Every business has its core software solutions and business apps. You can’t do without them. Your business thrives on them. In fact, you can’t run your business without them. So where do you store them?
It is becoming more and more common to store apps and essential software solutions in the cloud. This can usually take on one of several different formats.
- You own the hardware, someone else manages it at a remote location
- You lease the hardware at a remote location
- You lease a part of a computer, loaded with your software, at a remote location (called virtualization)
- You rent the use of the software, which you pay for as you use it, but it exists on someone else’s hardware at a remote location
- You lease the software on a month-to-month basis and it exists on someone else’s hardware at a remote location
- You purchase a software license and download the software on hardware you rent or lease at a remote location
- You use freeware and load it on hardware you rent or lease at a remote location
You may be noticing a trend here. All the activity is taking place at a remote location. The nature of the cloud is that you receive delivery of services – software and/or apps – over the Internet. You can own, rent, or lease the hardware, but it is usually at a remote location – unless you own the data center.
Cloud computing is growing more popular every day. For many companies, it’s less expensive than paying overhead on huge data centers that they own.
Tom Higgins Blog 