Essential Characteristics of Cloud

Organizations will be able to measure and only pay for the IT resources they consume. Control over usage gives agencies the flexibility to match requirements and budget constraints, and leverage the shared underlying capacity of IT resources.
 

Cloud Characteristics and Benefits:

Cloud computing is a model for enabling convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications, and services). Other benefits include:

• Efficient and Scalable: Computing resources can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or service provider interaction.
• Reliable and On-demand: Resources are dynamically-allocated and released using a fully automated process.
• Agile and Elastic: Network access available from anywhere with an Internet connection. Common resources build economies of scale, high efficiency infrastructure drawn from a common pool.
• Available and Accessible: On-demand access through a self-serve web interface.
• Cost-efficient and Resourceful: Services are metered, like a utility, where users pay only for services used and they can be cancelled at any time. Cloud services provide for reduced upfront capital expenditures.
• Productive and Measurable: Leveraging of cloud infrastructure allows an agency to launch new initiatives, without having to acquire significant hardware, lowering the time and cost barriers to deployment.

Cloud Challenges:

While the benefits far outway the challenges, Cloud hosting is not without challenges. Government IT security risks and threats are increasing and a lack of incentive to leverage existing Authorizations to Operate (ATOs) among agencies results in inconsistent and time consuming security management.

How we address challenges:

• We are partnered with FedRAMP, a government-wide program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring for Cloud products and services.
• Our team works to provide tools and mechanisms that will ensure portability among different Cloud providers and diligently interact with customers and vendors to ensure smooth transitions.
• We streamline IT footprints  that keep costs at a minimum and optimize management of data and information.