Small Businesses Face Hard Work Getting Back to Normal

It isn’t exactly business as usual, but things are beginning to resemble the reality we all knew before COVID-19, thanks to the use of cloud services as a means to continue processes while social distancing is still in play. However, some businesses may still be reluctant to embrace them.

Let’s go over what cloud services are, their varieties, and how they can directly benefit your business.

What are Cloud Services?

Cloud services are a specific way of obtaining computer resources, making use of the Internet to do so. While “the cloud” invokes the image of the fluffy white things in the sky, in this context, “the cloud” actually refers to hardware, usually a server, that someone else is hosting for you. A user can connect to this server over the Internet and access the contents of this server.

This setup has proven to be quite beneficial for businesses to use in a variety of ways, serving to provide improved flexibility throughout its different uses and deployments.

The Different Varieties of Cloud

When adopting the use of the cloud, there are a few options that a business has to select from.

Public Cloud

Public clouds are those that are provided and maintained by another company, such as Microsoft, Google, or Amazon. Typically available under the as-a-Service model, these solutions are very versatile and allow for a business to scale up or down as needed. This convenience, as well as the lack of maintenance that a subscriber is responsible for, makes these clouds a very popular option for businesses that need a cost-effective means of getting a given service.

Private Cloud

The private cloud is very similar to the public cloud, with exception to the fact that the resources are not shared, and that access to these clouds is specified to the company that owns it. This means that the security of these clouds is more assured, as the control of the setup and maintenance of the solution falls to the company. 

Hybrid Cloud

As you might imagine, hybrid clouds work as a kind of combination between the public and private options. Some resources are hosted in the public cloud and some in the private cloud, with the freedom to interact with one another. This provides the benefit of the public cloud’s scalability paired with the private cloud’s inherent privacy.

Services Hosted in the Cloud

As we inferred above, the cloud can be used to support various needs… especially when referring to the public or hybrid varieties. In addition to storing data (which all are capable of) these two types can also deliver additional benefits delivered through the as-a-Service model.

Infrastructure-as-a-Service

This kind of cloud service gives the user a complete computing environment, including the servers and storage space needed, and the ability to populate it with the solutions and data that their operations require.

Platform-as-a-Service

This service is very similar to Infrastructure-as-a-Service, with the notable exception of including the solutions and applications that the user will need. Typically deployed for software development. 

Software-as-a-Service

This variety of cloud services is likely the most familiar, as it simply enables a user to utilize software titles over the Internet, enabling small businesses access to tools once reserved for larger organizations.

To learn more about the cloud tools that are available for your business’ benefit, reach out to Washington Works at 301-571-5040.