You’ve probably been hearing the term “the cloud” a lot lately. Cloud computing is a technology hot topic these days. But what exactly is the cloud? How does it apply to business? And is it right for your business? Keep reading to find out.
What is the cloud?
Essentially, the cloud is a fancy phrase for a conceptualized place on the Internet where information and applications are stored. This information can then be retrieved from any desktop, laptop, tablet, or phone with an Internet connection. So if you are “backing up to the cloud,” that means you are storing information online instead of using a physical hard drive onsite. Hard drives are liable to crash, but cloud services are generally guaranteed to have your information ready for you to use. While traditional onsite external hard drive backups will suffice if your computer or server crashes, your information won’t be protected if something happens to the drive itself. Cloud backups are offsite, meaning if something happens to your building, your data is safe and secure.
Is the cloud right for my business?
Cloud backup is typically very cost effective for a business. Your business is charged every time you upload or download to the cloud, and you are also charged for how much you are storing to the cloud. But these fees are nominal. So when do these nominal fees add up so much that a hard drive is the better option? It all has to do with the size of the files you are backing up.
Let’s look at photographers as an example. A picture’s average file size is huge compared to your run-of-the-mill text or spreadsheet document. Normally, the photographer is dealing with several hundred images and is constantly retouching and adjusting them. So not only are their files large, but those files have to be uploaded and downloaded to the cloud often. This amount of transferred data means a lot of added cost. Furthermore, with large files, upload and download time will increase, causing more productivity delays for both the computer and the photographer.
To determine whether cloud services are right for you, think about the typical file size that your business deals with. If they are a standard size (less than 3MB), like a Word document or Excel spreadsheet, cloud backup may be a simple, cost-effective option for your company. However, if you, like photographers, deal with large files that you must access often, an onsite hard drive could be exactly what you need.
If you have questions about cloud backup or hard drives, or would like to discuss setting up either, call us at (501) 683-7229, email us at in**@*****it.com, or fill out a contact form.
