The Pros And Cons Of Using Cloud Storage
Posted on: 19 May 2020
Cloud storage may be one of the buzziest topics in tech. There's a lot to be said for working with a cloud storage provider, but you should understand the pros and cons of these systems before you make a choice. Here is a look at four topics that should be on all IT people's minds when making these decisions.
Remote Availability
A major pro of cloud storage is that it makes providing files to remote workers much simpler. While there are on-site solutions, such as setting up an FTP server, hosting files in the cloud tends to be a very streamlined solution. A good cloud storage provider will offer a number of ways to access files, include mobile apps, desktop programs, and even websites.
Security
One downside of remotely hosting files is that the security concerns multiply. This is the case regardless of whether you host remote file storage on-site or in the cloud.
If you work with a cloud file hosting company, you'll want to have a long discussion about the security measures they take. Do they offer monitoring? If an account is compromised, how will notifications be handled?
Resilience
By spreading the hosting of files across a multitude of servers, you'll massively reduce the odds that a single point of failure can take out your valuable data. Clustering is a potential on-site solution, but setting that up and making it work well is a bigger task than even building a simple FTP server. If you want to know your files will hold up to almost any catastrophic scenario, the cloud should definitely be in the mix.
Scalability and Cost
These two tend to function as two sides of the same coin, and it's wise to think about them accordingly. Scaling can have immense benefits, especially for small operations that have big expansion plans. Your needs can start out in the gigabyte range, but you'll be able to seamlessly scale up to much bigger storage levels as your requirements grow. This can all be accomplished without having to provision new servers or install new hardware.
A downside to this approach is that costs can quickly grow, too. Your cloud storage provider, however, should provide an administrative panel that allows you to install limits on usage.
If you need to maintain growth at any cost, though, you might have to bite the bullet and pay for a month of massive storage growth. Folks in that situation should closely monitor usage. You may also want to set up an alert for when you're getting down on storage.
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