Applications are the engines that keep your business running. They control business processes and help you interact with clients and customers. Developing applications empowers your company to innovate and compete. Analytics applications enable you to gain insights that drive key business decisions. For many organizations, IBM Power Systems applications provide additional advantages with their open source collaboration and cognitive analytics abilities.
Managing and monitoring applications on-premises can be a lot to handle. Cloud hosting is becoming an attractive alternative for applications as confidence in the cloud increases. The RightScale 2017 State of the Cloud Report found that only 25% of respondents felt resources, expertise, or security were still major challenges to cloud adoption. Companies using IBM Power Systems, such as IBM i, should consider moving their applications to the cloud so they can get more from their applications for less.
MEETING EXPECTATIONS
Companies have a laundry list of expectations when running IBM i applications. They must scale to meet changing workloads. They want a faster time to market to keep their competitive edge. They need a high-performance environment for advanced applications. And, most importantly, all these features need to come at an affordable price.
Hosting IBM i applications in the cloud cuts the cost of the servers needed to run the applications. Capital expenses shift to operating expenses because the cloud provider takes care of the infrastructure. With infrastructure as a service (IaaS), your provider takes care of hardware and software upgrades and licensing. You can scale up and down incrementally as your needs change. Everything can be paid for with a predictable monthly fee.
Hosting enables you to stay up to date with the latest POWER server technologies and IBM i version levels. As IBM boosts the performance levels of its POWER servers and adds features to its applications, your company keeps pace.
RECEIVING IBM SYSTEMS SUPPORT
With cloud hosting, companies move the burden of ownership and management of infrastructure to the cloud provider while retaining administrative control. Support from a cloud provider is key as you take on newer IT staff members who are less familiar with IBM i. IBM Systems Magazine reported that 49% of companies cited a lack of expertise in IBM i and RPG coding. With the right hosting provider, you gain the IBM i expertise needed to overcome an increasing skills gap.
KEEPING YOUR APPLICATIONS SAFE AND RELIABLE
Your physical location is likely vulnerable to equipment failure, cyberattacks, and natural disasters. In the face of these risks, the cloud can offer higher levels of availability and security for your IBM i applications. Data and applications can be replicated to a geographically-separate cloud infrastructure with 24/7 monitoring.
A provider with a strong network will ensure that you achieve low levels of latency as information moves from the primary data center to the cloud. Low latency guarantees fast recovery time and accomplishment of recovery point objectives. A strong network will also ensure failover during an outage.
CHOOSING THE RIGHT CLOUD PROVIDER FOR IBM SYSTEMS
Many companies provide cloud, but few are equipped to offer IaaS for IBM Power Systems. IBM Power Systems require specific expertise and an understanding of how to use the licensing model to scale.
FirstLight offers IBM Power Systems knowledge and experience combined with the high-performance network your business needs to make the cloud work for your mission-critical applications. We focus on IaaS, offering several N+2 power and cooling facilities that meet Tier I or Tier II standards for availability. Our extensive fiber optic network provides the high speeds and reliability needed to keep your main office connected to the cloud.
Want more details about what cloud can do for your IBM Power Systems applications? Learn specific use cases shared during our recent webinar, Leveraging the Cloud for Your Power/AIX/iSeries Applications.
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