‘Cloud’ has been the buzz term on IT for a good few years now and whilst there’s certainly merit in the flexibility and contingency the cloud offers, there are still several tangible benefits traditional on-premise server networks can offer.
Lock-down, in business terms, has thrown a number of things into focus. One of those things is how important cloud storage is to the function of any business.
Although we hope that lock-down conditions never darken our doorsteps again, it is always going to be a possibility and a consideration from now on. It would therefore be remiss of any business not to put as much of its data into cloud storage as possible, in order to ensure that operation capacity can be maintained should we all have to start working from home again.
However, this does not mean that you should ditch your servers entirely. Although it makes sense to implement cloud storage, there are still many good reasons to keep hold of on-site servers. Here is why:
- The Hybrid System
Many are still suspicious of the safety of cloud storage. The fact is that cloud storage, with so many concerns around cybersecurity and GDPR these days, is better than in traditional servers. Cloud solutions are more beneficial than they are risky.
Many companies like to cover all bases by backing up all data on both servers and cloud storage. This equips your company with the ability to work more flexibly and ensures that your files are secured in more than one location.
- The Domain Controller
One thing that servers still do much better than cloud solutions is IT management. Many workplace servers have the capabilities of domain control. These servers help to manage the IT environment of any workplace, making it easy to control the access and privileges different users have throughout its closed network.
Cloud services are just starting to move into this territory, but servers are still dominant in this area.
- Storage
Not all companies work with digestible document-based data on a daily basis. Businesses that work with large files, such as music production, video or graphic design companies, work with large RAW files on a regular basis. These files take up a lot of space and take a lot of time to transfer from cloud storage. In this instance, it is more convenient to the daily operation of a business to have on-site storage; a server.
Also, cloud storage downloads often mean that your computer is unable to perform other tasks for the duration of the transfer. This is less the case with OneDrive, as it allows you to work whilst downloading happens in the background. That being said, this only works well if your device of choice has the capacity to handle multiple large data functions at once. When working with large files, local network storage is best.
