It is no secret that the reliability and security of critical applications are more crucial than ever. This is because of the increased dependency on technology due to global and remote operations. Increased security threats are also a reason for the need for reliability and security. As a business owner, downtime that can lead to operational and financial losses is the last thing you would wish for.
Companies like Cloud400, which provides IBM i Cloud hosting, have carved a niche in hosting such critical applications using dedicated solutions. Some general providers might appear cost-effective. This detailed guide covers the top reasons for choosing experts. But first, why go for the dedicated hosting solution?
Why Host Your Business-Critical Applications Using a Dedicated Solution
Your organizations have the option of choosing cloud or virtual private server hosting. Other options are managed hosting and colocation. Each of these options comes with its fair share of pros and cons. For arguably the best solution, you should host using dedicated solutions like IBM i cloud for the following reasons:
Advanced Security
The dedicated hosting solution provides advanced security compared to the other solutions. This is because your hosting environment is isolated from other users, a stark difference from shared hosting. The isolation reduces the risk of security breaches coming from the other users you will be sharing the resources with. These dedicated hosting solutions offer advanced data encryption options.
Optimized performance
The dedicated hosting solution is fully customizable and can offer infrastructure tailored to meet your specific requirements for the hosted application. You will also enjoy the entire server as a single tenant. This means the bandwidth, CPU, and storage are available for your application to run. The solutions can also be fine-tuned by experts for maximum efficiency. With this feature, your business is less likely to suffer from downtime.
Reduced IT complexity
The dedicated solution provides a unified environment where all business-critical applications are managed centrally. This reduces the need to manage multiple systems that are prone to errors. Additionally, the hosting environment of the dedicated solutions includes the following as inbuilt:
- System administration
- Security management
- Application development
All these are designed to run seamlessly together. This eliminates the need for separate tools and systems that can complicate your IT infrastructure. Furthermore, dedicated hosting solutions allow your business to scale with much ease as they don’t require a physical server to maintain.
Enhanced disaster recovery
Disaster can strike at any time. Thankfully, the dedicated hosting solutions are built with this in mind. They are designed to be readily available. In their hosting environment, data and applications are hosted on dedicated resources that come with redundancy layers.
In the event of system failure, the system automatically switches to backup resources. The switch happens without your business operations being disrupted.
Reasons to Choose a Specialized Provider
As mentioned, the internet is awash with providers that can host business-critical applications on dedicated servers. Although choosing them might seem at first, it can cost your business in the long run. Choose the experts to benefit in the ways detailed in the previous section. Here are the reasons they are most suitable.
Deep technical expertise
Providers who specialize in dedicated hosting solutions possess a deep understanding of the platforms. This is important for creating an optimized hosting environment for the applications crucial to your business.
With a specialized provider, your applications will be hosted in an environment finely tuned for the systems. This is because the experts know how to configure and manage them to maximize performance. These providers are also well-positioned to help your business adapt to technological advancements.
Tailored solutions know-how
These experts also know how to tailor solutions to meet your business’s specific needs, optimizing performance and efficiency. Their know-how in providing tailored solutions is also essential when scaling on demand. They can help you expand your hosting environment in response to your evolving needs without tampering with other configurations in the system. Thanks to this know-how, they will have a specific recovery solution should a disaster strike.
Proactive monitoring and support
Due to the critical nature of the hosted applications, continuous observation and performance analysis is important. The specialists do so in real time, ensuring they detect and address any potential problem before it escalates. This significantly reduces downtime and optimizes the performance of the hosted applications.
Suppose your business must adhere to strict regulatory requirements. In that case, this proactive monitoring is crucial as it provides a detailed audit trail. This trial can demonstrate compliance with the required standards. Proactive monitoring also helps understand your business’s current and future needs, ensuring you aren’t caught off guard.
Advanced Security configuration
These experts of platforms like IBM I systems excel in advanced security configuration. This is because of their extensive experience with industry-specific requirements. They are updated on the latest security trends. Thanks to this, they can implement the following critical security configuration to protect your business-critical applications:
- Role-Based Access Control: They can configure the RBAC to ensure that all users in your organization only have access to the data and resources necessary for their roles.
- Data encryption: These experts implement robust encryption algorithms to secure the data during transmission over networks or in the database.
- Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems: They also deploy IDPS to monitor your network traffic for suspicious activities. This configuration allows for the detection and blocking of potential threats before they can harm your operations.
- Multi-Factor Authentication: To further prevent access, these experts implement multi-factor authentication. This security measure will require users to provide multiple verification factors to access the system.
- Security Information and Event Management: They also configure and use these tools to collect and analyze security event data from various sources, allowing for real-time threat detection and response.
Their ability to configure and implement these configurations creates a robust security framework that protects your business-critical applications. This ensures that your business is secured from all kinds of threats.
Cost efficiency
Hiring experts like Cloud400, which specializes in IBM i Cloud hosting, is also cost-efficient despite initially looking like a significant investment. They will prevent costly downtime and optimize resource allocation for your hosted applications. Engaging them also reduces security risks and associated costs.
Gone are the days when your business needed servers to host applications. Some companies provide dedicated hosting solutions but only specialize in these services. Use the information and choose them for the betterment of your business.
