Business System Consultation Center - Our Business System ColumnVol.81 2018.02.01 Takahashi Minoru

There are dishonest salespeople selling cloud services without understanding what cloud is

Thank you for your interest and continued support.
This is Takahashi from the Marketing Plan Research Laboratory.


Before you evaluate the pros and cons of the cloud or decide whether to adopt it,
you must first ask: What exactly is the cloud?
How is it different from your company’s own (on-premises) servers?
I believe it is beneficial to have a basic understanding of these concepts.


The difference between “installing a system on your own server” and “installing a system on a cloud server”
can be summed up in a single sentence:
"There is a difference between running a generator to use electricity and plugging something into an outlet to use electricity."
There is a difference like this.


Details are provided below.


① The scale of equipment preparation differs
When obtaining power using a generator, you must provide the generator (and fuel) yourself.
If you obtain power from an outlet, you do not need to provide the generator (power plant) yourself.


If you build a system using your own servers, you must provide the server hardware yourself.
If you build a system using cloud servers, you do not need to provide the server hardware (data center) yourself.


② Differences in responsibility (i.e., effort) for equipment maintenance and upkeep
If your company’s generator breaks down, your company is responsible.
If the power plant or transmission equipment supplying power to the outlet malfunctions, the power company is responsible.


Your company is responsible for any damage to your own servers.
If a cloud server (in a data center) is damaged, the cloud provider is responsible.


③ Differences in contracts (timing of financial obligations)
When you purchase a generator, you must pay a lump-sum amount, but there are no monthly expenses.
If you want to obtain electricity from an outlet, you do not need to buy a power plant, but you must pay a monthly base fee to the power company.


Purchasing an in-house server involves a lump-sum cost.
With a cloud server, you do not need to purchase a data center, but you must pay a monthly usage fee.


④ Differences When You Want to Improve Performance
To increase the output of a generator, you must decide whether to purchase an additional unit or replace the existing one.
To increase the amount of electricity you get from an outlet, you need to raise your monthly base rate.


When upgrading an on-premises server, replacing it is generally the most practical option. (Adding more servers is difficult.)
To upgrade a cloud server, you simply need to switch your plan. Increasing your monthly fee will improve performance.


⑤ Differences When Reducing Performance
If you revert the performance of an upgraded generator to its original level, the expenses paid for purchasing the additional generator will be wasted (since the generator will be surplus).
If you want to reduce the maximum power drawn from the outlet, simply lower the contracted amperage. This will reduce your monthly base fee.


You cannot revert the performance of a replaced in-house server to its original state (even if technically possible, it serves little purpose).
If you want to downsize your cloud server, simply switch your plan. Reducing your contracted performance will lower your usage fees.


⑥ The difference in freedom (setting aside whether it’s necessary)
You can modify your own generator however you like.
You cannot modify electrical outlets to your liking; you can only perform construction work within a certain prescribed scope.


With an on-premises server, you can freely decide its purpose and implement even the most extreme configurations.
With a cloud server, since the data center itself is shared with other users, you can’t do anything too outlandish.


⑦ The difference between fixed performance and automatic evolution
Generators generally need to be used with the specifications they had when purchased.
Power plants, on the other hand, undergo daily performance upgrades by power companies to ensure a stable supply.


Your own server generally remains unchanged from the specifications at the time of purchase.
With cloud servers, the provider continuously improves performance—including speed, stability, security, and automatic backups—on a daily basis.


⑧ Additional Services (Cloud Only)
Cloud server providers are fiercely competing with one another,
striving to enhance ancillary services such as "dedicated support desks," "new feature additions," and "new integrated services."


⑩ Different Prerequisites
A generator can be used anywhere as long as you have gasoline.
You cannot install an outlet in a location without an existing power line.


An on-premises server can be installed in any office as long as there is a power source, a LAN connection, and a terminal.
Cloud servers can be used anywhere with an internet connection, but generally cannot be used in environments without a network connection.


I’ve written quite a bit, but to summarize the above:
"The difference between the cloud and on-premises is similar to the difference between a generator and an electrical outlet."
If you just remember this, as long as you aren’t doing anything overly complex, you should be able to smoothly evaluate and select a cloud solution.


That's all, Thank you for reading.

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