A Layman’s Reading of Gartner’s Top 10 Cloud Myths
Earlier this week, research firm Gartner released a report on the top cloud myths circling today. Now as has often been expressed, the cloud is as understood to the everyman as much as global warming; there is the knowledge of the term and some hot button aspects, like privacy concerns, but beyond that there is very little understanding of what the ‘cloud’ really is. Now Hollywood isn’t exactly helping matters with their representation of the cloud in ‘the sex tape,’ but there are a number of sites that are exclusively dedicated to educating the masses on the cloud, including our own. Therefore, we decided to take Gartner’s Myths, and rewrite them in the same style that Hollywood would, and then give some background into what it really means.
1: The Cloud Will Help You Pay Back Your Student Loans
Gartner’s first myth, called ‘Cloud Is Always About Money’ is based on the notion that adopting the cloud will automatically save your business money. Now while that is oftentimes the end goal of any business, it is more often a positive bonus that comes from other improvements that occur as a result of a migration to the cloud, such as a more efficient and reliable service.
2: Cloud is the New ‘Hipster’
Gartner’s second myth, ‘You Have to Be Cloud to Be Good’, talks about how cloud has become the latest buzzword for companies who are trying to stay relevant. The phenomenon of ‘Cloudwashing’ contributes significantly to the confusion surrounding the cloud as services that are not cloud related are lumped together with genuine providers through this buzzword.
3: Cloud is Like Windex
Gartner’s third myth, ‘Cloud Should Be Used for Everything’, automatically reminded me of ‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding’ where the main character’s father would cure any ailment with a spray of Windex. The cloud has resulted in a diverse range of benefits for all businesses, but just because it is a great service doesn’t necessarily mean it can fix all of your specific problems.
4: My Mommy Doesn’t Let and I Don’t Like Computers Anyway
Gartner’s fourth myth, ‘”The CEO Said So” Is a Cloud Strategy’ is quite a significant myth in that really shows just how uneducated many companies are about the cloud. Companies that do not to have a cloud strategy because of the decisions of the CEO are quite frankly keeping their head in the sand. It is something not understood and therefore avoided. A cloud strategy is a roadmap to success, even if the cloud is only used as a supplementary part of the journey.
5: One Size Fits All
Gartner’s fifth myth is, ‘We Need One Cloud Strategy or Vendor.’ Now, standardization can be a good thing, but changing your business to fit into a cloud service model is sort of losing the plot. Businesses need to be firm on their goals and direction and then choose a cloud service, not use the service to determine their goals.
6: A Secure Cloud Doesn’t Exist
Gartner’s sixth myth, ‘Cloud Is Less Secure Than On-Premises Capabilities,’ is the myth that will probably haunt the industry the longest, especially with security issues still occurring as often as they currently do.
7: If You’re on the Cloud you Will go Offline
Gartner’s seventh myth, ‘Cloud Is Not for Mission-Critical Use,’ refers to notion that you cannot fully rely on the cloud for when you need it the most. This was a valid concern when the technology was still green, nowadays however, we are at a stage that this is no longer the case.
8: Cloud is Synonymous With Data Center
Gartner’s eighth myth, ‘Cloud = Data Center,’ referrers to peoples tendency to one component of something as use that as the defining characteristic. Datacenters are crucial in cloud computing, but there is a lot more to the story.
9: Choosing a Cloud Service is Like Joining a ‘Click’ in High School
Gartner’s ninth myth, ‘Migrating to the Cloud Means You Automatically Get All Cloud Characteristics,’ sort of speaks for itself.
10: Virtualization is Synonymous With Private Cloud
Gartner’s tenth myth is, ‘Virtualization = Private Cloud.’ Just because virtualization has been implemented, doesn’t mean the result is a private cloud, or even cloud computing at all.
This article is an exaggerated simplification of the report, you should read more directly from Gartner.
