Cloud computing has become a buzzword in the past few years, especially in the tech industry and businesses undergoing technological and digital transformation. Cloud computing allows users to store and access programs, data and apps via the internet. It saves space in the computer’s hard drive and is an easy way to have a proper backup of all the data.
In cloud computing, the client’s devices are connected with backend data center components. The basic elements of a cloud infrastructure includes network, hardware, storage and virtualisation. Even though people are familiar with the concept of cloud computing, not many know that there are three types of cloud computing: public, private and hybrid cloud. In this article, we will dig deeper to understand the different types of cloud, which will help us choose the exemplary cloud computing service.
Public Cloud
The public cloud is the most commonly used cloud service. The popularity of the public cloud can be attributed to the fact that it is available to the public and can be used by anyone. To ensure that the data you upload on the cloud takes minimal time, it is vital to have a good internet speed. If you are facing any issue regarding the time to upload or access the data on the cloud, use Speed Test or PLDT to check your current internet speed. In the public cloud, the data of different organisations are stored in a shared environment.
Its data center can be located anywhere in the globe where the cloud service provider’s services are located. It offers plenty of choices regarding the growth of the organisation. The USP of the public cloud is its high scalability and agility. Further, the subscription cost of the public cloud is usually low. It can be availed for free and sometimes is subscription-based too.
The complexity of using a public cloud is low, and the user does not have to pay maintenance costs. The drawbacks of the public cloud usually come in the form of low security and minimal control of the user over it.
Private Cloud
As the name suggests, a private cloud is designed for a particular organisation, and the general public has no access. It provides its dedicated solution to one particular organisation. The data center of the pirate cloud is either located on-premise. However, if the service is outsourced, the data center is present at the third-party vendor off-site.
It has a dedicated private network, and therefore, the security of the private cloud is extremely high. The USP of the private cloud includes not only its tight security but also its customisation. The organisation can customise the private cloud to meet the business and security requirements of the company.
The user has greater visibility of its functioning and a higher level of control over the public cloud infrastructure. Organisations dealing with sensitive data should opt for the public cloud instead of the private cloud.
The major drawbacks of the private cloud are its price, scalability and accessibility. The private cloud dedicates itself to a particular organisation, which is expensive. Owing to the tight security of private clouds, accessibility can be difficult, especially when someone is trying to access the data from a smartphone or from outside the premises.
Hybrid Cloud
Again, the nomenclature of hybrid clouds clearly indicates what can be expected from them. Hid cloud is a mixture of both public and private cloud solutions. Not all the data of an organisation requires the usage of a private cloud. Going for a hybrid cloud can greatly reduce the cost for any organisation.
An organisation can take care of sensitive data on the private cloud. On the other hand, the less sensitive data can be stored and accessed from the public cloud. The hybrid cloud offers the perfect balance of security, performance, scalability, cost and efficiency.
It is the perfect solution for an organisation with multiple verticals to take care of. However, not everything is highly optimistic about hybrid clouds. For instance, managing the public and private cloud costs can be hard to track. Further, combining the private and public cloud in a hybrid cloud brings complexity to the organisation.
Which Cloud To Choose?
All the cloud options come with their own sets of pros and cons. The cloud option that one should go for depends upon the organisation’s requirements and budget. It is crucial to weigh the differences between the clouds to get a well-informed decision. Mostly, the business world does not run in the either-or situation. Considering more than one cloud option that is hybrid cloud can also be utilised to get the perfect balance in cloud computing.