Businesses have well understood that they need to stay competitive and adopt innovation to achieve success. Databases being mission-critical applications, many organizations are moving on from aged database infrastructure and are moving to the cloud. Today businesses are moving towards more modern tools and giving priority to making data cloud-ready. More and more businesses are moving to the cloud database because cloud technology makes file accessing fast, allows easy interpretation of complicated data, and facilitates enhanced security benefits. It also provides the workforce to easily access files, systems, and platforms from anywhere while providing safe and secure storage. The companies are also able to significantly reduce their massive IT budgets with the shift from the traditional database infrastructure.
Businesses today make use of cloud technologies to enhance or streamline their current operations, data storage, app deployment, and hosting. Cloud technologies allow companies to redesign their backend architecture like databases, servers, and application software, and keep them in virtual environments so that they can be remotely accessed without the need for physical server hardware of their own. The shift from traditional database infrastructure to cloud technology benefits companies in many ways. Right from reducing their budgets to enhancing the way the workforce communicates, businesses enjoy multiple benefits from this transformation. Some of the most prominent benefits include:
Reduces Cost – Businesses migrating to the cloud will not require in-house IT staff and data center facilities. While migrating to the cloud database, the company will not require the specialized tools and resources that are required to manage complex IT environments. Cloud technology saves businesses’ costs and space, as switching to the cloud is cost-effective.
Eliminate the need for Physical Infrastructure – In the traditional database, companies were responsible for configuring it and also have to manage and protect the data. Whereas in the cloud databases it is easy to maintain the database, as it eliminates the need for physical infrastructure. It also eliminates the need for on premise IT operations like troubleshooting, backups, updates, and other maintenance tasks.
Enhanced Security – For many organizations security has been the matter of topmost concern in traditional database infrastructure because of the deployment of data on shared resources. In cloud database infrastructure, security is governed as per the highest data protection standards and is managed by expert IT professionals. A strong security system is in place to protect data centers and clients just have to ensure an apt firewall and strong passwords.
Scalability – The fluctuating demand of the company is a time-consuming and expensive process and at time company has to scale up its productivity by investing in hardware, and software, and by increasing the workforce. In cloud computing, the company has the flexibility of scaling up and down the productivity, as and when the need arises. In this way, the company will not require making permanent changes in the infrastructure and therefore will save both time and money.
Reliability – Cloud database guarantees reliability and reduces downtime compared to traditional database infrastructure. Even the maintenance task of the cloud database is carried out without affecting the businesses dependent on it. In the cloud infrastructure, all types of failures like time outs, network failures, and overflow are well thought of before the deployment of the solution.
Resources are free to focus on business – The in-house IT team of the company will not have to handle the software-related issues of the cloud database, as cloud vendors provide readily available support through various modules. The in-house team of the company has enough time to explore new opportunities and focus on its core business.
Easy to Upgrade – After gaining experience with cloud services, the company can look to upgrade its storage, backup, and network capabilities. Businesses can increase the efficiency of their hosting service depending on the traffic on their server or application. Businesses can also incorporate dedicated servers to manage their vital and critical applications.
No Compatibility Issue – Cloud solutions are inter-operable which means that even if the cloud solutions are deployed across different business units with a different operating system, or if the customers are using a different operating system, then also the business will not face any issue. There is no compatibility issue with the cloud, as it is only concerned about data and not the operating system. Data can be easily integrated across and outside the organization.
Thus it can be said that moving from an aged database infrastructure provides companies not only with benefits like reduce costs, streamlining efficiency, and ensuring availability of data to the workforce anywhere but companies can also enhance their overall business processes and gain competitive advantages. Cloud database solutions offer a complete portfolio of managed services for data and analytics and address the data-intensive needs of organizations for immediate and longer benefits.