ABSTRACT
The decision to deploy in the clouds is primarily influenced by each of the three legs of the stool, but other, external considerations also play a role. These include:
Special security considerations (which may eliminate certain solutions, restrict you to a private, in-house cloud, or dictate a hybrid cloud)
Underlying software requirements (does the vendor offer the existing [customizable] virtual image that you need; what operating system and components do you need?)
Time to deploy initially (deploying clouds using virtual resources is typically much quicker than procuring and provisioning physical resources)
The chief advantage and chief disadvantage of cloud computing are one and the same: many choices. Cloud computing frees you from investing in infrastructure. So you aren’t intending to be too committed. Rather, you are renting the infrastructure you need, on a pay-as-you-go basis. Many support tasks are offloaded to the provider and are bundled into the price charged. You can also be a victim of your own success. A sudden spurt of popularity and resulting spike in usage can bring your system to its knees.
