Let’s face it – an abundance of both common and complex infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) problems occur as a direct result of broadly associated, interwoven, highly-crafted misconceptions. Similar to playing telephone, by the time the “truth” reaches your end of the line, it’s completely mixed up. It’s usually more complicating explaining why these misconceptions surface than it is to untangle the mess they’ve created in the first place. Understanding these fallacies is the first step to perceiving any real problems at hand and increasing efficiency and satisfaction all-around. Let’s take a look at three of the largest IaaS misconceptions then, shall we?

1.)    Cloud is Too Complex

This may be the biggest misconception of them all, according to this recent InformationWeek article. The cloud is neither a magical contraption nor a coincidence with minimal chance of working. “It’s just a great industrial approach to computing,” InformationWeek explains. With a public IaaS cloud offering, for example, customers can enjoy the same secure, industrial-grade platform – whether they’re a distributed enterprise or a three-person company. Not only is the cloud secure, but it’s even easier to navigate and operate within. Since a public cloud IaaS is considered a standard, off-the-shelf computing platform, it limits the options at the computer infrastructure level and helps create a better peace of mind.

2.)    Cloud is Not Secure

Based on the above, you should be getting the picture that the cloud is both very secure and easy to work within. Some clouds, however, are not as secure as others, and this is where you need to do some work differentiating between different cloud offerings. Different types of cloud services better accommodate different types of businesses according to various determining factors (ie. size, objective, and client-base).  If you run a business which is responsible for severe or confidential information – such as patient records – then you’re best off working within the private cloud. Think of the public cloud as choosing off the menu and the private cloud as owning your own kitchen and being able to whip up whatever you need for the day (or scenario). Depending on your business goals and hindsight, you can choose accordingly. Companies often select the wrong types of cloud service – cue cloud security misconception.

InformationWeek also notes this, saying that “public clouds have multiple tenants off the Internet” and that “just as someone might not be able to get to his flat because the neighbor has too many visitors clogging up the common hallway, a denial of service attack affecting another customer could slow things down for a cloud-based business.”

“Such problems can be avoided by selecting the right cloud provider,” the article similarly advises. “Look for a vendor with the ability to deal with denial of service attacks so they no longer have an impact.” Additionally, they add that a strong and diverse backbone network, the ability to identify attacks, and proper mitigation tools are all a must.

3.)    Everyone is Knowledgeable about What the Cloud can Do

If we were all on the same page about what the cloud could do, then we wouldn’t have found ourselves here, now would we? Clearly this is a false statement, but even if we did think we knew anything and everything there was to know about the cloud, it’s still good to brush up on your knowledge. It’s also not so much about what the cloud does as much as meeting our expectations of what it can do for us.

It’s imperative to understand that every business is different, and therefore will respond to the cloud differently. It’s like fearing eating a certain food because someone told you that they became violently ill from eating it, only to find that it was delicious.

“To ensure success, make sure everyone has the right expectations about the type of cloud computing being considered, whether it is IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS (News - Alert),” InformationWeek explains. “It’s important to understand the capabilities and the limitations of the specific cloud computing service you might buy.”

In light of this, keep your eyes open for a cloud provider with a free trial. This will serve as a very realistic evaluation of the services that are available and being offered, as well as show you what you can easily accomplish using that specific service.

Hopefully this will clear the fog on some common and easily-passable IaaS and cloud misconceptions. For a good running start, click here to explore some reliable and powerful cloud services and solutions.

Want to learn more about the latest in communications and technology? Then be sure to attend ITEXPO West 2012, taking place Oct. 2-5, in Austin, TX. ITEXPO (News - Alert) offers an educational program to help corporate decision makers select the right IP-based voice, video, fax and unified communications solutions to improve their operations. It's also where service providers learn how to profitably roll out the services their subscribers are clamoring for – and where resellers can learn about new growth opportunities. For more information on registering for ITEXPO click here.

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