Connectivity Articles

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COVID-19 has impacted even Cloud computing growth, according to Flexera’s survey. More than half of the 187 respondents said that cloud usage would be greater than expected, mainly because of the extra capacity needed to meet business demands.

Due to the pandemic and recent devastating storms, many enterprises have had no choice but to accelerate their cloud-based computing evolution to ensure continued connectivity to their business. Companies often used more than four cloud service providers to support their needs for their changing bandwidth and access demands.

But there can be a risk if connectivity to multiple clouds becomes too complex. Governance, security, and cost issues can become problematic if not controlled properly. With a haphazard connectivity deployment strategy, everything from security to business processes and workflow are impacted.

As a result, more and more organizations are teaming up with managed service connectivity providers who partner with multiple cloud suppliers such as AWS, Azure, and Google to provide streamlined yet controlled, secure, and cost-effective direct/dedicated connectivity. By accessing their Clouds through a direct connection provider as opposed to through a layer 3 connection, they are better able to optimize operations and gain the following business benefits:

Cost-Efficiency

It can be 40% more cost-effective to employ third-party cloud platforms than to maintain an in-house solution. Using a single managed cloud connectivity provider to connect to multiple clouds will drastically reduce CapEx costs. You will not have to spend on purchasing and maintaining redundant equipment, such as servers, to multiple cloud providers. You can also minimize IT staff costs because you can rely on the expertise of your managed service cloud connectivity provider's staff. With connectivity to all your Clouds through a Managed Service provider who partners with multiple cloud providers, you also benefit from not paying to connect to each Cloud.  In this instance, one to many is more cost-effective than one to one.

Reliable Security

Eighty percent of businesses demand a nearly perfect uptime of 99.99%  from their cloud services providers, which is about an hour of downtime each year. Fifteen percent demand an impressive 99.999% uptime, resulting in just 5 minutes of downtime each year. The Cloud's ability and resiliency enable businesses to work from anywhere because the entire infrastructure is up in the Cloud. So, no matter what physical damage may happen locally or wherever your employees are, you just need a secure and reliable Internet connection.

Using a reputable Managed Service connectivity provider, you can rely on project managers to help build in and manage uptime and security without needing internal staff to install and maintain your solution. 

Productivity
The ability and resiliency of multiple Clouds not only enables businesses to work from anywhere but in any situation. Storing your data in the Cloud guarantees that data is always accessible, even if your devices are damaged.

With a multi-cloud strategy, no one is left out of the loop. Resources in the Cloud can be easily stored, retrieved, recovered, or processed with just a couple of clicks. Users can get access to their work on-the-go, 24/7, via any device of their choice, in any corner of the world with an Internet connection.

With a Managed Service Cloud connectivity provider, you can easily implement upgrades and updates automatically and offsite. These providers also add benefit by helping advise on when to scale up/down and keep you current on best practices and trends. This saves time and team effort, tremendously reducing the IT team workloads while maintaining high levels of service.

Add in white-glove service provided by a dedicated Service Delivery Project Manager (SDPM), and you can rely on support before, during, and after installation knowing you have a team to help with any issues that should arise.

Scalability
All industries have different IT needs — a large enterprise of 1000+ employees won't have the same connectivity requirements as a smaller start-up. But using a multi-cloud strategy is an excellent solution for most companies because it enables an enterprise to efficiently scale connectivity up or down as their business evolves.

And when you employ a solution from a Managed Service provider with connectivity to multiple Cloud providers, bandwidth can be easily scaled according to your needs while also achieving lower latency and greater reliability.

The right Cloud connectivity solution addresses the growing need for better multi-cloud management by providing partnerships and direct connectivity to Cloud providers such as AWS, Azure, and Google, and others.

We can help.
To find out more on how Lightpath’s Cloud Connect solution can provide your business with better connectivity to the Cloud, call 877‑544‑4872 or visit Golightpath.com/cloud-connect. Multiple head ends, and a self-healing network will also result in lower latency and greater reliability.