Am I Ready For the Cloud?
Cloud 101: Are you ready for the cloud?
Ok, it’s time for a technology reality check…Physical on premise network hardware is becoming extinct. Cloud Solutions are here to stay because they simply make sense. Many companies often wonder if they are ready for The Cloud since the term itself is so vast and the explanations about what a cloud solution is and how it works can be quite vague if the right explanation isn’t provided. Due to the mainstream interpretation of what a cloud solution is, the concept of migrating data or services for a company to the cloud appears even just as complicated when it fact, it’s really simple and quick if you chose the right IT Solutions Provider to work with. There are a few factors to take into consideration prior to moving to the cloud which can cause your cloud solutions experiences to be positive rather than negative if your followup with these key items:
Internet Connection – This is by far the most important variable that can cause the greatest amount of frustration. Bottom line is that without a strong enough internet connection, your cloud experience will be given an “F” grade. Remember, you are connecting to a remote session in a data center. Standard internet speeds can possibly give you the same experience as Dial Up versus DSL. Seriously, this is not to be underestimated. This is probably the greatest cause of cloud use failure for 1st timers. OC Cloud9 wants to help you get past this point and have a reliable cloud experience from the beginning.
Printers/Scanners: Rule of thumb: New technology works better with new peripherals. That old VHS Player doesn’t provide a crisp picture with dolby surround sound on that new 3D TV does it? Old technology doesn’t blend well with new solutions and often causes hours of lost time, frustration and lost productivity. Don’t get me wrong, old tech will work, but with custom work arounds that might break frequently and require support at the most inconvenient times such as year end work or right before a huge presentation. OC Cloud9 will always test and verify the reliability of a client’s existing hardware to work in a cloud environment and then we allow clients to phase out old solutions over time as allowed.
Windows Operating Systems – Windows XP reached end of life over a year ago and therefore systems running on this old environment are a constant security breach. These types of desktops can be virtualized, however thin clients or other desktops need to be running Windows 7 Professional at a minimum for a reliable cloud experience. Besides, Windows 10 was just released on July 29th to the general public and you don’t want to get left too far behind, right?
Proprietary Software Applications – Most businesses have at least 1 old software application that runs a critical part of the company on it, no matter how dysfunctional it sounds, this is the reality of what we have seen over the years. With that being said, OC Cloud9 has virtualized software applications that many software providers have insisted are incapable of being used in a virtual environment. Our Cloud Techs will simply work to resolve the issue independently from the software vendor to keep our clients happy and working.
We hope that this information was useful in further educating you or a colleague about some of the prerequisites before moving to the cloud. Contact a member of the OC Cloud 9 team at 949-699-6619 or via email for more information.
