Cloud Communications

Adopting Cloud Leads to Many Benefits, but Infrastructure Still Matters

By Ed Silverstein TMCnet Contributor

 Going to the cloud leads to lower costs, improved ease of use, and better implementation of future products – as well as other benefits, but infrastructure still matters. Close to half of over 100 IT executives said they are evaluating, considering or planning for the cloud, according to a recent IDG Survey.

 Cost is a major reason for the move, as the cloud results in savings of money and time savings when compared to traditional or virtual servers. Despite this, it is not as easy as some think. Just 15 percent of those surveyed said they were “very successful” in designing their infrastructure.

 To be more successful, make a “logically integrated, centrally managed infrastructure that will support your migration,” according to recent report from Business2Community.com

 Silo-based designs are more expensive, time-consuming and lessen the benefits of going to the cloud, the report adds. Negative outcomes will arise if there is not a thorough design phase, too.

Benefits of deploying a cloud solution with a well-thought-out infrastructure include minimizing the risk of outages; reducing infrastructure management costs; increasing time for strategic activities and faster provisioning; reduced infrastructure complexity; and better operational control, according to Business2Community.

One big factor remaining is what demands virtualization will place on the speed and bandwidth of a network. Another one is how to manage high cable densities, while yet another question is how virtualization changes the way to architect a network and IT infrastructure. Virtualization causes more bandwidth and more cables connected to each server. In this era of energy efficiency, another question concerns increasing the cooling efficiency of a data center.

 A related question also encompasses the monitoring and management of power and cooling for a given server or cabinet. Remote manage connectivity may be an option. Also, is a data center prepared for a cloud-in-a-box deployment?

 When it comes to the public cloud, there are issues, too. A basic one is how to streamline the design, installation and management of the physical infrastructure necessary to optimize a data center. Another issue is quicker implementation of the physical infrastructure in the data center. In addition, there is concern over the monitoring and management of available power and cooling for a server or a cabinet. Also, is there a value to remote management of connectivity, power and environmental sensing of network equipment? And is there maximization of revenue in a facility?  Is there management of high densities of cables?

 Also, in a recent survey by NTT Communications, some 61 percent of respondents are either implementing or testing cloud. More than one-third of respondents worldwide have implemented cloud in one or more locations, and another 23 percent are pilot testing cloud projects.

 U.S. respondents are more likely to have implemented cloud than those in other locations. A majority of respondents are using, evaluating or planning to implement cloud services using company owned and third-party servers combined, the survey adds. 

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