10 Reasons To Use The Cloud
If you needed more evidence that cloud is here to stay, here it is.
In today’s whirlwind of social media and webmail, it can be hard to remember a world without the cloud. Such is the significance of remotely-hosted data, the cloud’s arrival has affected us all – even those who still find the concept of cloud computing hard to fathom. To help clarify what it is and how it works, here are ten reasons to use the cloud, starting with a simple, unassailable truth:
- The cloud is already here. Every time you log into webmail or use a smartphone app, you request services from a remote server that are then fed to your device. Without even realising it, most of us use cloud services on a daily basis.
- Data is set to play an ever-greater role in our lives. The Internet of Things has been widely discussed during 2015, but the reality of billions of devices uploading data autonomously will change our lives in numerous small ways. From grocery shopping to health and fitness, vast cloud-hosted databases will be required to store the masses of information being used to automate and simplify our lives.
- Safety is improving. The celebrity phone-hacking scandal is just one case that highlighted the fact that remotely-stored data is only as secure as the servers and firewalls that protect it. The increasing adoption of two-factor authentication and military-grade security in unmarked server facilities means a cloud drive can now be more secure than on-premises equipment. Plus, a lost laptop doesn’t compromise security any more.
- Capital costs are reduced. Signing up for a cloud-hosted network requires no capital expenditure on hardware or any investment in IT personnel to make everything work. Because subscription-based cloud solutions can also be set up in hours (rather than days or weeks for on-premises networks), costs are reduced further.
- Your favorite websites depend on the cloud. Without the endlessly expandable storage and potentially limitless bandwidth offered by cloud storage, companies like Google and Amazon couldn’t provide their services to the world. Indeed, these firms now construct their own servers to meet the huge demand their websites generate.
- Computers can become smaller and more powerful simultaneously. When data is hosted in the cloud, terminals and devices only need to display information that has been processed elsewhere. This has enabled today’s mobile phones and tablets to introduce eye-popping visual displays and lightweight components, rather than having to house heavy and bulky battery-draining hardware.
- The cloud provides go-anywhere flexibility. Remember the days of arriving at a meeting and realising you’d forgotten to print out a key document, or not being able to check your email on the move? The cloud has the potential to eliminate these issues, right down to desktop mirroring and universal access to personal documents.
- Cloud hardware can reduce running costs. According to public body JISC, the University of Dundee will save half a million pounds within five years by migrating its 22,000 student accounts to Microsoft Office 365 Education. Other institutions across Britain are also taking the opportunity to free up infrastructure and IT costs by outsourcing program hosting and other time-consuming chores like disaster recovery.
- Scalability is immediate. Rather than trying to predict what IT services you’ll need in future, and purchasing hardware accordingly, cloud services can respond to demand at any given point. That means it’s possible to only pay for what you need, rather than what you might need in five years’ time. Periods of peak demand can also be catered for without requiring year-round investment in maintaining that level of service.
- The benefits of home-working can be realized. Many people agree that the nine-to-five office-based working week is an anachronism. Allowing employees to work from home via a cloud server ensures productivity can be maintained and monitored, while enabling people to avoid commuting (and adopt more flexible hours) can increase job satisfaction and retention – particularly among working parents.
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