We hear questions like this frequently when talking with people who want to operate at the highest level in their business. So I sat down with Dan Thompson, Manager of Product Development at Claris Networks, to pick his brain.
“Traditionally, when the cloud first came out, a user had to have a developer on hand to write special programs that live in the cloud. Now, that is not necessary. The user can take any application today, run it through Citrix and it will work. It may not be the optimum performance but it will get the job done.
“When it comes to cloud computing there is no software that is totally off limits. It’s just a question of whether or not it will perform
well enough in the cloud. Certain applications like CAD are highly graphics-oriented and just don’t make sense to run from the cloud. For the majority of other business-critical applications, the cloud adds mobility, flexibility and redundancy that make it a truly attractive option for many.”
Does how well an application runs in the cloud depend on the application itself or on the infrastructure that supports the application?
“The answer is yes. To be honest, some applications are just not very well made and, to compensate, the bad software companies use bulky hardware to make it run faster and more efficiently. When put in the cloud, however, it becomes clear that the application is a lot more of a power hog than it should be. When this kind of software is put in the cloud, it runs on heavily utilized, highly efficient boxes. Therefore, when the horsepower isn’t available for the app to run the user is stuck with an app that runs poorly.
“A great way to think about this process metaphorically is to think of the cloud as a bank. If everyone were to make a run at the bank (the cloud) and demand all their money (horsepower) out at once, the bank would fail and not everyone would get what they needed. If everyone needs all of the horsepower at once because they have poorly made apps, the cloud will fail; but when the app is made properly there is not an issue at all. “
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