IT expenses and is among the top benefits of moving from on-premise to cloud.
- Scalability: Cloud providers offer the ability to scale computing resources up or down based on demand. This flexibility allows businesses to handle fluctuations in traffic, application usage, and storage requirements without the need for overprovisioning or hardware upgrades.
- Accessibility and Mobility: Cloud services enable access to data and applications from anywhere with an internet connection. This accessibility fosters remote work, collaboration and enhances productivity as employees can work from various locations and devices.
- Data Redundancy and Reliability: Cloud providers often have multiple data centers across different regions, ensuring data redundancy and high availability. This minimizes the risk of data loss due to hardware failure or disasters.
- Security and Compliance: Reputable cloud providers invest heavily in security measures and comply with industry-specific regulations. They often have dedicated teams to monitor security threats and implement robust data protection practices. This is another key benefit of moving from on-premise to the cloud, as it provides essential resilience and continuity for a business.
- Automatic Updates and Maintenance: Cloud services take care of software updates, security patches, and system maintenance. This frees up IT staff from routine tasks, allowing them to focus on more strategic initiatives.
- Faster Deployment: Cloud infrastructure can be provisioned and deployed quickly, speeding up the time-to-market for applications and services.
- Innovation and Access to Advanced Services: Cloud providers frequently introduce new services and technologies, empowering businesses to leverage cutting-edge tools without investing in research and development.
- Global Reach: Cloud services have a global presence, enabling businesses to expand their operations to new markets and serve customers worldwide with reduced latency.
- Environmental Benefits: Cloud computing can lead to reduced energy consumption compared to on-premise data centers, as cloud providers optimize data center operations at scale.
- Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery: Cloud services often include robust backup and disaster recovery features, ensuring data resilience and continuity in the face of unforeseen events.
- Collaboration and Workflows: Cloud-based collaboration tools facilitate seamless teamwork, enabling employees to share and collaborate on documents in real-time, enhancing productivity.
- Competitive Advantage: Adopting cloud technology allows businesses to stay agile and respond quickly to market changes, gaining a competitive edge over competitors still reliant on traditional IT infrastructure.
Other Indirect Advantages of Shifting from On-Premise to Cloud Solutions
Many organizations do not look beyond the scope of their cloud implementation for other, indirect or subsequent benefits. Cloud migrations often create opportunities for additional IT simplification that can improve the users’ experience as well as further lower costs.
Most common across our customer base is the ability to simplify wide area networks. Organizations with multiple locations rely on wide area networks to connect offices, servers, and people. We see several common architectures, each with limitations.
- Centralized servers require all users not at the server location to access data remotely, at lower speeds.
- Distributed servers provide performance, but require more complicated backup solutions and/or data synchronization.
- Spoke and hub networks connect all sites, typically over leased/dedicated lines. Bandwidth between sites is limited and relatively expensive, with a single path (or, hopefully, redundant paths) to the Internet.
- MPLS (Multi-Protocol Layer Switch) networks provide a managed network, better security, and greater Internet bandwidth, but still rely on leased/dedicated bandwidth to the carrier.
- Lan-to-Lan and PC-to-LAN VPNs can securely connect machines and sites over private or public lines, but VPN services add overhead that hurts performance, increases admin costs, and makes it more difficult for users to connect.
When files and other data are centrally located in the cloud, you can simplify your wide area networks and lower costs.
Because your data is centrally located, you may no longer need point-to-point connections between your offices. Replacing point-to-point, VPN, and MPLS links with Direct Internet Access Links can have up to a 100X benefit, as many carriers can provide you with up to 10x the speed at as little as 1/10th the cost. At these price points, building in redundancy is affordable and can protect your businesses from carrier outages.
As you move to the cloud from on-premise software and infrastructure, reassess the role of your wide area and Internet links. Simplification and modification of your architecture can save you time, money, and overhead, while providing faster, more reliable service.
If you would like to review your network for opportunities, or discuss the potential benefits from moving to the cloud, please contact us for a no-obligation discussion.
