The goal of every business in Nigeria is to minimize costs and maximize profit. Every business aims to grow stronger, gain popularity, make a name and remain trusted forever. One sure way to achieve all these in this century is to harness the benefits of cloud deployment models.
As the world evolves and the nature of work shifts from physical to remote, access to information, especially in the business world has become online. This presents the cloud deployment models as a great tool that businesses can leverage to gain traction on the global market and drive sales.
In this post, you will learn about what a cloud deployment model is, the types of cloud computing deployment models, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each model.
Table of Contents
What is a Cloud Deployment Model?
A cloud deployment model, also known as a “cloud computing deployment model” refers to the digitalized computing environment that allows access for data exchange and communication virtually. In cloud computing, the cloud is the office station.
With a vast knowledge of cloud computing, your business does not need the traditional IT infrastructure where you have to pay for hardware components, the technical team, maintenance and overhead costs. The hardware you need is there for you in the cloud. All you need do is to subscribe to the cloud deployment of your choice and there you go.
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Types of Cloud Deployment Models
There are 4 types of cloud computing deployment models. They include:
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Public cloud
As the name suggests, the public cloud is open to all who are interested in outsourcing cloud computing resources. The public cloud is usually managed by a third-party service provider. This third party acquires the computing hardware and resources and then loans them out to companies on a subscription basis.
Majorly, public clouds are used for application development and testing. It is important to note that public clouds are best for non-sensitive files that can be left in the public domain. Most public clouds have many users and organizations sharing the same cloud resources and sometimes files. This may be a drawback on public clouds as absolute safety may not be guaranteed.
Advantages of Public Clouds
Though one may consider the public cloud with some trepidation, it has some advantages. You may need to weigh the pros and cons before you decide whether you will go for the public cloud or not.
Just make sure you analyze your company goals to see how the public cloud best fits into it. Some of the advantages of the public cloud, which you can harness for your benefit, are highlighted below:
- Easy-to-Operate: It is very easy to operate and manage a public cloud because your provider bears the cost of setting up the IT infrastructure and its maintenance. Moreover, the provider develops, manages and upgrades the IT software. All you do is enjoy the services as much as you can afford. This in turn makes way for the effectiveness of business transaction models.
- Dependability: Since public clouds have a very large network of servers, they can serve your organization better. Consequently, your downtime is reduced to the barest minimum. This guarantees an improved real-time experience.
- Scalability: It is very easy to scale up or down your bandwidth using a public cloud. You just contact your service provider and they can adjust to your needs to provide the services that suit your business status on the go.
- Sustainability and Cost Effectiveness: Most newbies start with the public cloud because it is easier to maintain in terms of cost and financial commitment. Therefore, they find the public cloud to be more sustainable. In the event of a sale of the company or a complete overhauling, you will have no ton of useless broken equipment to deal with.
Disadvantages of Public Clouds
Naturally, most things that have advantages do have their disadvantages too. So is the case with public clouds. The disadvantages of public clouds are highlighted below:
- Data Security: A major concern is the issue of data protection and safety. One is usually unsure about privacy issues as to how data is stored and shared. It is often said that data protection in public clouds may be compromised. Therefore, most businesses do not leave sensitive information in the public cloud.
- Customized Service: Since service providers have a plethora of client companies they serve and these companies are supposed to share IT infrastructure, it may be difficult to have the specific custom needs of the companies met. You should consider this well before opting for the public cloud deployment model.
- Loss of Control: Since opting for the public cloud deployment model means you are outsourcing your IT infrastructure and maintenance. It follows therefore that you should expect that you are not in total control of the IT infrastructure you are using and cannot determine how it works.
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Private cloud
Cloud engineers designed a private cloud computing model with an IT infrastructure that is put in place for a single business. The business also has its IT team that operates and maintains its servers, data storage and application software. The private cloud computing deployment model is best for big multinational companies with sensitive data concerns.
This is so because the private cloud deployment model enjoys the privilege of having dedicated servers, which are housed physically. This guarantees freedom and a high level of data protection and safety for the organization.
Forms of Private Cloud
Depending on the needs and the financial capabilities of companies in Nigeria, there are at least 3 forms of private cloud computing models available from which they can choose. These models include:
- Internal Private Cloud: This kind of cloud is fully owned, controlled and managed by an individual organization. The company owns its IT infrastructure lodged at its local data centre and manages the IT team on its own. Although expensive, the freedom enjoyed by the company running an internal cloud is almost limitless. It is the only cloud computing model that offers the safest data protection and privacy control.
