Cloud Computing & Infrastructure Services

By Bindu Rathnayake

Cloud computing and infrastructure services have redefined the way businesses manage their data and applications, offering scalable and cost-effective solutions for IT infrastructure. In this article, we will explore the technical benefits and drawbacks of cloud computing and infrastructure services, and how Axiata Digital Labs can assist businesses in optimizing their cloud infrastructure.

Benefits of Cloud Computing and Infrastructure Services

1. Scalability: Cloud computing provides businesses with the ability to scale their resources dynamically, without the need to invest in costly hardware and infrastructure. Cloud providers can dynamically allocate resources such as storage and computing power, depending on the needs of the business.
2. Cost Savings: The pay-as-you-go model of cloud services allows businesses to only pay for the resources they use, making it an affordable option for businesses of all sizes. Additionally, cloud computing can lead to significant savings on operational expenditures by eliminating the need for in-house IT expertise for managing hardware and certain software. This frees up internal resources to focus on core business functions.
3. Flexibility: Cloud computing offers unparalleled flexibility. Businesses can scale resources up or down to meet fluctuating demands, all without the burden of large upfront capital expenditures on hardware.
4. Security: Cloud security is a shared responsibility between the cloud provider and the customer. While the provider secures the underlying infrastructure, the customer remains responsible for securing their data, applications, and access controls. However, cloud providers offer a wide range of security tools and features to help customers achieve their desired level of security in the cloud.

Drawbacks of Cloud Computing and Infrastructure Services

1. Dependency: Once you migrate to a cloud platform, switching providers can be complex and costly. Data/Application migration can be challenging, and applications may be reliant on specific features or functionalities offered by the original cloud service provider. This “lock-in” effect can limit your flexibility and bargaining power in the long run.
2. Control: The ease of provisioning resources in the cloud can be a double-edged sword. While it allows businesses to be agile, it can also lead to uncontrolled spending and security risks if not managed properly. Strong cloud governance with clear policies, CMPs, and user education is crucial to harness cloud flexibility without sacrificing control.
3. Security and Privacy Concerns: While cloud providers offer robust security measures, entrusting your data to a third party inherently carries some risk. Data breaches and unauthorized access are potential threats, requiring businesses to carefully vet cloud providers and implement strong access controls for their data. However, advancements like Confidential Computing offer a promising solution. This technology encrypts data even while it’s being processed in the cloud, ensuring that even the cloud provider cannot access the sensitive information.

How Axiata Digital Labs Can Help

Axiata Digital Labs offers a range of cloud computing and infrastructure services that can help businesses optimize their cloud infrastructure. These services include:

1. Cloud Advisory​: Cloud consulting services from ADL can help businesses identify their cloud computing needs and recommend the best solutions to meet their requirements. Our expertise helps businesses to determine which services to use, how to integrate them with existing systems, and how to ensure the security and reliability of their infrastructure.
2. Cloud Implementation​: Cloud implementation services can take the complexity out of your cloud journey. Axiata Digital Lab can handle everything from designing the optimal cloud architecture and technical solutions to provisioning and implementing your chosen cloud environment. This includes rigorous validation, testing, and issue resolution to ensure a smooth launch. Additionally, these services can implement robust backup and security solutions, giving you peace of mind and a secure foundation for your cloud operations.
3. Cloud Migration: Axiata Digital Labs assists businesses in migrating their applications and data to the cloud, ensuring a smooth and seamless transition. We provide end-to-end migration services, throughout all migration phases including assessing, mobilizing, migrating, and optimizing the cloud environment. If you are not sure whether you should migrate or not, we can help you by performing an assessment of your current infrastructure laying the groundwork for a successful journey. It involves a deep dive into your current IT environment, applications, and data. Through comprehensive evaluation, the assessment clarifies your business objectives and desired outcomes for the migration. This understanding helps determine the most suitable cloud migration strategy and approach, ensuring alignment with your overall business goals.
4. Cloud Operations: Axiata Digital Labs offers CloudOps and FinOps services, helping businesses optimize their cloud infrastructure, manage their cloud infrastructure, and ensure their security and compliance. Our services include performance optimization, budget tracking, Cloud governance to end-to-end application-managed service.
5. Cloud Engineering: Cloud engineering at ADL encompasses the skills and practices to design and build modern, scalable cloud applications. This involves expertise in transitioning monolithic applications into microservices for increased agility. Our cloud engineers also play a crucial role in data engineering, building and managing data pipelines for efficient data storage, processing, and analysis in the cloud. Additionally, they champion CI/CD deployments, automating the software delivery pipeline to ensure continuous integration, testing, and deployment of cloud-native applications.
6. Cloud Security: Cloud security from ADL with compliance and consulting offers a multi-layered approach. First, it establishes a strong foundation through security architecture design. This includes defining clear standards, policies, and user-friendly checklists for consistent security practices. The process then leverages the power of automation by evaluating and recommending best-fit security automation tools. This not only streamlines security tasks but also reduces the risk of human error, ensuring a more robust and efficient cloud security posture. To further strengthen your cloud defences, this service can also include Vulnerability Assessments and Penetration Testing (VAPT), proactively identifying and addressing potential security weaknesses before they can be exploited.
7. Cloud Insights: Cloud Insights is a platform that has been specifically designed by Axiata Digital Labs to combat unforeseen costs, enhance visibility and transparency, and provide superior control and customizations for your organization’s cloud environment. Cloud Insights allows you to track, monitor, and optimize cloud consumption with a laser focus on the 4 pillars, Cloud Insights, Cloud Optimizations, Cloud FinOps, and Cloud Governance.

In conclusion, cloud computing and infrastructure services offer numerous technical benefits, including scalability, cost savings, flexibility, and security. However, businesses need to be aware of the technical drawbacks and implement measures to mitigate them. Axiata Digital Labs can assist businesses in optimizing their cloud infrastructure, ensuring they can take full advantage of the benefits while minimizing the risks.

You can visit www.axiatadigitallabs.com or www.axonect.com to know more about ADL and its Axonect Product Suite respectively.