Beyond Cloud Optimization: The Strategic Path to Cloud Repatriation

Understanding Cloud Repatriation: A Strategic Tool for IT Managers

The Driving Forces Behind the Shift Away From Public Cloud

• Cost Considerations and Financial Implications
• Data Sovereignty and Operational Control
• Computing Power and Performance Metrics
• Security, Compliance, and Vendor Lock-In Concerns

Although there are many reasons for the move out of the public cloud, a few well-defined aspects are the main drivers. In addition to cost and loss of control over data, insufficient (computing) power, transparency and loss of control over systems, security and compliance issues are a concern for enterprises, and operator lock-in is also a common concern for public cloud services.

In the majority of cases studied by vshosting, companies have paid more for services hosted in the public cloud than for long-term data storage, unnecessarily. Repatriating such workloads can reduce cloud spending by up to 70 percent. The undesirable impact of cloud providers’ variable-cost pricing models, which depend on usage, can also be minimised.

The Process and Benefits of Cloud Repatriation

Cloud repatriation not only involves moving data back, but also applications and services that typically require low latency. The process is not about abandoning the cloud, but about optimising the cloud experience, which does not necessarily mean completely eliminating the use of the public cloud. Cloud repatriation is seen as a tool in a broader strategy to optimise cloud and on-premises IT infrastructure. Decision makers are seeking to modernise IT systems by applying a structure that more closely follows their business needs.

The question arises: what is the destination for moving out of the public cloud? There is no unanimous answer to this question, but companies are moving their data and services to traditional on-premise IT infrastructure, private cloud or colocation facilities. vshosting’s comprehensive approach to cloud repatriation involves a thorough analysis of existing cloud infrastructures and the development of tailored strategies to meet specific business objectives. This means that a non-binary, hybrid approach is also an option, as evidenced by trends in recent years.

Achieving the Ideal IT Infrastructure Balance: Learning from Dropbox’s Move and Dell’s Insights

Finding the ideal balance is not an easy task, and there is no trivial way to achieve it: the ratios differ from company to company. But it’s worth taking the plunge because the results speak for themselves.

Migrating from on-premise or your own data centre infrastructure is by no means a one-way street. If the expectations of moving to the cloud are not met, there is a way to switch. More and more people are recognising this possibility, with one of the most famous cases taking place more than half a decade ago. Dropbox left Amazon in 2017, and by moving out of AWS it saved just over $75 million over the next two years.

A Dell study also shows convincing results. Ninety-six per cent of respondents reported more cost-effective operations after the switch, and 95 per cent said their organisation’s IT security post-switch was better than before. Also not to be underestimated is the fact that 85 per cent of survey respondents said that business agility also showed an improving trend.

Leveraging Expertise for a Smooth Transition

Nowadays, it is not only international corporations that have the opportunity to optimize their infrastructure. As Europe’s expert in cloud repatriation, vshosting is at the forefront of guiding organizations through this transition. By putting its years of accumulated experience at the service of companies, its customers can assess which parts of their infrastructure would benefit from repatriation and navigate the transition with confidence.