The cloud has become increasingly popular in the past year. It seems that everything is migrating to the cloud–servers, data, services and applications. You see businesses moving to the cloud all of the time and may be thinking that you’re missing out on something if you’re not in it. Before you jump on the cloud bandwagon, you may want to consider a few things first:
1. Existing Software Licenses and Software Compatibility
This is an important consideration that may be overlooked when migrating to the cloud. Moving applications to a public cloud may relieve your stress of managing hardware, but new issues emerge around the software licensing. Some of your current contracts may not address the option of moving the application to the cloud because the vendor’s licensing may predate the cloud.
In addition to the software licenses, you will also want to asses the compatibility of the software when you move to the cloud. You will need to assess how the restrictions may impact the existing code, as well as the estimated cost and time that is required to modify the software/application.
2. Do You Have Proper Internet to Support Your Cloud Migration?
When you store your data in the cloud, in order to access that data, you have to have an internet connection. It is imperative to think about how much Internet access you have at all times, and what type of internet connection you have before you choose a cloud storage service. Your best option for internet when considering moving to the cloud is fiber. Fiber solutions are built for speed–however fiber solutions are not in most places. If you are curious if your building has fiber around it, call us (1.866.9.TELTEK)! We can input your address in a “Fiber Map” and tell you your options for fiber solutions near you.
3. Where Will Your Data Reside?
You have to decide between storing your own cloud server or having the data stored off-site in a data center. With a lot of the cloud services being hacked, it is no wonder businesses are pulling 
their data out of the cloud. To prevent hacking, you can set up your own cloud where you have total control over your data. However, storing your own cloud can be very expensive. Besides the initial capital required to buy the equipment to store your data, the maintenance costs are very high. In addition, since your cloud server is on-site, you will need IT support and a dedicated person (or staff) that knows how to maintain and support the system.
Now that you have taken the above items into consideration, give us a call! We can help you with the migration. Visit our website or call 1.866.9.TELTEK. We look forward to serving you!
Teltek is a Certified Avaya Business Partner, NEC Dealer, Zultys, and Microsoft Partner with two locations in the Baltimore Metropolitan area. We specialize in providing one call technology support for small to mid-sized businesses and nonprofits in Maryland, Washington, D.C., Virginia and Pennsylvania.