Cloud computing comes in many different flavors and has uses across a variety of industries. But how do you determine which configuration is right for you? Cloud can be broken down into three basic categories: public, private, and hybrid. Figuring out which one will work for your business depends on your specific needs.
Private Cloud
Private clouds are ideal for enterprises working with multiple applications involving mission-critical data and suited to workloads that require greater levels of customization. This type of cloud deployment provides a higher level of control and security due to an environment with dedicated resources. Enterprise private cloud solutions are a great fit for organizations whose business relies on the performance and availability of their application platform.
Public Cloud
Public cloud, probably the most familiar cloud computing model, is a data center made available in a metered manner to the public for purchase, resale or as a pay-as-you-go service. In public cloud, you are sharing infrastructure with others and receive a standardized, yet highly scalable, type of capacity where you can bring virtual machines to life, on-demand. The benefits of an enterprise public cloud solution include the lack of upfront infrastructure investment and the ability to easily scale and address demand-based or workload-based fluctuations.
Hybrid Cloud
A hybrid hosting solution is the combination of at least one private cloud and one public cloud that are connected to allow programs and data to be easily shared. This model allows you to choose the best match for your workload requirements at any time giving you the best of both worlds at once – the cost and scale benefits of public cloud and the security and control of private cloud. Hybrid cloud solutions are a great fit for an organization that has some customization, security and compliance needs but wants the ability to burst fluctuating workloads into the public cloud when necessary.
Still unsure about which cloud “flavor” will best support your application? Use our Cloud Hosting Buyer’s Guide to learn more.
