Takeaway: Thoran Rodrigues deconstructs the five biggest myths about cloud computing, driven by the cloud “hype” wave.
We are living through a wave of cloud computing hype. It seems like there is a new cloud featureor product being launched by big technology companies almost every day - and sometimes concurrently - and the cloud is at the center of all the important tech industry discussions today, from job creation and destruction to the growth and decline of companies. This hype generates a number of false expectations and concerns that may lead companies into making bad decisions about the technology.
The simple possibility of helping people avoid bad decisions would be reason enough to look into these “myths” that surround the cloud, but other advantages may also come from this exploration: a better understanding of fundamental concepts that can help in the dialogue between vendors, early adopters and those who are still holding back.
The Myth of the Green Cloud
For a few years before the 2008 crisis hit the world’s economy, being green was even more fashionable for tech companies than being in the cloud is today. Green IT movements were in full force, and some cloud vendors have been once again raising this banner claiming that moving to the cloud is the greenest decision a company can make. The logic behind this myth is that cloud data centers can optimize the use of computing resources, making them more efficient than any privately-owned data center around.
This, however, is only partly true. What most companies forget is to look for the source of that energy for their data centers. If you operate your own servers in a country where most energy comes from renewable sources (such as Brazil, with a large percentage of hydroelectric power), and you move them to a cloud based in a country whose energy matrix is dominated by thermoelectric power (coal and oil), the net effect may be an increase in your company’s carbon footprint. Any cloud is only as green as its power sources.
