Cloud computing represents a fundamental change in the delivery of future I.T. products and services, as your ‘Cloud’ partner of choice Highlander are perfectly positioned to help your organisation embrace cloud technology and understand the impact and benefits that cloud computing can have on your business today.
Daniel Bumby, Business Development Director
What is Cloud Computing?
In its simplest form, cloud computing consists of shared computing resources that are virtualised and accessed as a service, through an API (application program interface). The cloud enables users in an organisation to run applications by deploying them to the cloud, a virtual datacentre. The physical resources may reside in a number of locations inside and outside of an organisation: on local hardware, in an enterprise data centre, or at remote or managed service providers (such as Highlander) on a pay-to-use basis. Cloud computing resources are offered as a service on an as-needed basis, and delivered by IP-based connectivity, providing highly scalable, reliable on-demand services with agile management capabilities.
Why Cloud Computing?
Cloud computing has matured from buzzword to a dynamic infrastructure used today by several organisations, yet many technology experts have differing views about what it means to the I.T. landscape and what cloud computing can do for business. However, leading analysts including thought leaders from Gartner, Forrester, and IDC agree that this new model offers significant advantages for fast-paced start-ups, SMBs and enterprises alike.
Today, businesses are using the cloud within their enterprise data centres to take advantage of the best practices that cloud computing has established, namely scalability, agility, automation, and resource sharing. By using a cloud-enabled application platform, companies can choose a hybrid approach to cloud computing that employs an organisation's existing infrastructure to launch new cloud-enabled applications. This hybrid approach allows I.T. departments to focus on innovation for the business, reducing both capital and operational costs and automating the management of complex technologies.
Highlander Cloud Offering's
Future of the Cloud
Industry analysts including Gartner and Forrester are early proponents of cloud computing and it's potential. Several trends are emerging that will enable enterprises to make good use of cloud computing, such as shared, virtualised and automated I.T. architectures, however the introduction of cloud-enabled application platforms will certainly accelerate cloud adoption among businesses of all sizes.
