Future Proof by Building in the Cloud

As more companies adopt it, cloud computing is becoming the business standard of the future. The advantages are clear: easy access to all your data. Anytime, anyplace, anywhere. Companies no longer have to maintain a complete infrastructure of servers, firewalls and databases. This means a major reduction in cost, risk and resources.

Platform as a Service

There are a number of companies that offer Platform as a Service: development platforms where the development tools itself are hosted in the cloud and can be accessed through a browser. Developers don’t have to build the applications locally and deploy it later to a cloud hosting provider. With PaaS, your software is automatically integrated in the cloud.

Companies like Amazon, IBM, Microsoft and Google offer PAAS solutions. In Amerika the Google Cloud Platform is one of the most popular. It is used by a number of great companies such as Coca-Cola, HTC and Sony Music.

Google Cloud Platform: Secure and Safe

In some European countries, Google still meets suspicion because it’s reputation when it comes to privacy and security related issues, but the company has done a lot of investments to change this perception.

Only recently it was announced that the Google Cloud Platform has been certified for ISO 27017 for cloud security and ISO 27018 for cloud privacy.

• ISO 27017 proves that Google’s virtual networks are as secure as its physical networks, that the data is safely stored and is inaccessible to other customers on the same platform.
• ISO 27018 certifies that Google doesn’t use the data of its customers for advertising and that the users own their own data. They can delete and export their data. Google is transparent about where the data is stored. Companies that are operating in Europe can be sure their data is stored in compliance with European law.

ISO standards and European laws may not be very sexy, but Google’s willingness to comply with them proves their determination to gain more confidence.

What makes Google Cloud Platform stand out?

It goes without saying that Google has the right cards when it comes to cloud solutions. GCP uses the same infrastructure as Google Search, Google maps or Gmail. Proven technology and unique in its scale and reliability. One of the well-known customers of GCP is Spotify. Not surprisingly, if you think about the amounts of data that are continuously streamed over the network. Performance is key for the type of service that Spotify delivers and it sure performs!

But GCP also offers solutions for smaller companies. On top of the Google Cloud Platform, you can use the App Engine to build, test, and deploy your own applications. The platform comes with a lot of built-in services and APIs to use.

The App Engine supports four different programming languages: Java, Python, PHP, and Go. This enables developers to build custom apps in the language they prefer. Other top features include:

Useability

• Any developer can easily set up an environment. Deployments to the Cloud Platform are straight through and require little effort. This is ideal for Agile development.
• The platform offers a lot of options to schedule tasks based on triggering events, regular intervals, or specified time.
• Developers are given a great user interface with easy access to information on load, performance and error handling.
• Google offers great customer support through various resources and online libraries. If required, you can also choose to pay some extra and get premium live support.

Vendor lock-in

• Our Google App Engine applications can be deployed in a container, called Docker, and be installed on Amazon, Azure or even your private cloud.

Low costs

• Developing new apps on the Google App Engine Platform is a bargain. Because of the advanced options to automate all test and deployment activities, only a few resources are needed for development and maintenance.
• The use of Google App Engine is reasonably priced compared with others. Google not only aims at large companies, but also offers solutions for smaller ones. You can determine yourself what features you want to use and pay for.

Ready for the future

Another major selling point of GCP is scalability. Google offers automatic load balancing and scaling in response to the amount of traffic on your site. Once your app is up and running, you never have to worry again about your infrastructure or server management. It will be in perfect shape.

There is even more to come. One of the main themes at the GCP Next 2016 conference was machine learning and big data tools. Advanced technology that might not appeal to all companies yet, but certainly holds promise for the future.

Where to start?

As easy as it may seem from an IT perspective, a lot of companies are still overwhelmed by all the information they get on the cloud. Innovation usually comes along with some disruption. But how can you tell what the actual risks are? What will be the impact on the processes and people within your company? How will your customers feel about it? How can you guarantee the continuity of your business when huge changes are made?

In an ever changing world as complex as ours there are no well-paved roads to take. IT knowledge and experience are important keys to success. But also agility, creativity and working together to find the best solution for your specific needs at this moment.

A blind jump into the cloud is not always possible and hardly ever wise. It is always a good idea to get some expert help when dealing with these one-time changes and to explore different scenarios.

Xinox-Apps

If you’d like to know more about our services or the opportunities GCP offers, please get in touch with us at.

Wendel de Witte
Senior Cloud Architect at Xinox Apps
wendel.de.witte@xinox-apps.com