Is there any difference between a managed and unmanaged cloud?
Obsah
But not so often you mmeet with a service called unmanaged cloud which has many benefits over the first mentioned. And you should know about it because it comes down to efficiency and costs. Let’s look at the most key differences.
Security
Cloud security is still a hot topic. Is cloud secure or is it dangerous and is it responsible for data leaks? All of this depends on sevral factors (you can find a deep dive in our article regarding cloud security). If we look at security from the point of view of cloud managability, inmanaged cloud is truly the more secure choice. Why?
We need to look at the core description of the service. Managed cloud gives the cloud provider full access to all of your data and the contents of your virtual environment. If your company runs fully in the cloud, the provider has access to all the guts. In retturn, he takes care of a smooth run of your applications and data.
Contrasted with the managed cloud, unmanaged cloud does not let anyone to your data who does not receive a permissions from you. And the provider simply doesn’t go inside. Yes, this means that your IT guys have to take care of your applications but isn’t it worth it to exchange this for a higher level of security and control that stays in your hands?
Flexibility
A cloud environment in and of itself should be intuitive for the IT technicians – therefore, it should not be so hard to get oriented in the space and learn how to use it. As soon as the cloud becomes managed from the outside – managed cloud – the service loses its edge in adaptability because its settings, edits and control is dependent on a person from the outside.
If you opt in for unmanahed cloud, all of the control and internal functions are in the hands of your IT guys. They do have to learn how to work with the environmment but since cloud has to be intuitive, they learn quickly and the cloud quickly adapts to the needs of your family. And the adaptation is not just approximate but precise the way it is needed.
Support
In this area it is true that managed cloud offers a broader selection of services. When a provider has access to all your applications, he can offer you support when solving problems with any applications that run in the cloud.
Unmanaged cloud cannot offer this kind of support. The provider and the applications are separated by a wall. You can get support for your environment and its management but not how to resolve issues with your applications.
| Aspect/Service | Managed Cloud | Unmanaged Cloud |
| Description | Cloud environment is fully managed by the service provider – he has access to all applicatons, databases and data | Cloud environment ison rhw application environment managed by the customer – the provider does not see inside and hos no access to the applications, databases and data |
| Security | Higher risk given the access of a third-party (cloud provider) to all company data | Data security is fully in the hands of the customer and third-party has no access unless the custommer requests it for some reason |
| Flexibility | Time delay in environmment edits and any changes | Changes happen as fast as your IT guys work |
| Support | Problem solution with cloud environmment and individual applications | Problem solution only regarding the cloud environment |
Common Unmanaged Cloud Myths
Maybe you were also surprised by some of the information and you learnt about your cloud and its accessibility from the outside.
Let’s look at some of the myths that are spread about unmanaged cloud but if you select the correct provider, the reality is somewhere else.
Myth # 1 – Our Company Is Alone in the Changes
If you decide to use the clud, unmanaged service will not let you alone during the migraton. The fact the provider doesn’t see inside does not mean that your IT guys will not get all of the support they will need.
Our CLOUDPOINT, for example, includes in itself a full migration support including the whole IT analysis based on which professionals can provide the most appropriate recommendation how to set up the whole infrastructure. And this does not apply only to unmanaged cloud but also a hybrid solution or individual IT architecture.
Myth #2 – The provider will not help with the optimization
One thing is the provider helping with the environment set-up, the other that he will later help with its optimization. Even though the unmanaged cloud is the responsibility of your IT department, when it comes to environment management, that doesn’t mean that the provider is out of the picture.
For instance, CLOUDPOINT works in a way where all of the resource optimization is ery simple and your IT crowd can change them almost immediately. And this doesn’t apply only to the allocated resources but also to the new resources you mmight need – whether for commputing or storage – and from them you can upgrade the current environment.
Myth #3 – No support with unmanaged cloud
It is true you will not receive app support with unmanaged cloud but for the operation of your cloud, you surely will. Any questions, inquiries and problems regarding the cloud will be gladly answered by the support team.
And our team does all of this 24/7. Besides, the team is included from the very beginning. Our CTO and its IT crowd supports the customer during the initial analysis, IT architecture, migration, set-up, follow-up optimization and during operation.
What Is the Difference Then?
Managed cloud is for companies that can afford to pay for a cloud provider instead of its IT team or are not afraid to sacrifice a part of cybersecurity.
Unmanaged cloud is for companies that can keep the security of their data in their hands and let its IT team run the environmment. When selecting a provider, you can ask these questions:
- Do you provide us with an analysis of the IT and optimized recommendation for the new set-up?
- Will you help us with ensuring the migration?
- Will you assign a technician to us that will resolve problems with us?
- How many of our data do you see?
- Will you provide us with a 24/7 support?
- Can we fully adapt the environment to our needs? How fast?
