What mission critical functions does this technology provide or support?
Multi-cloud offers businesses or organizations the flexibility of using multiple cloud services to meet varying software demands while providing a level of redundancy. Where Hybrid cloud is a combination of private and public infrastructure,
Multicloud means cloud-native applications built from containers and microservices using component services from different cloud providers.
McLellan (2019)
What are some important specifications of this technology that companies should use when evaluating options?
Parizo (2016) lists the following considerations to get a Multi-cloud environment up and running:
- Choosing an application specific cloud service provider
- Overcoming reluctance in adopting proprietary cloud services
- Creating an architecture that addresses your organization’s unique challenges
An organization can profit from choosing a vendor to fit a specific enterprise need. Since different cloud services offer unique solutions, more and more companies are finding that using, for example, Microsoft Azure for Windows dependant applications in combination with Amazon AWS for website management, is a better overall solution.
Do any particular technology providers stand out in the space?
The top 5 leaders in the cloud computing space, according to Drake (2019) are:
- Amazon Web Services
- Microsoft Azure
- Google Cloud
- IBM Cloud
- Rackspace Cloud
Though the above companies are the leaders in the cloud computing, there are other companies, like Oracle Cloud and Digital Realty, that provide this essential service with various pricing models and features.
Is any new technology slated to displace these incumbents?
Edge computing may replace cloud or multi-cloud technology.
Edge computing is computing that’s done at or near the source of the data, instead of relying on the cloud at one of a dozen data centers to do all the work.
Miller (2018)
Instead of submitting data offsite, Edge computing would process data on-site, reducing latency, which is inherent when data is processed in the cloud. Where cloud computing has decentralized data, Edge computing would bring some of it back.
Sources
Drake, N. (2019, July 2). Best cloud computing services of 2019.
Retrieved from https://www.techradar.com/news/best-cloud-computing-service
McLellan, C. (2019, July 1). Multicloud: Everything you need to know about the biggest trend in cloud computing.
Retrieved from https://www.zdnet.com/article/multicloud-everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-biggest-trend-in-cloud-computing/
Miller, P. (2018, May 7). What is edge computing?
Retrieved from https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/5/7/17327584/edge-computing-cloud-google-microsoft-apple-amazon
Parizo, C. (2016, November 17). Managing multiple clouds requires careful choice, architecture planning.
Retrieved from https://www.techrepublic.com/article/managing-multiple-clouds-requires-careful-choice-architecture-planning/
