21st December 2011
As 2012 approaches, is the traditional offer of traditional online storage dead, or just evolving into something more substantial? We asked cloud storage expert, Eric Greenwood, to explain the pitfalls associated with storage in the cloud, and how the “Internet of Things” is turning unstructured data into a potential goldmine for the storage providers.
Truth and risks of cloud-based online storage
Eric Greenwood, Online Storage.org
As a simplified example, imagine cloud-based storage as your entrepreneurial neighbour with a spare bedroom and a burning desire for the newest iPhone. He needs money, and after making room for the unexpected visit from your mother-in-law this Christmas, you need a place to store the displaced contents of your office. For a nominal fee, he’ll store your stuff, and even make a key so you can come anytime and grab what you need. It sounds too good to be true.
Then you realise that you have no idea whether or not your neighbour regularly locks his door, and his house is such a mess that it’s difficult to access what you need. When it comes to online storage in the cloud, issues of security and data organisation will need to be accurately assessed by cloud service providers (CSPs) in the next year, before the concept can achieve the widespread organisational acceptance that it deserves.
It’s true that the emergence of online storage as a service represents a tantalisingly convenient solution to the windfall of data that more and more small and medium businesses (SMBs) and consumers are finding themselves buried under. As information becomes digitalised, it becomes more easily created and retained; as such, the rate of data production has outstripped efficient local data storage capacity for small businesses and retentive consumers.
The basic concept of storing this information in the cloud as a service has been explored with some success by companies such as Dropbox. The idea is to allow small businesses a few of the benefits of a distributed IT environment without the engineering cost or complexity associated with an in-house setup and maintenance.
As previously mentioned, though, there still remain a few key developments that need to take place before online storage in the cloud becomes firmly rooted as a viable solution for small businesses.
Security
A continually important issue to tackle is security—with one important caveat. As sure as life itself, online security is an evolutionary arms race between prey and predator. There is no doubt that the current gaps in security need to be fixed, and in such a way that those fixes are made obvious to customers of cloud-based storage.
Ultimately, however, those same customers should always realise that to utilise a third-party online storage provider is to release a certain amount of control over potentially sensitive information. Understanding this, SMBs will need to focus more on the organisational impact of moving specific segments of their data to the cloud, specifically regarding which areas can be effectively transitioned within an acceptable tolerance of risk.
Thus, issues of security will be alleviated less by the continual ebb and flow of protection and penetration, than by an increased understanding from business owners about how the cloud can be most effectively leveraged for their particular small business solution.
Data organisation
As part of society’s growing compulsion to record the daily minutiae of our lives (fueled in no small part by online social networks, increased availability of recording devices, and larger local storage for average consumers), we have accumulated a massive amount of data, more and more of which is turning out to be unstructured.
Unstructured data is information that isn’t describable using columns and rows, or the same relational database models that have been effective in the past; it can be anything from pictures, documents, presentations, or even web pages.
It is difficult to argue that this information isn’t vitally important to businesses today, or that it isn’t being generated in copious amounts by small businesses and consumers alike. What remains to be seen, however, is whether providers of cloud-based online storage will be able to effectively store and retrieve this unwieldy data for its customers.
The impetus for understanding unstructured data in meaningful ways should not be entirely placed on online storage providers, but there is no doubt that the ones who can accommodate this functionality the best will have a major leg-up on the competition.
Trifecta
According to technology analyst Gartner, of the top 10 strategic technologies to look for in 2012, they note three things that, in conjunction, stand out as important to the future cloud-based storage as a service.
Specifically, these are the development of the “Internet of Things”, an increased emphasis on contextually-aware computing and social user experience, and cloud computing as a disruptive force. The “Internet of Things” highlights how the growing trend of adding internet-connected sensors to physical items will expand the range of information available; contextually-aware computing uses information about an end-user to learn preferences and anticipate needs with customised content.
Both of these developments will require a broader knowledge of unstructured data in order to be fully utilised.
Putting it all together
When the dust from cloud computing settles, those CSPs who have had the foresight to accommodate the increasingly valuable information from unstructured data as part of their service will find themselves ahead of the pack, while those who are banking on perfecting the current database management systems might find themselves struggling to catch up.
Eric Greenwood is a seasoned writer in technology, taking a particular interest in online storage. You can find more of his articles located at OnlineStorage.org.
Related stories: Will 2012 signal the demise of cloud storage?
Tags: cloud storage | software as a service
