| | December 20149CIOReviewof the environment ­ global, workload and individual resources. Leading tools will also include customizable, action-oriented alerts so teams can proactively address potential problems. There should be powerful self-service functionality, but customers should also have access to phone support should the need arise, and it should not cost extra. connectivity: The demand for 24/7 access to applications and resources from anywhere means companies must antici-pate the type of connectivity required to enable remote access and maintain uninterrupted service. An infrastructure provider should support more than just Internet connectivity and VPN, in-cluding technologies such as MPLS and OTV. It's important for companies to have the option to add their own physical gear to complement a cloud deployment so they can meet any network-ing or telephony challenge that may arise.network and security: Enterprise applications are not sim-ply "connected to the Internet." Though concerns around security in the cloud have largely been addressed, companies should real-ize that most networking vendors provide virtual editions of their platforms for cloud use, enabling enterprises to have the same granular policies in the cloud as they do at their own data-center. With the rise of virtual appliances, we see easy deployment and subscription based pricing models for services such as intrusion detection, load balancers and data encryption. It is very simple, for instance, to be able to control all network and security poli-cies from one place in the event of a disaster, not only allowing for a smooth technical transition and attractive pricing model, but also the assurance that the enterprise security policy is adhered to.Billing: While many teams pursue cloud be-cause of promised cost benefits, unpredictable bills and indecipherable pricing models contrib-ute to some of the biggest cloud headaches today. To eliminate waste, companies should look for straightforward but flexible pricing mod-els that best address their use case, whether that means they pay as they go, reserve what they need or reserve resources with the option to boost.Transparency again plays a major role, as teams must be able to associate costs with each resource (disk, cpu, memory, band-width, etc.) and choose pricing models that ensure they get the best rates and only pay for what they need. Alerts are also key so teams can stay on top of potential overages and monitor for cloud sprawl.compliance: Companies today face ever increasing cor-porate and industry compliance considerations, which can be complicated to address in a public cloud. Teams must be able to easily change control capabilities amongst team members, giving easy access to those who need it while securely restricting others based on roles. What's more, as highly regulated industries seek to capitalize on the benefits of cloud, IT teams needs partners that can work with them through intensive auditing processes.Disaster recovery: More cloud providers than ever are splashing messages about easy, fast disaster recovery, but there is no silver bullet. Without thorough analysis of technical and pro-cedural needs, companies frequently end up with solutions that are inadequate or overkill. There are dozens of questions that teams frequently overlook: Do I need multiple options around networking and connectivity to ensure everyone can access the workloads once recovered? Can I provide my own gear that may not be able to be virtualized? Can I send my provider data to import? How easy will it be to make changes like Windows hostnames? How do I switch DNS for failover? Who `pulls the trigger' should a disaster strikes, and how?An experienced Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) provider will work with a company through assessment, planning, implementation, testing and maintenance. That includes giving customers the ability to manage disaster re-covery in the same user interface they use to manage the rest of their cloud infrastructure.When it comes down to it, CIOs must de-cide where they need to focus their resources. Should they go to building and protecting the cloud or leveraging the cloud? If it's the latter, their team will likely need a provider that takes a consultative approach, understanding and address-ing all of the outlined areas above. Cloud infra-structure and how it is used will continue to evolve in the years ahead. The service provider should take on the heavy lifting so its custom-ers can focus on more strategic business initiatives. Justin Giardinaan infrastructure provider should support more than just internet connectivity and Vpn, including technologies such as mpls and otV"
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