When Managed Private Cloud Hosting is a Better Option: Five Use Cases

While the debate over cloud computing is long over, there are still plenty of questions surrounding how an organization institutes the cloud into their business. Is public, private, or a hybrid solution the best solution? As one might expect, there isn’t a single answer: Cloud computing is not a one-size-fits-all project. Granted, some of the biggest buzz these days is around public clouds – after all, they have massive resource pools and seem to have features that are constantly released or updated.

Yet, despite the extensive options that public clouds can offer, they aren’t always the right tools for the job at hand. While it’s easy to assume that a cloud giant can fulfill all the needs of a business, there are some particular (and not uncommon) use cases where a private cloud environment outshines its’ public partner. Below, we detail five of the more common and resonant use cases where a managed private cloud is a better option for businesses looking to move towards cloud computing.

Managed Private Cloud: 5 Benefits

1. Lower Cost with Predictable Needs

While cost is often thought of as a reason not to go to the private cloud route, it can actually be cheaper in comparison to public clouds in some use cases. This is commonly the case for organizations whose storage and workload needs are unlikely to undergo significant changes – in otherwise, predictable and repeatable instances.

But that isn’t the only way that private clouds beat out public ones in terms of cost – automation is one of the other main ways that managed private clouds put up a lower total cost of ownership standing next to public counterparts. Experienced DevOps teams can implement processes like build automation and database cloning, which are particularly useful in cutting business costs while simultaneously speeding production times.

In short, when businesses don’t require the hyper-scalability of the public cloud due to predictable or repeating workloads, the ability to automate and the benefit of fixed fees can save significant amounts of money.

2. Customized Capabilities

One of the main distinguishing factors of a managed private cloud is that the infrastructure being used is dedicated to a single business. Unlike a public cloud, you don’t share your servers with a multitude of different clients – which means that you are able to customize your environment in the ways that best fit your business.

For businesses that require specific configurations and schedules regarding security, governance, or recovery options, having dedicated infrastructure ensures total control over your environment. One common way organizations see large benefits from this is when frequent updates are required to their system. With the right private cloud management service, updates are deployed on your own schedule, not left to the decision of a major public cloud. This gives decision-makers the control necessary to make sure that any changes being made to the environment make sense for their business needs – and aren’t just being forced on your system because of a predetermined schedule.

Dedicated infrastructure provides predictable pricing and performance even in peak times, enabling business continuity throughout the changing year.

3. Continuity of Support

Long-term trusted managed private cloud services teams that have supported businesses for an extended period of time benefit from managed private cloud hosting because they can continue to use the same standards across all infrastructure. This, in turn, benefits the enterprise receiving those services, by providing business continuity and stability for their business needs.

Companies that would benefit from this type of use case will have or are looking to establish long-term partnerships with a Managed Services Provider that they feel will add significant value to their operation. That value could come from innovative DevOps solutions or above-industry standard availability, but that will depend on the business needs and what type of services are most important to address them.

4. Legacy Systems

Older operating systems that aren’t supported by public clouds can still function on private clouds. This goes hand in hand with the previous use cases of long-term relationships with managed private cloud services teams and a need for customizing your environment. For organizations who are either unable to change older operating systems or don’t wish to at this time, they can still benefit from the cloud’s capabilities without sacrificing the current way of doing business.

A hybrid cloud solution can be an excellent way for businesses to achieve best-of-both-worlds benefits, keeping a legacy system on private cloud architecture while utilizing the scalability and features that public clouds have to offer.

5. Compliance

Our last use case, while not necessarily applicable to all businesses, is still common enough that it deserves a mention. As government and regulatory agencies turn their attention towards cloud computing, institutions that deal with sensitive data in any form will need to ensure their environments are capable of achieving the required standards.

A private cloud solution is a strong contender in this regard, as having total control of the infrastructure streamlines compliance processes such as updates, audits, and security measures. Unlike a public cloud, there is no time or resources spent with red tape issues to configure your workloads in the required way – and for industries whose compliance needs aren’t going anywhere, this can make a big difference in the long run.

If you’re considering private cloud infrastructure for use cases like the ones discussed above, take a look at the eBook, Oracle Infrastructure Technologies, for a better idea of how an experienced team can add significant value to private cloud environments.