Cloud hosting or simply ‘the Cloud’ (e.g. Amazon EC2 or Rackspace cloud platforms) is gaining more and more popularity for its cost effective implementation and individual accessibility. However, the question remains whether the usage of cloud hosting is really the most reliable solution for your website if you want to make it work for you in a beneficial way with all the details thoroughly considered by hosting services providers. Let us now try to define the pros and cons of Plone Cloud Hosting for you to be able to make the right decision!
PROS - Feel Like Flying in the Clouds?
Firstly, what we generally understand behind the term ‘cloud hosting’ is the usage of a set of pooled computing services and resources delivered over the web. Why cloud? Because when charted, the interaction of all the elements involved in cloud hosting resembles a cloud. You simply load your files, applications and finally your website onto the cloud platform and your users will be able to get the information on the web.
Secondly, among the major advantages of cloud hosting is considered to be its full scalability with the user’s demands. It means that you don’t really have to care about server requirements or additional hardware, you just pay for what you need at the moment and whenever you decide that it’s not useful for you anymore, you can simply drop it. With cloud hosting you don’t need to predict traffic fluctuations, you simply invest money into instantaneous usability of your website. Cloud hosting is provided as a ‘service’, not the final ‘product’ over the net. Typically it works in the form of infrastructure as a service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS) or software as a service (SaaS). But isn’t it where the shoe actually pinches?
CONS - Are the Clouds reliable enough?
Of course, flying in the clouds is always pleasant and colourful, but what if it starts raining? After discussing all the seemingly super-attractive advantages of cloud hosting, let’s come back to earth.
The first and one of the most crucial problems with cloud hosting is its security. Internet is becoming more and more uncontrollable around the globe, hacking is booming and you never know whether the information you put on the web is properly and reliably stored. Moreover, whenever you decide to drop using your cloud platform, how can you be totally sure that your data is actually destroyed and not used by someone else?
Secondly, you have to think about the real state of infrastructure. You save money by bringing your server onto the cloud platform, but in most cases you face the problem of slow connectivity which immediately cuts down on your anticipated profits. Is it really what you have been looking for?
Bearing in mind these problems, it looks like having a proficient IT hosting service provider is a much better and reliable option. Our Plone / Zope Hosting Packages could probably be just what you need!
Quintagroup hosting ideas
Now, when we have briefly discussed the pros and cons of cloud hosting, it is your turn to decide what you want. Quintagroup with its individual approach to each client can always advise you on the best hosting solution, be it a cloud platform or Plone/Zope Hosting Package, most applicable and affordable in your case. Our team of experts can deploy your website onto the cloud platforms Amazon EC2 or Rackspace in case you decide that this is a critical solution that would be most suitable for you at this particular stage of your business development.
So, contact us to find out more and you will be on cloud nine with our services irrespective of the hosting way you opt to choose!