- External Private Cloud: The external private cloud is a private cloud that is hosted by a third party for a single-user organization. It is less expensive than an internal private cloud computing model since the third party manages and provides the IT infrastructure for it. The detraction from this model is that the end-user organization enjoys limited freedom of control over the infrastructure.
- Virtual Private Cloud: A virtual private cloud refers to a cloud deployment model in which a private cloud is fashioned out of a public cloud. The hosting third party earmarks a portion of their public cloud to a private company where the company can host its website, store sensitive data and run activities peculiar to it.
Advantages of Private Cloud
The advantages of private cloud computing are discussed below:
- Security: Private clouds have the highest level of security. Data is safe, and storage is privately managed. Moreover, the admin can reinforce the security of the cloud with firewalls and data encryption. Also, private clouds can be managed by controlling access to them, especially by creating access passwords known only to the in-house members.
- Customized Service: One advantage of the private cloud which makes businesses go for it is its customization potential. Since private clouds are intended for single-user businesses, it is logical that they should be tailored alongside the specific needs of these companies.
- Unlimited Control: Owning a private cloud is like building your apartment. You can decide how it is designed, the furnishings and other features. Thus, private clouds afford businesses the freedom to decide how IT resources are allocated. The goal is to ensure maximum satisfaction for the company.
- Cost Effectiveness: Although it may be argued that private clouds are expensive, they may eventually save the day when business expands. This means you won’t have to incur additional payments to service providers, you will only need to scale up your cloud at a one-off cost. Moreover, providers of public clouds may have a review of their payment plans or hidden charges that may be unfavourable to the company.
Disadvantages of Private Clouds
A private cloud, though very advantageous, is not without disadvantages. Here are a few disadvantages you might need to consider before acquiring one:
- High Cost: Although businesses later find out it is worth the investment, private clouds are expensive to set up when starting a business. It might be worth doing a feasibility study if starting on a private cloud or starting with a public cloud and later switching to a private cloud.
- Dedicated IT Personnel: A private cloud will require the service of IT experts to effectively manage the IT infrastructure of your company. This is another financial burden to the company and might need to be well thought out before embarking on the setting up one.
- Maintenance: A private cloud requires maintenance, and this might be a lot of humongous work that can only be managed by a highly skilled IT crew.
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Community cloud
A community cloud is a recent cloud deployment model. It is a cloud computing model that works as a synergy among many businesses of the same or similar outlook, orientation or interests. The businesses in the community cloud operate like a community having a symbiotic relationship.
The community cloud is indeed like a private cloud but it is shared. This means it is built mainly as a separate cloud for a community of businesses that are ready to pool resources partly or mainly because they cannot afford private clouds. Community clouds can be hosted by community members or a third-party vendor.
IT resources are shared and managed as a community. In the community cloud, members can benefit from one another by sharing expertise. The community cloud is also a more robust computing model because of the synergy involved, which reduces server downtime.
However, one major disadvantage of this deployment model is that it is complex to set up and often involves writing policy documents that bind the companies together in their partnership.
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Hybrid cloud
The hybrid cloud is a combination of a private cloud and a public computing model. The private cloud and the public cloud communicate in a way that allows for data transfer and resource sharing. In a hybrid cloud, the private cloud is usually an internal private cloud being networked with a virtual public cloud.
An advantage of this cloud deployment model is that it saves businesses the cost of acquiring equipment for scaling up capacity when they are not yet certain of the long-term need for or usefulness of such equipment. Moreover, using the hybrid model means having two IT infrastructures which businesses can harness to their advantage.
So, most businesses using the hybrid cloud enjoy the freedom of keeping sensitive data in their internal private cloud and less sensitive data in the public cloud.
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Conclusion
The benefits of cloud deployment models cannot be overemphasized. Cloud computing is the future of work and businesses. With the global pandemic of COVID-19 and its associated economic hardship, governments, organizations and businesses have become inundated with the need for a virtual space where people can easily connect.
However, just like any business trying to enter a market would be wise enough to conduct a feasibility study, you should take your time to weigh the pros and cons of all the cloud deployment models to make an informed decision, on which is best for your organization.
No deployment model is superior to another. It depends on the needs, goals and peculiarity of your business.
Edited by Priscilla Ajayi.
About Author
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Omokolade Fatanmi is an English language expert with interest in Discourse Analysis and Digital Media Discourse. He is also interested in blogging and copywriting. He has edited articles for school magazine, prepared seminars and organized debates and supervised and directed school drama presentations.
Omokolade is also a Yoruba-English transcriber and video subtitler with over four years experience.
