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Multicloud (also written as multi-cloud or multi cloud) refers to a company utilizing multiple cloud computing services from various public vendors within a single, heterogeneous architecture. This approach enhances cloud infrastructure capabilities and optimizes costs. It also refers to the distribution of cloud assets, software, applications, etc. across several cloud-hosting environments. With a typical multicloud architecture utilizing two or more public clouds as well as multiple private clouds, a multicloud environment aims to eliminate the reliance on any single cloud provider and thereby alleviate vendor lock-in.
For instance, an enterprise may use separate cloud providers for infrastructure (IaaS), platform (PaaS), software (SaaS) and container (FaaS) services.[1] In the latter case, they may use different infrastructure providers for different workloads, deploy a single workload load balanced across multiple providers (active-active), or deploy a single workload on one provider, with a backup on another (active-passive).
Advantages and challenges
[edit]There are several advantages to using a multicloud approach, including the ability to negotiate better pricing with cloud providers, the ability to quickly switch to another provider if needed, and the ability to avoid vendor lock-in. Multicloud can also be a good way to hedge against the risks of obsolescence, as it allows you to rely on multiple vendors and open standards, which can prolong the life of your systems.[2]
Additional benefits of the multicloud architecture include adherence to local policies that require certain data to be physically present within the area/country, geographical distribution of processing requests from physically closer cloud unit which in turn reduces latency and protect against disasters.[3][2]
Various issues and challenges also present themselves in a multicloud environment.[3] Security and governance is more complicated, and more "moving parts" may create resiliency issues.
Difference between multicloud and hybrid cloud
[edit]Multicloud differs from hybrid cloud in that it refers to multiple cloud services from different vendors rather than multiple deployment modes (on-premises hardware, and public and private, cloud hosting).[4][5] However, when considering a broad definition of multi-cloud, hybrid cloud can still be regarded as a special form of multi-cloud.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Multicloud: A cheat sheet". TechRepublic. 2020-12-24. Retrieved 2022-02-24.
- ^ a b Brand, Aron (February 17, 2020). "You Might Want to Rethink Monogamy (When Clouds are in Question)". Tech Monitor.
- ^ a b Synytsky, Ruslan. "How To Overcome The Challenges Of Gaining Multi-Cloud Interoperability". Forbes Technology Council. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
- ^ Rouse, Margaret. "What is a multi-cloud strategy". SearchCloudApplications. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ^ King, Rachel. "Pivotal's head of products: We're moving to a multi-cloud world". ZDnet. Retrieved 3 July 2014.