11 reasons NOT to use the cloud

A few weeks ago we talked about the benefits of the cloud for certain businesses, today we discuss why the cloud may not be a fit.  The Cloud is a significant buzzword right now: Google has 250million results for it.  So that you’d be forgiven for thinking that perhaps the entire world was utilizing it, proper? Effectively, they aren’t. Whereas many firms are utilizing the Cloud in some capability, not that many use nothing however the Cloud. (Cloudability is completely cloud based by the way in which: we own zero servers.) The truth is that the majority firms are still hosted mostly on equipment they own or lease.So why is this, the Cloud being so awesome and everything?

Listed below are a few of the higher reasons we’ve heard about why to not use the Cloud.

1. The Cloud isn’t designed for your app: the Cloud is an effective fit for distributed programs, however perhaps what you’ll want to just do doesn’t work nicely or isn’t value efficient on the Cloud. Wish to do algorithmic buying and selling on NASDAQ? Your sub-millisecond SLA will in all probability not be obtainable on a public cloud close to you quickly.
2. Your app isn’t designed for the Cloud: your app may very well be made to work simply fantastic on the Cloud nevertheless it wasn’t constructed that approach, and it’s simply not value efficient to rewrite it. Too dangerous— go discover one thing else to do on the Cloud.
3. You don’t know enough about the technology yet: when you could have a NetApp and Oracle RAC cluster obtainable 10 ft away you construct your app to reap the benefits of that. The Cloud has completely different strengths and weaknesses when in comparison with on-premise programs, and you should have issues when you don’t take this under consideration. Begin with a smaller mission and be taught the ropes first in a decrease threat surroundings.
4. The tools are immature: put one other approach, for greater initiatives you’re in all probability going to have to enhance the instruments your self. Should you’re a tough core consumer of open supply this received be a big deal, closed supply customers beware.
5. Multi-data center distributed data ain’t trivial: if you read the blurb it’s simple to face up a multi-knowledge heart Riak or Cassandra ring, proper? The fact is your code wants to pay attention to what’s happening, and these things nonetheless isn’t totally baked. It’s going to be attention-grabbing or very irritating, relying in your perspective.
6. You’re concerned about vendor and/or instrument lock-in: need to get off your cloud in a rush? Ever tried to maneuver terabytes of knowledge in brief timeframe, with out pausing your online business? It’s exhausting. So construct in multi-vendor from the beginning in case you can (it may be so simple as off-vendor backups initially). And don’t neglect about #6 above.
7. You company is regulated:  Your auditors may need a tough time adapting. Requirements like this (and others) are evolving to take the Cloud into consideration, but when your small business is closely regulated, it may be finest to let one in all your opponents be the guinea pig.
8. “Cloud” is a dirty word round here: we feel this can be a good reason to pause. Individuals can get emotional about change. In case your colleagues are strongly anti-cloud, it might be best to scale back or defer your project for some time. They’ll absolutely catch up, and you may get again to building attention-grabbing and helpful programs within the meantime.
9. You’re fine where you are: computer systems have been round for 50+ years, and there are some actually good individuals who have made issues work simply nice. Many giant firms have spent billions on their IT and it really works just fine, thank-you.
10. I will be a small fish in an enormous pool and have no leverage over my vendor: public clouds are, by definition, shared resources, and this slows down changes. Hit a service challenge or structural limitation? You had higher hope your vendor was already planning to take care of that or you may be in for a long wait.
11. Security concerns are real: The cloud is getting more secure but at the end of the day, NO ONE will have more vested interest of your data and your system than your team.