The cloud washing game: Key functions of a private storage cloud

Source: SearchCloudStorage.com

Author: Sonia R. Lelii

Ubiquitous use of the term cloud storage has brought more confusion than enlightenment to the industry, leaving data storage administrators struggling to avoid cloud washing and trying to figure out what constitutes a real cloud. When it comes to private storage clouds, it's often unclear where the cloud begins and traditional centralized network storage ends, muddling the picture even more.

If you aren't sure of what a true storage cloud is, you're not alone. Even organizations that have deployed one may not know the definition of a true cloud.

"Some customers either love or hate the word 'cloud,'" said James Sangster, senior director of solutions marketing at NetApp Inc. "Some will say â€˜I don't have a cloud,' but by the strictest definition, they do have a cloud. They just don't call it a cloud. Others say they have a cloud, but at a closer look it's just a bunch of centralized storage. It's what we've had for decades."

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