The problem with explaining the difference between hybrid cloud and multi-cloud is that the two terms are often used interchangeably. Despite all the similarities, there are still many differences:
In a multi-cloud environment, companies use a variety of public cloud services, mainly from cloud providers. AWS can host a front-end application for an organization, while Microsoft Azure can host the Exchange server. Since not all cloud providers are equal, the company is pursuing a multi-cloud strategy to provide first-class IT services not to be restricted by a single cloud provider or to use cloud arbitrage and select specific service providers based on particular circumstances. The supplier who offers the lowest price at this time.
Hybrid cloud computing differs from multi-cloud computing in one key aspect: private cloud infrastructure, such as a company’s data center, and one or more public cloud services that usually work together to achieve business goals.
Therefore, the two main differences are:
· Hybrid clouds always include a private cloud and are usually managed as one entity.
· Multiple clouds always include multiple public cloud services, which usually perform different functions, and multiple clouds do not have to include a private cloud. Cloud components, but perhaps, in this case, they can be either multi-cloud or hybrid.
Factors while choosing Cloud Strategy
Multi-cloud and cloud-first:
Cloud-first needs a holistic approach that includes all employees, not just IT. It involves an integrated approach to business technology development to define goals and achieve them. Cloud-first is not an option for all applications. Therefore, enterprises should not abandon their on-premises workloads and move them to the cloud immediately. Until they have been completely refactored, some enterprise applications won’t migrate to the public cloud.
Continuous placement assessment:
Cloud provider offerings change constantly, so the best provider today for a particular workload may not be the best provider tomorrow. Many organizations have adopted cloud services because of the flexibility offered by technology vendors. Workloads need to be evaluated regularly to determine if they can be moved to a different cloud provider or if they should be moved into a private cloud to benefit from attractive vendor pricing.
Plan for the future:
Cloud migration is not an event that can be done just once. Learning the differences between providers and creating process improvement plans based upon cloud provider capabilities are all tasks that need to be continuously iterated as cloud provider infrastructure, on-premises resources, and applications change. Ideal for a multi-year migration effort and an annual re-assessment.
Management and governance:
Multi-cloud governance is more complex than cloud governance. Many organizations don’t understand the full footprint of their IT departments within the cloud. Business units can create their services using a credit card. Enterprises can also track cloud usage and manage their hybrid IT environment.
Cloud holistically, including SaaS:
Applications hosted on-premises, on IaaS and PaaS platforms may become obsolete or replace cheaper SaaS options. Every enterprise should evaluate their cloud computing needs to decide how to optimize their cloud computing position, whether a workload should go elsewhere, or not to refactor legacy applications to take advantage of cloud-native, more agile applications that are better suited for today’s cloud environments.
Can a hybrid cloud be multi-cloud as well?
Yes, that’s the simple answer. Multi-cloud is a hybrid cloud that includes more than one public cloud service and private cloud resources. A hybrid cloud is a mix of private and public clouds. It’s used to coordinate an IT solution from both.
Hybrid clouds are usually built on common virtualization layers, such as VMware or vSphere Cloud. This simplifies the hybrid cloud that includes VMware on AWS and VMware in the company workload transfer and tool sharing across public and private cloud platforms.
Multi-cloud refers to multiple cloud services offered by one or more providers. For example, AWS can be used for application workloads, while Microsoft Azure can be used for enterprise databases. Multi-cloud is not always a hybrid cloud. It refers to more than one private cloud provider service.
Due to geographic reasons, the company pursues a multi-cloud strategy to avoid “putting all eggs in one basket” due to geographic reasons. Or regulatory requirements to ensure business continuity or take advantage of specific characteristics of specific suppliers.