FEATURE
and private cloud workloads while offering the advantages attached to colocation : skilled staff ; reliability ; security ; and cost-efficiency .
Steps to a smooth hybrid cloud lift-off :
• Wherever possible , move existing workloads to a cloud-capable state . This will provide business benefits around platform utilisation rates and in the provision of dynamic resources to workloads .
• Ideally , focus on a single underlying cloud platform technology for ensuring there are high levels of fidelity between the private and public cloud platforms ; the movement of workloads across the two and the integration and automation of data movement across them , will be simplified .
• Look to colocation to avoid performance bottlenecks . Colocation facilities provide high-speed interconnection capabilities between different aspects of the hybrid cloud , along with multiple redundant managed links to the outside world .
• Remember , not all colocation providers are equal . Look at power availability and support for highdensity equipment . For overall performance and responsiveness , check the quality of their transfacility links and that they have a direct connection to the chosen public cloud service provider ’ s infrastructure .
• Where possible , ‘ lift and shift ’ workloads that cannot or will not be placed into the cloud . Placing existing workloads alongside the cloud platform in a colocation facility optimises security and resilience , and fabric networks will minimise latencies across platforms . �
38 www . intelligentdatacentres . com