Essential Guide
Choose and manage a public cloud storage service successfully
In an age where scalability and performance are top priorities, public cloud storage offers a cost-effective way to store and back up data. But first, you need to choose the right service and manage it properly.
Introduction
Many enterprises now reap the benefits of a public cloud storage service. These benefits include scalability -- the ability to increase and decrease storage capacity on demand -- as well as more flexible payment models. A public cloud storage service also increases reliability; to minimize downtime risks, enterprises can back up or replicate data in the cloud to fail over to a secondary location.
Since there is competition between public cloud storage providers, they frequently expand their services. While this means more features for users, it can also make it more difficult for enterprises to choose the best public cloud storage service for their needs. After selection, organizations need to carefully manage public cloud storage to optimize both performance and costs.
Use this guide to find the right public cloud storage provider, estimate costs and implement management best practices.
1Choose a cloud storage service-
Navigate options from public cloud storage providers
Top cloud providers, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure and Google, all offer public cloud storage services, but the offerings vary. When you explore a provider's services, don't just stop at price. In some cases, the cheapest public cloud storage service isn't the best option for your workloads. Go beyond cost, and explore the storage classes, backup options and how fast you can access the data. Also, review the provider's security capabilities to ensure they meet your compliance requirements. If the top public cloud providers don't meet your needs, consider smaller vendors that have more specialized offerings.
Choose the best provider for your public cloud storage needs
Public cloud providers offer different storage services, and some will meet your workload requirements more than others. Evaluate your enterprise's needs, ranging from cost to compliance, and then compare each provider's services to find the best fit. Continue Reading
Compare nine cloud storage offerings from Google
Google offers four storage classes for live and archived data, as well as tools for management and configuration. Learn which storage services from Google would be the most cost-efficient and offer the best performance for your workload. Continue Reading
Unravel Azure's storage types and services
Azure continues to keep pace with other leading cloud providers, such as AWS and Google, in the cloud storage market. Discover Azure's Blob, Queue, File, Table and Premium storage types, as well as options for hybrid storage. Continue Reading
Break down the three classes of AWS storage
AWS offers a range of public cloud storage options. For the best performance and cost, determine if your data is best suited for block device storage, object storage or archival storage. Continue Reading
IBM aims to simplify cloud storage tiers
To set it apart from AWS, Azure and Google, IBM offers its Cloud Object Storage Flex, a service designed for unpredictable workloads that users can partially pay for upfront. Continue Reading
Explore DigitalOcean block storage service for next-gen apps
While big cloud providers offer services to meet the broadest possible user base, DigitalOcean focuses on ease of use and a more niche market. See if the company's solid-state drive-backed block storage service is a fit for your apps. Continue Reading
2Manage public cloud storage-
Implement cloud storage management and security best practices
Once you choose a provider, you need to implement proper management and monitoring strategies for your public cloud storage service. To ensure high performance, admins should use provider-native or third-party management tools, make sure they have adequate bandwidth and, if necessary, redesign their cloud workloads. Additionally, since security is a top priority with public cloud storage, check your provider's security capabilities to ensure your data will be compliant.
Practice these five performance tips for public cloud storage
It can be difficult to optimize the performance of a public cloud storage service, but admins can take back control with the right monitoring tools, network connections and potentially hybrid options. Continue Reading
Overcome common public cloud storage security challenges
Some enterprises are still hesitant to store sensitive data in the public cloud. Cloud providers invest heavily in security but review their tools and capabilities to protect data access, data in transit and data at rest. Continue Reading
Choose the best AWS storage management option for high-performance apps
High-performance applications can create challenges when it comes to storage. AWS offers EBS Elastic Volumes and Elastic File System, but each comes with its own pros and cons. Continue Reading
Simplify storage management with Azure Managed Disks
Cloud administrators have many responsibilities, and having multiple cloud storage accounts doesn't make things easier. Discover how Azure Managed Disks can simplify storage management and improve availability. Continue Reading
Implement storage as a service to solve hybrid cloud woes
Hybrid cloud enables cloud bursting, but it isn't efficient if enterprises store data incorrectly. Solve data availability and latency issues with storage-as-a-service offerings from vendors such as Velostrata and Zadara Storage. Continue Reading
3Optimize cloud storage costs-
Avoid excessive public cloud storage fees
When you commit to a public cloud storage service, be sure to understand the pricing. There are many aspects that affect public cloud storage costs, and if you can't identify them, you could lose money. First, do your research, and look at providers' prices, as well as how often they change their pricing models. All providers are different, so it is critical to see how their storage billing works and what discounts they offer. Next, look for fees related to data movement; a public cloud storage service might seem cheap, but data retrieval could drive up costs. Lastly, keep an eye on your data. Consider cost management tools to unearth hidden fees and reveal outdated data.
Five factors that influence public cloud storage costs
Many enterprises view cloud storage as a cheaper alternative to on-premises systems, but there are still money pits to avoid. Pay attention to storage service type, region, capacity and the movement and deletion of data. Continue Reading
Calculate cloud storage costs before you buy
Sometimes, a public cloud storage service isn't the most cost-effective option. Before you move data to the cloud, evaluate all potential costs -- including those associated with any hyper-converged infrastructure plans -- before you make a move. Continue Reading
Reduce cloud storage fees with these techniques
Shadow IT, add-on services and outdated data can quickly drain your cloud storage budget. Use these five tips to reduce cloud storage costs today and into the future. Continue Reading
Untangle the billing knots of Azure Premium Storage
Breaking down cloud storage costs isn't always easy, since most providers price their services differently. Evaluate the structure of Azure Premium billing, and learn how different disk sizes can lead to different prices. Continue Reading
4Public cloud storage terms-
Review these public cloud storage definitions
The best way to get to know public cloud storage technology is to start with key terminology.
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