The Private Cloud: Private Yes, Cloud No

At the time this post was written, the term “cloud computing” returned around 392 million search results. In case you weren’t aware, it’s a pretty popular term these days. And like all popular terms, the “cloud” is routinely misapplied and used out of context. Not by you, of course, but by scores of others in the IT world.

A great example of this can be found with the term “private cloud” – loosely defined as a cloud infrastructure operated for a single organization, hosted and managed internally or by a third-party. The operative phrase in that last sentence was “loosely defined.” That’s because many have argued that the private cloud isn’t really the cloud (and it’s not really private either).

In the eyes of many, the private cloud is merely marketing buzzwords designed to make cloud-reluctant IT execs feel better about their slow pace of adoption.

The question for this post: Are they right? Is the private cloud nothing but hype? And does it have any redeeming qualities? Before we answer that, let’s take a look at some of the arguments.

According to George Reese – author of Cloud Application Architectures – the private cloud is really not the cloud at all – at least not according to his cloud criteria:

• The service is accessible via a web browser or web services API.
• Zero capital expenditure is required to get started.
• You pay only for what you use as you use it.

As you know, the private cloud does indeed require capital expenditure in the form of hardware, data centers, etc. (things they’ll absolutely need to pay for if they decide to stop using it). And aside from capital expenditure, the amount of time required to getting up-and-running with a private cloud is significantly higher than that of more traditional cloud options. More time, more resources, more money – basically the opposite of the cloud.

And what about security and privacy? In this area, the term does a better job of living up to its name. With a private cloud, a company owns (and stores) its own data. Moreover, they know exactly who has access to data and who doesn’t. There are however some disadvantages in terms of private cloud security. Here is a good list of some of the private cloud drawbacks:

• Your employees have physical access
• You are on your own when defending attacks
• You are subject to the whims of nature
• You are subject to the whims of your ISP
• You are subject to the whims of your local power grid
• Your security is entirely your responsibility.

MSPs, if your clients truly want the real benefits of the cloud, the private cloud might not be in their best interest. If however they want to keep their data closer (and don’t mind incurring the costs that come with it) then it might be just what they are looking for.

Someday, the business world will develop a better understanding of what the cloud is (and what it isn’t). Until then, make sure you’re prepared to explain the difference to your clients.