Hybrid Cloud: Realising the Best of Both Worlds with Azure Stack

The cloud is an important technology for businesses, with unparalleled benefits. However, using a single cloud-based solution is not always the best option for some businesses. A hybrid cloud solution, however, utilises on-premises and cloud-based environments (public and private), allowing you to take advantage of both. Azure Stack is Microsoft’s hybrid cloud solution that will help ensure you’re getting the most out of cloud systems. In this article, Extech Cloud explains why your organisation needs the hybrid cloud, and the benefits of Azure Stack.

The need for hybrid cloud

A hybrid cloud solution offers an integrated private and public system to help your organisation stay agile, keep costs down, and reap the security benefits of the private cloud. These include:

Reduced costs: The private cloud is more expensive than the public cloud, and the former is not always necessary. A hybrid solution allows you to use the on-prem or private cloud while also taking advantage of the cheaper public cloud.
Flexibility and agility: On-premises servers are far less flexible than the public cloud - especially when it comes to remote working. With the hybrid cloud, you can access the public cloud but keep important data secure in the private cloud.
Business continuity: If your business experiences downtime in your on-prem implementation, you can utilise the public cloud to ensure business continuity.

Introducing Azure Stack

Azure Stack is Microsoft’s solution to allow you to run Azure services flexibly in the environment of your choice.  It lets you build and mobilise cloud environments and fully implement the hybrid solution with both the private and public cloud, making your organisation more flexible overall.

Azure Stack use cases

Azure Stack can be used in a lot of different scenarios to help you take advantage of both on-premises and cloud-based benefits:

Latency within edge and remote locations: Azure Stack can be deployed in locations where low-latency processing is necessary. Using Azure Stack allows you to deploy essential and high-priority applications without having to worry about latency or connectivity issues.
Disconnected environments: It allows you to store data locally without being dependent on cloud connectivity where internet access and connectivity is unpredictable. This is useful for industries like defence, mining, or maritime operations where network connectivity won’t always be a given.
Data sovereignty and compliance: This solution can help organisations keep up with compliance and regulatory requirements using on-premises hardware to keep sensitive data protected and safe, and cloud services for other, less sensitive workloads.
Hybrid development and testing: You can use Azure Stack to facilitate hybrid development and testing and create and deploy hybrid applications for greater flexibility and agility in your organisation.

The hybrid cloud is integral to ensure you’re taking advantage of the cloud’s full potential. If you’re looking to get started with Azure Stacks but don’t know where to start, reach out to us today.

Andrew Hookway

Extech Cloud

IT Services / IT Support

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