By Buffalo, Benefits of Using Onsite Storage as Private Cloud

By Tim Li, technical writer, Buffalo Technology

With the advent of cloud computing and storage, many businesses are utilizing cloud services to offset their storage and backup needs.

For most businesses, cloud storage often comes in 2 flavors: public cloud-cloud services offered by third-party providers over the public Internet, with various pricing structures based on storage or bandwidth, and private cloud-cloud storage created from servers and other devices that reside solely within an organization.

While public cloud can offer less overhead cost in equipment maintenance, control of the infrastructure falls under the cloud service provider’s responsibility, and its well-known security issues are a common concern. This is why for many enterprises, a private cloud comprised of modern NAS devices (such as the company’s TeraStation) can be a more appropriate choice. The benefits of private cloud are particularly valuable for SMB organizations with small-scale requirements and businesses in regulated industries who need strengthened security to address emerging cyberthreats and flexibility to handle expansion and scalability.

Performance
With public cloud storage, you will always be at the mercy of your ISP. Bandwidth will always be a concern when it comes to accessing data, and when dealing with higher data volumes and service hours, it is very possible that you will run into bottlenecks, severely affecting your operations.

On the other hand, your own private cloud storage will typically offer faster data access and low latency as you will not have to rely on the uptime and connectivity of an external network. User can enable not only faster data access but also smoother backups as well, improving efficiency.

Security
For any company, securing highly-sensitive customer data should be their number one priority. While cloud security has improved over recent years, your data still remains online, and is still at risk of being exposed to various cyberthreats. Private cloud storage provides opportunities to keep your data safe from cyberthreats such as ransomware, and can deliver a higher level of security and privacy though company security protocols such as firewalls to ensure operations and sensitive data cannot be accessed by third-party users and cyberthreats.

The other side of the data security coin is compliance. For some enterprises, new regulations have been introduced to integrate with advancing storage technology. The strict industry regulations mean that sometimes, a private cloud is the only real viable storage solution in order to meet with industry compliance as some public cloud service providers cannot meet the requirements.

Control
No matter how secure the public cloud service is, the fact remains that your data is under management by another provider, with the security protocols removed from your control. In other words, your data is only as secure as the third-party provider makes it to be.

Ultimately, security experts agree that controlling your data infrastructure is the best policy. If a data breach occurs with public cloud storage, tracking and investigating the breach can be made harder because you do not own the infrastructure. This not an issue with private clouds. In fact, since you own your own data infrastructure, it can be designed so that you can keep the server isolated on a network, thereby mitigating the risk of exposing your data. All data is saved and managed on servers to which no other company has access, and you can control who is allowed physical access. For these reasons, storing critical business data on a local private cloud is the most recommended solution.

And with private cloud, all on-site servers are managed by internal IT staff, which not only helps ease worries of having to rely upon another party’s security framework, but also provides an important aspect of data security: redundancy. Having multiple NAS devices on-site for your private cloud builds redundancy into your data network environment, so you don’t have to worry about lost business while a server is down or inaccessible. You have control over how the data is stored, who has access, and information security protocols.

Control is also an important factor when you need to expand your business. When utilizing cloud services, like entering any contract where you pay for an ongoing service, costs can be unpredictable. You have no control over possible price and term changes. Instead of handing over control of your essential data to someone else, a private cloud allows you to oversee the security and scalability of your storage.

TeraStation secure storage solutions
In addition to flexible and proven product offerings, Buffalo Technology’s technicians are on 24/7 in North America to help advise on the right hybrid cloud backup strategy.

The company‘s NAS is considered the most secure storage, along with personal customer service and 24/7 North America-based support. With nuanced security features such as drive encryption and a closed system, as well as a adaptable array of backup features, the firm providies flexible storage solutions that offer the security, stability, and simplicity user need so you can manage your data with peace of mind. Responsible for many industry firsts and technology standards, the company has 4 dcades of networking and computer periperal manufacturing and design experience.