HOW AS-A-SERVICE WORKS
So how does the on-prem cloud services model work? It starts with how IT infrastructure
is procured and yet goes much further to streamline how services and applications
are delivered and managed — by IT and for end users.
Let's start with the infrastructure story. After assessing immediate and projected
capacity needs, an equipment provider supplies and installs the gear — including a buffer or
reserve capacity — in your on-premises data center, co-location facility, or edge location.
There are no upfront capital investments; instead you start using the resources and pay
for what is actually used. Usage is determined based on metering technology, with units
of measure aligned to the hardware and/or software being consumed.
In traditional environments, it's difficult to predict how much infrastructure will be needed in
the future. And, with lengthy procurement cycles for capacity, it's safer to err on the side of
having too much rather than not enough. For example, most organizations over-provision
for storage capacity, according to Futurum Research:
With improved forecasting and use of IT resources, the as-a-service model makes a
significant difference.
"The advantage of a public cloud model versus an on-prem data center is the ability to
scale on demand," said James from NetHealth. "In a traditional data center, you're buying
for a high water mark that in some cases, may never occur."
Even when that capacity target is met, there isn't elasticity in on-premises or private
clouds to scale back down. For example, considerable advance capacity procurement
Over-invest in storage solutions Have run out of
capacity or experienced
high utilization rates
that impact performance,
including downtime
Sources: Futurum Research
