Will a Hybrid Cloud Solution Work for Your Business?

As businesses work hard to decide between a public and private cloud solution, industry experts are noting the emergency of a trend. Many businesses are choosing a combination of both technologies to enjoy the benefits of each.

What is Hybrid?

Several studies are touting the popularity of hybrid clouds, stating businesses’ desire to maintain control over their infrastructure while still utilizing the affordability and reliability offered by cloud service providers. With a hybrid cloud, businesses outsource some operations to the cloud, while still maintaining on-site storage of data and/or applications.

Many businesses are already using cloud services, if only through apps supplied through third-party vendors. But concerns about security and compliance have some businesses uncomfortable with entrusting their entire infrastructures with a cloud service provider, even when that provider has strict policies in place to safeguard that data.

Understanding the Challenges

A hybrid solution isn’t without its challenges, though. When data is housed in two separate places, while still working in cooperation with each other, incompatibilities may occasionally occur. It’s important that businesses seeking a hybrid solution pick the right service provider to ensure both environments will work in harmony.

For businesses that deal in applications that work better in an on-premise setting, a hybrid solution can allow those businesses to utilize cloud services while still maintaining a stable environment. Eventually, that business may consider upgrading to a newer version of that software, but in the meantime, a hybrid solution will allow that company to continue to operate as it has been.

A hybrid cloud can give a business a smooth transition into the cloud, allowing them to gradually ease in to the technology. But the hybrid cloud can be a good long-term solution, as well. Before a business makes a final decision, experts can review its infrastructure to determine the best architecture for its data and applications.