Remember when the word "cloud" used to refer to the fluffy white ball of water vapour in the sky? Not any more.
The word cloud has taken on a whole new meaning in the world of technology; but its meaning is as broad as the sky is to real clouds. So what do people mean when they refer to "the cloud"?
The term, cloud, in most cases refers to the following 4 technologies:
- Cloud Applications
- Hosted Applications
- Hybrid Cloud
- Virtual Private Cloud
Cloud Applications
Using cloud applications is sometimes referred to as Software as a Service (SaaS). The applications are usually accessed via an internet browser and require a user to login and verify their credentials.One of the first examples and most commonly used SaaS applications was web based banking applications. These cloud applications are used by people for Accounting, CRM, Data storage & Backup and Banking. The hype around cloud in business circles has largely come from cloud accounting application provider Xero.
Xero has been around since July 2006 with its roots based in New Zealand. Xero has grown to over 250,000 company files with an estimated 100,000 company data files in Australia as at March 2014. Other cloud applications you might be familiar with and using are MYOB LiveAccounts, Reckon One, QuickBooks Online, Web Payroll, Salesforce.com, Dropbox and Netbank just to name a few. The great thing about cloud aps are they are generally cross platform, meaning you can run them in nearly any browser on any device using any platform such as Windows, IOS or Android.
The down side of using cloud aps is you typically rent them; hence once you stop paying for the service your data is not able to be accessed and in some cases you are unable to get your data out in a consolidated file format to either use locally or review your history. Both Xero and Reckon recognise that clients will sometimes want to get access to their data again; however both are dealing with this situation quite differently. Xero charge a file reinstatement fee and resume subscription charges for the required access period. Reckon will render the data read only once your subscription either ceases or lapses providing you with indefinite access.
Hosted Applications
Hosted applications refers to the situation where a vendor takes your desktop application and serves it to you via a web browser.The difference here is it is only the one specific application. An example of this is Reckon Accounts Hosted. Reckon provide their Reckon Accounts accounting application via a web browser enabling you to access Reckon Accounts software via any device using most common browsers. They do this by interfacing a Windows-based operating environment through a Citrix interface which allows for a cross-platform delivery i.e. Windows, iOS and Android. If you cease to use their hosted model you can save your data file back down to your computer and continue to use the data file using the Reckon Accounts desktop application in a Windows environment if you purchase or own a licensed copy.
Hybrid Cloud
Hybrid Cloud is a term floating around accounting circles that refers to MYOB's AccountRight Live offering. Its referred to as a hybrid cloud solution as whilst you can access your data file from anywhere, where an internet connection exists; it can only be accessed on a Windows device and only if MYOB AccountRight Live is installed on that device.
AccountRight Lives' main advantage is if there is no internet access, a user can access the local data file using the local copy of MYOB AccountRight Live and then sync the data file back to the cloud copy once an internet connection is restored.
The downside is the MYOB AccountRight Live product is reliant on the Windows operating platform; therefore you cannot access your cloud data file with any non-windows devices. This is due to MYOB's reliance on the Windows Azure platform to deliver the MYOB AccountRight live cloud platform. In essence you must have the MYOB product installed to access the cloud data file.
It's an argument of many in the industry that this is not a true cloud solution. It's probably easier to argue that the limitations this solution has would not suit all that required or wanted a Cloud Application solution.
Virtual Private Cloud
In simple terms this is the rental of a virtual computer with a configured operating system. This could be as simple as one windows 8 computer to a full server client solution with multiple users accessing multiple virtual machines.
The main advantage of this solution is the deployment of the virtual computer is often via Citrix; hence you can access your virtual computer from any device. For example you could access a powerful virtual PC from an iPad using Citrix Receiver.
Some service providers allow you to also pay by the hour, allowing you to power down your virtual server; hence releasing the hardware resources allocated to the virtual machine resource pool.
This type of cloud service is becoming more and more popular as business owners face their own server network renewal cycles which typically occur every 5 years. Business owners are now reconsidering the leasing cost of owning their own network infrastructure against renting virtual server infrastructure from a virtual private cloud provider.
Whilst many businesses have similarities in technology requirements, they are never the same; hence it is important to review your own technology requirements before making a decision about what technology is right for you.
The Software team at Cutcher & Neale have a wealth of experience dealing with cloud technologies and integrating both cloud and desktop technologies. They are here to help if you need some assistance understanding what is the best technology mix for your business.
If you'd like assistance with choosing the right solution for your business please email the Software Division team or fill out our enquiry form.
