By now, most businesses understand the value that the public cloud brings to their operations. In fact, it’s hard to find a company that isn’t taking advantage of it in some way. When it comes to the private cloud, however, it can be somewhat challenging for businesses to fully understand the benefits.
In spite of these challenges, many companies have managed to integrate the private cloud into their current infrastructure. The following offers examples of the private cloud in action as well as areas where companies should tune their focus as they implement their own solutions.
Challenges to Tackle
As server virtualization increased, more companies became aware of the challenges that came with its use. From orphaned virtual machines and applications to virtual machine sprawl caused by over provisioning, these issues have led to time-consuming workarounds and other attempts at mitigation.
The private cloud gives businesses the tools needed to bring virtual machine sprawl and other common virtualization problems under control. It can also ensure that only services and applications that are immediately needed or currently in use are being provisioned.
Another challenge facing IT teams involves adding the public cloud’s ability to perform simple application requests and provisioning tasks to internal IT services. This is something that can be accomplished by the private cloud with relative speed and ease. The private cloud allows business departments the ability to request and activate applications and services without creating a large burden on current IT resources.
Focus on Hardware Infrastructure and Management
After making the decision to implement a private cloud, companies should turn their attention to hardware infrastructure and the management systems needed to effectively control it. Hardware systems intended for use with the private cloud and virtualization should be optimized to handle that task. Excellent fault tolerance, flexibility, and high availability are positive traits that any hardware infrastructure solution for the private cloud should have.
But this doesn’t mean that the software side of the equation can be ignored. Private cloud management systems must also feature positive attributes of their own, including excellent application portal and provisioning capabilities. Resource usage tracking through IT chargeback and IT showback can provide insight into the unique inner workings of private cloud infrastructure while avoiding significant downtime.
Not Black and White
Fortunately, there’s no stark choice to be made between the public and private cloud. Both capabilities can be implemented and integrated into the larger framework through the use of the hybrid cloud. Companies that already have private cloud capabilities should consider how best to integrate the public cloud into their hybrid cloud networks.
Overall, flexibility and adaptability is the name of the game when it comes to IT infrastructure. Transitioning to the private cloud can help businesses access critical applications and services within a short amount of time and with high reliability. To learn how our private cloud solutions can help your business, contact us at eXemplify for a no-obligation consultation today.