Microsoft Cloud & Azure

• Can be less expensive than on-premise solutions : Often, ECCO finds that the solution requires less computing power than originally thought. Many hosting service providers have far more powerful servers than their on-premise counterparts. Provisioning properly is a function of understanding how the application is architected.

• Security is generally thought of as more thorough solution as typically found on-premise: The hosting service provider would have a lot of effort focused on ensuring the security of their environment. However, quite a bit of setup and monitoring of cloud deployment is the responsibility of the Client.

Disadvantages

• It can be more expensive to maintain than on-premise solutions: A cloud solution involves a workload inside the firewall being constructed – or ­re-constructed, in the case of migration – outside the firewall. ECCO has seen where a decision had to be rendered differently because of the network implications. This is often a capital expense. But there often are operating expenses as well as subscription services tend to fall into that category. The ROI can make a cloud deployment unattractive.

• The process of migrating workloads to the cloud can drain significant time, energy and resources: The time of subject-matter-experts can be consume substantially. This is time that would be otherwise spent on other tasks. Once migrated, there could be issues with access, security, availability, and performance that would consume more time from the subject-matter-experts as well as the business users.

• Telecommunication costs can be higher: Moving an on-premise application to the cloud often involves creating a “pipe” through which the traffic would be funneled from the business center. And, quite frequently, this capability must be redundant. Depending on the architecture of the organization’s network or even their geography, the costs associated with telecommunications can be prohibitive.

• Security can be a concern if it is primarily handled by the client’s IT people as they would be less familiar with the Public Cloud environment than their on-premise environment: Security teams may not have “hands on” to the servers or might be stymied by the security concerns of the hosting service provider. This is especially true where the servers are shared (i.e., multi-tenant). But single-tenant or dedicated instances are typically more costly.

• May not meet regulatory compliance standards: Though most of the larger hosting services providers offer a solution for HIPAA or other regulations, some do not. And, if such regulatory compliance is available, it is often more expensive. Overall, there are many good reasons to leverage a Cloud solution, but it is important to see it as just another consideration along the path of implementing a new solution for your organization. An organization ought not make a blanket statement to go “cloud first” if they haven’t prepared properly or the transition is cost-prohibitive. This is where an organization can solicit the advice of experts in the area of transition and, critically important, licensing.