As more and more businesses move towards doing their business on the web, it’s important that the infrastructure is in place to handle the challenges that kind of move presents. When you’re not dealing locally with one another, or even with physical objects, there’s a huge amount to take into consideration. How long does a file take to transfer? How is someone going to have access to the right software? Will there be enough processing power available to the user when they need it?
These are all problems that cloud companies are now racing to answer, and cloud infrastructure is set to be big business in the future. Very few companies understand this better than Amazon; whose cloud services are among the top services available today for businesses looking to take themselves to the next level.
Amazon Cloud listed by Gartner as a leader in the ‘infrastructure as a service’ (IaaS) section of their Magic Quadrant report for the third time in three years. They also listed Amazon Web Services (AWS) as having the best complete vision and ability to execute of all others in the magic quadrant. If you needed more evidence of Amazon cloud’s prowess, you need only consider that the Amazon website itself, which received 164 million unique visitors in the USA alone, runs on AWS.
Amazon Cloud Features
The services offered up by Amazon are broad. Ranging from storage, computing and databases, through to analytics, application and deployment. The services themselves are modular, depending on what your business needs are, and have been used in the past by companies such as COMCAST, Lionsgate, Netflix, Expedia, and many more.
Application Streaming
Appstream is a low-latency feature which allows you to intensively stream applications direct from the cloud to your device. This is a fantastic feature for any business looking to interact with mass-market devices like phones, tablets and smart TVs. While it’s nice to not have to install hefty applications on your device, the real benefit to cloud streaming is that it doesn’t strain your device. All of the heavy lifting is handled by Amazon’s computer banks, meaning that your devices should last longer and function better as a result of cloud streaming.
The streaming service itself also comes with a software development kit which allows streaming to all the key operating systems from a Microsoft Windows Server.
Cloud Desktops
Amazon Workspace opens up your business to the potentials of remote working and the bring your own device (BYOD) movement. By streaming a desktop to anyone with a decent web connection, AWS makes it possible for business owners to engage with their employees as if they were in the same room, whilst in reality they could be on the other side of the country, or in another country entirely.
Cloud based desktops allow easy access to documents, applications and resources, no matter where in the world there are, as long as they’ve got a data connection. The desktops can stream to all kinds of devices as well. Laptops, phones and tablets of all kinds can be easily integrated with Amazon Workspaces and as a result the working experience never has to change for employees.
Amazon Workspaces are also subjected to stringent security protocols, so there is no need to worry about unauthorised access to important files. There are several options available that make it easy to manage the desktop experience your workers get, as well as what files they get access to.
Cloud Computing
Amazon EC2, short for Elastic Compute Cloud, gives businesses access to a flexible cloud computing solution which can be resized on the go, making computing for the web easier. Because developers don’t have to worry about how much space they may need at the end of the project, they can start with what they need at that moment, and pay for what they need, rather than what they will need.
This flexibility of payment is one of AWS’s (and the cloud in general) greatest appeals, and the ability to quickly scale your capacity within minutes has had a serious impact on the economics of cloud computing. For those companies looking to develop their own applications and services, but are worried about the upfront costs, EC2 is ideal.
EC2 also works with Amazon VPC to ensure that all of your data is secure at all times, giving you multiple access and connectivity options without compromising your business’s integrity.
Media Focus
If you’re a company that’s dealing with a lot of media, then Amazon’s cloud services should get special consideration from you, particularly if you’re dealing with audio, an Amazon speciality. This makes sense, considering how you can stream any music that you’ve bought from amazon in the past through their cloud player service.
Modular
Perhaps Amazon’s greatest attraction to a lot of businesses is the flexibility it gives its customers in terms of how much they pay. Amazon has put together a payment system made up of different payment tiers. These tiers can in turn be mixed and matched depending on your business and your business needs. Ensuring that you don’t overpay because you may want to expand in the future.
More to Learn
Hopefully this has given you a good overview of what Amazon Cloud offers businesses both in the long and short term. It’s not the only service out there, but it’s been proven again and again to be a robust and reliable service that millions of people use daily for their business and customers. This, combined with the flexibility it offers in terms of billion, makes it one of our top picks for cloud services.