Many companies are moving their IT infrastructure and business-critical applications to the cloud. Even small businesses are seeing huge benefits in moving to the cloud, and are requesting IT support providers like us to help them. There are a few things that many people think they won’t have to worry about after they move to the cloud, and are often shocked when we let them know.
Backups
Since the servers are no longer onsite, it makes it easy to think that you don’t have to worry about backing up your programs and data. Without a physical machine there, you may not think much about it. Out of sight, out of mind. However, relying on another company to ensure that your data is safe would be a huge mistake. Some of the data you create for your business is irreplaceable. Backups, even on cloud systems are still extremely important.
Security
Another thing business owners might think after they move to cloud services is that they no longer have to worry about security. The cloud services handle the encryption and account access, so security is completely handled, right? Very wrong!
When users get lazy about security, bad things can happen to your network. Laptops and smart devices could be stolen or lost, or an employee can fall victim to a phishing scam, the possibilities for security breaches are still endless. It is always important to be vigilant about security.
Make sure employees know to report any theft or loss of a device right away so they can be remotely wiped of confidential information. Also, make sure they know to inform a supervisor or the IT department right away if they click on a suspicious link or enter their password somewhere they shouldn’t. Even if they are embarrassed about being duped, it is vital to the company that it gets reported and dealt with right away.
Availability
Moving to the cloud might also make you think that you will always be able to access your data. Since the information lives in the cloud, anything that affects the local office would not affect the cloud services like a power outage. What people might not realize, however, is that during a power outage you have also lost internet connection. Without this connection, you will be unable to access your cloud services. If the power outage affects a large grid, it may take you a while to find a place you can still work from.
Another thing that can affect your ability to access your cloud services is the unlikely event of an outage for the cloud service itself. Although it is rare, it has happened on occasion. Even with highly redundant servers, a small glitch can bring down entire networks of servers. It happened last year when a small coding mistake took down the Amazon Web Servers on the east coast. Just because it is in the cloud, does not mean you will always be able to access it no matter what.
Despite these issues, the cloud is still an excellent choice for modern IT infrastructure, desktop workstations, business applications and more. Just make sure you know exactly what you are getting into, and don’t get complacent about it. Using best practices to keep your network safe and secure is still very much recommended, even if you aren’t keeping the hardware onsite anymore.