What’s So Private About the Private Cloud?

If you’re considering jumping on the cloud computing bandwagon but have some security concerns, consider the adoption of a private cloud. A private cloud is cloud architecture that can exist within the confines of a company’s firewall and is entirely under the control of the company’s own IT department. Cloud computing in its public sense denotes that IT services are provided by an offsite third party that handles the processing and load for all of a client’s users. Knowing this, it’s quite possible for a company to create its own private cloud network rather than use a public cloud.

What are the advantages of a private cloud?

The private cloud system has many significant benefits, but as with any cloud platform technology the main concern is security. The concerns about data vulnerabilities have made many companies hesitant about outsourcing their IT functions to the cloud. By keeping your cloud platform behind your company’s firewall, your security risks are reduced. Private cloud solutions also offer you more control over your company’s technology. The cloud servers can be upgraded and customized as needed, and you can tailor the company’s technology to your budget and needs.

What are the disadvantages of a private cloud?

Private cloud solutions do have some drawbacks, however, most of which are financial. It involves a greater upfront cost than a public system because the system must be purchased outright. Private cloud systems also require more maintenance, which will lead to higher IT costs overall. You also don’t have access to the support of a public cloud system and are required to manage all your technology on your own. You also may not have access to machines that are as advanced as a larger cloud system, but this may balance out because you can get the most out of the resources you do have.

Why is privacy so important?

An incredible amount of data is collected, managed and analyzed by most computer systems. Data breaches or data loss can both be extremely costly. If client or customer information is released to the public, it can even result in a loss of faith that can haunt your company for many years to come. Using a reputable cloud hosting company is one solution to this problem; another is simply to set up the entire cloud system as a private network. Private cloud computing solutions have their own security challenges, but with the right steps you can reduce the amount of threats.

Although a private cloud can be worthwhile, adopting a hybrid cloud approach may allow your company to have the best of both public and private cloud services. Determining certain tasks that can be outsourced to a cloud hosting provider and which ones can remain in-house is a good first step. Private clouds offer a tremendous amount of control for a business, but they also involve more maintenance and higher costs. Whether one will be truly beneficial to your company depends on your budget and needs.