Evaluating cloud computing solutions for your business

Cloud computing has reached a high level of maturity that allows business owners to choose between various strategies. The idea should always be to build a data infrastructure that can deliver the best possible service for customers while giving employees the best tools to carry out their duties.

To determine the best cloud computing strategy for their companies, business owners should consider the following factors:

SCALING A BUSINESS ACCORDING TO PROJECTED REQUIREMENTS

When discussing a cloud strategy with a consultant from Sonic Systems, the following business aspects should be considered:

• Estimated growth rate of the company.
• Future data volume.
• Projected web traffic.
• IT budget.

Most small companies can get started with SonicCloud, a self-hosted cloud service that offers flexible storage, file synchronization and complete control over data. SonicCloud is a very affordable service; however, once a company starts spending thousands of dollars a month on this service, installing a private cloud with remote data backup options would make more sense.

SOFTWARE AS A SERVICE

SaaS solutions are very popular among small companies. With this strategy, data can be stored and managed through SonicCloud while business applications are accessed through modern browsers. The hardware requirements, in this case, can be satisfied with “thin” clients such as desktops, laptops, tablets, and even smartphones that connect to the internet. A medical office in Victorville can choose SonicCloud and SonicExchange email hosting, two HIPAA-compliant solutions, along with a popular SaaS medical practice solution such as Next Services.

VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS

Virtual workstations offer the ultimate in uptime, reliability, and security. When the server and individual workstations are hosted in the cloud, the only hardware requirements that business owners have to worry about are client terminals, peripherals and network devices that provide an internet connection. Virtual workstations can be accessed from affordable “zero” clients configured to connect to the cloud network. Unlike thin clients, zero clients do not require their own operating systems. The advantage of virtual environments is that they inherently provide a disaster recovery platform; workstations can be booted from just about anywhere in the world, and smartphone apps can be configured so that mobile workers can access company data on the go.

REMOTE IT SUPPORT

With cloud computing, business owners do not have to worry about managing an in-house IT department. With Sonic Systems IT Squared, office networks are constantly monitored and maintained by remote technicians who can solve issues on the spot. Depending on the service level agreement, IT Squared solutions can be provided around the clock.