Private Cloud – Answering Common Questions

Successful IT project manager plans and implements projects which meet present and future goals of organizations. This is the reason why it makes perfect sense to know the frequently asked questions about private cloud setup to know if this will work for your organization or not.

1. How does private cloud work?

Private cloud infrastructures provide centralized network resources at remote locations. Users can securely connect to network resources wherever they are using the internet. Data and applications are process remotely by network resources before being delivered locally to the user workstations. It lessens local processing requirements to enable affordable local hardware as well as longer refresh cycles of the hardware. Remote network resources are being replicated or backed up to protect vital data, with all modifications to the network resources being managed at remote sites.

2. What’s involved in private cloud setup?

Like other IT projects, experienced and foresight project management is imperative. Before the start of the project, the IT manager must work with the senior management personnel for establishing milestones, timelines, test phases, sub-goals, documentation, and implementation. When designing cloud interface, an IT manager should do the following:

• Identify security encryption or protocol
• Verify compatibility of application
• Design logical and physical infrastructure
• Verify connectivity
• Test redundancy, backup configurations, or failover
• Establish representative test groups for confirming viability for the operations
• Create documentation
• Train users

3. How do IT managers determine if an enterprise needs a private cloud?

An IT manager needs to work hand in hand with key management personnel and take note of several factors. A private cloud can enable the centralized resources for simplifying network management and protecting critical data. These also allow remote access from all locations provided that internet connection is present. Depending on the scope and size of the organization, the improvements could yield a sizable ROI. But, for a smaller organization with a relatively simple network infrastructure and mainly local users, the price of implementation of private cloud could be prohibitive. For such organizations, public cloud is a more suitable option.

4. Are there misconceptions about private cloud?

There are several common misconceptions being associated with cloud infrastructures. The first one concerns how private clouds can reduce network responsiveness or speed. Typically, cloud-based infrastructures make use of greater processing power compared to most on site networks. The main factor in speed of cloud based network is internet bandwidth between the cloud network host site and the user. Provisioning a cloud based network with enough bandwidth is important to maintain efficient performance levels.

There are also misconceptions that private cloud is less secure compared to local networks. Most organizations are worried about the transmission of proprietary data via the internet to cloud based network. But, in reality, private clouds are armed with similar security protocols like local networks, and virtually all these use some kind of encryption for communications between the cloud and local users.

Now that you know the answer to the common questions, you will be more prepared to  take the plunge to private cloud setup.

For more information please have a look here Managed Private Cloud Solutions