|
US: +1 617 418 4353 Skype: robinlab.com E-mail: 
|
Conservative Approach to Azure
Microsoft Windows Azure is a new platform.
Yes, it is very promising, yes, it was extensively beta tested, and yes, there is full power of Microsoft behind it.
However, conservative IT specialists became conservative for a reason. This is all about risk management. There are risks and benefits for switching to Azure, and there are risks for not switching.
Let's take a look at them. First, the benefits of migrating to Azure. Scalability means savings on hardware and bandwidth plan. Impact of reliability is hard to measure precisely, but it means better customer experience, creditability and impacts corporate image and customer loyalty. Savings on hardware, hosting, infrastructure, and administration can be calculated with high precision if system usage volume and pattern is known.
The main risk of switching to Azure Cloud computing platform is risk of switching to a new unproven platform. There could be hidden problems and all kind of surprises. Some of them are likely to be missed during the beta-testing phase. The other problem is – even though there are some experienced Windows Azure software developers, their experience is not that big, and not production-based. There is no real experience with Azure real-life product lifecycle, just because there is no real production usage yet.
We can expect this risk to decrease sharply, because interest to Azure Load Balancing is high and many companies are willing to take the risk of switching to Windows Azure immediately. Most of the problems are likely to be found fast, and fixed promptly.
The other risk is – when you re-implement your application to Azure, you can find out, that it does not fit. We cannot say why, but it potentially can happen.
Third risk is – switching to Windows Azure can take longer than expected and cost more. In the worst-case scenario, it can last forever or be abandoned.
What is the risk of not switching to Azure when your competitors do? Same risk as keep using steam power when your competitors have switched to gas and electricity. With higher operational efficiency, predictable IT spending, consumption-based pricing, and ultra-high reliability, they might just out compete you no matter how good you are.
What is the wise way of mitigating these risks? Do not switch your mission-critical system to Azure immediately; let others to face all the possible shortcomings. Start working on moving your system to Azure immediately; be prepared to switch to Azure when time will come. Make sure there are specialists that know both your system and Azure, either in your company, or if you outsource, maintain strategic partner relationship.
If you are true conservative IT professional, you are likely can see more obstacles, potential problems and risks. Talk to us, and let's see how we can overcome them.
Read More:
 © 2007-2010 RobinLab |
|
 Follow us on Twitter
|
 News RSS
|
 
|