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Pro's of Cloud Computing

• 2015/06/15 12:52
• Paris

Pros of Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is an expanding and evolving computing resource that reduces the pressure of running applications. The network of computers that make up the cloud handles them instead. Hardware and software demands on the users side also decrease. The only responsibility your computer has is to be able to run the cloud computing systems interface software, which can be done simply using your web browser. If you use web-based e-mails like Yahoo!, Hotmail or Gmail, then you’ve already used cloud computing. This is because this is not a program running on your computer, the software and storage for your account is on the service’s computer cloud.

Cloud computing is becoming more popular across businesses of all shapes and sizes, so we’ve come up with a few points as to why that might be.

• Almost endless storage possibilities.
• Back-up/Recovery
• Cost Efficient
• Automatic Software Integration
• Easy access to information/Increased collaboration
• Environmentally friendly

When it comes to storing things on the cloud, you don’t need to worry about running out of space- no more having to try to make space by deleting files, digging out a battered memory stick or increasing your current storage capacity. The cloud provides almost unlimited storage capacity.

We all know the stress of misplacing or losing files that we’ve been working on for hours, or are just generally important. So when it comes to backing up, all your data is stored in the cloud and most cloud service providers are competent to handle recovery of the information. This makes the entire process of backing up and recovering much simpler than other traditional methods of data storage. A lot of companies and people use the cloud itself solely as a backup repository. This includes most apple devices, where you can use the cloud to save and share media, notes, contacts and conversations between your own devices such as iPhones, iPads and macs.

Companies can save on licensing fees and also not worry about overhead charges such as the cost of software updates and data storage. You can pay for the service as a one-off-payment or as a pay-as-you-go. It also delivers a better cash flow by eliminating the capital expense (CAPEX)- associated with the developing and maintaining of the sever infrastructure, but as you’re not running your own server you don’t have to pay up-front capital costs, in the world of cloud-computing it is then put on someone else for them to deal with- yay. Also when you run your own server you’ll need to buy back-up hardware, just incase there’s a failure. In the worst case scenarios you may need to duplicate everything- and having spare hardware that’s just sat gathering dust waiting for a problem to occur is an expensive way to cover your back. So, having the cloud use at least two of their several locations to mirror your data and applications provides an effective and cheaper option.

Software integration is something that occurs automatically when using the cloud. It means that you do not need to take the time to cutomise or integrate your applications. It also allows you to customize your options without hassle, which means you can choose which services and software applications that suit you best.

By using the cloud you are allowing your company to be flexible and reach more people. You can access information from anywhere where there is an Internet connection, this means that employees can sync up work on documents and shared apps simultaneously outside of the office. Looking at the bigger picture it means that you can accommodate others that are in different time zones and geographical locations. You can rely on the cloud to guarantee that they will provide continuously availability of resources. They typically use several servers for maximum resilience.

We all want to do our bit for the environment, whether it’s committing to the recycling system and remembering to split up your cardboards from your plastics, to washing your clothes on eco. With the cloud, businesses that are using it only use the server space they need; this then decreases their carbon footprint. It’s been proven that using the cloud results in at least 30% less energy consumption and carbon emissions, in comparison to using on-site servers. Cloud is generally more efficient than typical IT infrastructure and takes fewer resources to compute, therefore saving energy.

So to sum up, there are many pros as to why Cloud Computing is a beneficial software to use, but, where there are pros there are cons.. which leads me onto my next blog post, ‘Cons of Cloud Computing’. So keep an eye out for it when it goes live on Friday 26^th of June (2015). But before then, if you have any views or information on this topic, then follow us on Twitter and get involved!

https://twitter.com/turnkeyituk

By Paris Ward