What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Cloud Computing?

What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Cloud Computing
Cloud data centers will process 94% of workloads in 2021.

This statistic encapsulates the Internet's future. Since its inception, cloud computing has shown year-over-year growth. Traditional data centers will become outdated in the not-too-distant future.

What is Cloud Computing? Private, Public,  and Hybrid Cloud Enviorments

What is Cloud Computing?

The phrase "cloud computing" refers to the process of storing and accessing data through the internet. It does not save any information on your computer's hard drive. You may access data from a remote server using cloud computing.

Cloud computing provides organizations with on-demand services and resources. Data storage and processing power are two examples. They're offered on a pay-as-you-go basis through the internet.

In cloud computing, there are four primary cloud environments:

  • Public - Offered by third-parties, anyone can use a public cloud.
  • Private- Not publicly available, one entity alone uses a private cloud.
  • Hybrid - A model that blends a public cloud and a private cloud.
  • Multi-cloud -  A structure combining services from more than one cloud vendor.

These cloud models offer three main types of service:

  • Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) - The most flexible type of cloud service, offering a completely virtualized computing infrastructure. An example is Microsoft Azure.
  • Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) - A bit less specialized, but more than pure infrastructure. Heroku is a PaaS example.
  • Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) - A fully developed software solution that’s available on a subscription basis. Google Apps is an example of SaaS.

Let’s take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing:

Advantages of Cloud Computing

We'll learn about the advantages of cloud computing in your company here:

1. Cost Optimization

One of the most significant advantages of Cloud Computing is cost savings. It allows you to save a lot of money because it doesn't require any actual hardware. In addition, maintaining the hardware does not necessitate the use of skilled employees. The cloud service provider is in charge of purchasing and managing equipment.

2. Competitive Advantage

Cloud computing gives you a leg up on your competition. One of the biggest features of Cloud services is that you may access the most up-to-date programs at any time without having to spend time or money on installation.

3. Rapid Deployment

Cloud computing allows you to deploy applications quickly. As a result, if you want to use the cloud, your complete system may be up and running in a matter of minutes. However, the length of time required is dependent on the technology employed in your company.

4. Data backup and Restoration

Once data is saved on the Cloud, it is much easier to back it up and restore it, which is a time-consuming procedure on-premise.

5. Automatic Integration

Software integration is something that happens automatically on the cloud. As a result, you won't have to put in any extra work to personalize and integrate your apps according to your preferences.

6. Reliable Support

One of the most important advantages of Cloud hosting is its reliability. You will always be kept up to date on any changes. With Cloud Computing you will always have reliable access to advanced online security and support.

7. Easier Accessibility and Collaboration

Employees working on-site or in remote locations may quickly access all of the company's services. All they require is access to the Internet. Employees in various countries may interact in a more easy and safe manner thanks to the cloud computing platform.

8. Infinite Storage Capacity

The cloud provides nearly infinite storage space. With relatively low monthly rates, you may simply enlarge your storage space at any moment.

9. Multitenancy

Multitenancy makes many of the advantages of cloud computing possible. Multitenancy enhances cloud computing in two important ways:

  1. Better resource utilization: Setting aside a computer for a single tenant is inefficient since the tenant is unlikely to utilize the entire processing capability of the machine. The usage of available resources is optimized by sharing machines among numerous renters.
  1. Reduced costs: Because multiple customers share resources, a cloud vendor can provide services to a large number of customers at a lower cost than if each customer needed their own dedicated infrastructure.

10. Scalability

Cloud computing is always available, and scales automatically to adjust to the increase in demand. Allows pay-per-use and makes it easier to spend only on what you actually need and use.

Disadvantages of Cloud Computing

Here, are significant challenges of using Cloud Computing:

1. Performance Levels

When you operate in a cloud environment, your application runs on a server that also serves as a resource provider for other enterprises. Any selfish activity on your tenant's part, or a DDOS assault, might degrade the performance of your shared resource.

2. Technical Challenges

Cloud computing is prone to outages and other technological problems. Even the greatest cloud service provider firms, despite maintaining excellent maintenance standards, may run into problems.

3. Security Concerns

Another disadvantage of using cloud computing services is the security risk. You should be aware that if you use cloud computing, you will be sharing all of your company's sensitive data with a third-party cloud computing service provider. This information might be accessed by hackers.

Need help securing your cloud infrastructure? Talk to our experts.

4. Downtime

When dealing with cloud computing, it's also important to factor in downtime. This is due to the fact that your cloud provider may have power outages, poor internet access, and service maintenance, among other things.

Average Downtime with and without cloud computing comparison
Average Downtime

5. Good Internet Connection 

Cloud computing necessitates the use of the internet. You can't use the cloud if you don't have access to the internet. Furthermore, there is no alternative means to collect data from the cloud.

6. Reduced Bandwidth

Many cloud storage service providers restrict their users' bandwidth use. As a result, if your company exceeds the allotted budget, the additional costs might be enormous.

7. Lack of Customer Assistance 

Cloud computing firms struggle to provide enough customer support. They also encourage their users to rely on FAQs or online support, which may be a time-consuming task for non-technical people.

Cloud Computing Is the Future

Regardless of the benefits and drawbacks of Cloud Computing, we cannot dispute that it is the fastest expanding segment of network-based computing. It benefits consumers of all sizes, including basic users, developers, companies, and all sorts of businesses. As a result, this technology will be around for a long time.

If you need to learn more about your opportunities to optimize your infrastructure, our certified Cloud Managed Services team can help you migrate, manage, secure, and optimize your infrastructure.

Book your free consultation today.