In general, the processes and technologies used to deliver on-premises IT operations do not consistently translate to the unique needs of the cloud. However, with cloud computing eclipsing modern technology, a solid cloud management practice has become crucial for business success and productivity. CloudOps, or Cloud Operations, is the practice of automating software delivery, application management, and server management directly from the cloud.

CloudOps transforms traditional IT operational policies and methodologies with the scalability, elasticity, and accelerated nature of cloud computing. Furthermore, CloudOps adopts a more agile approach to operations, utilizing processes to drive automation and orchestration within the flexibility of cloud computing.

How does CloudOps work?

CloudOps uses ITOps (IT Operations) and DevOps principles applied to a cloud-based architecture to improve and accelerate business processes. The primary objective of CloudOps is to eliminate downtime for cloud computing and enforce ongoing operations. CloudOps is also an extension of DevOps – using cloud computing tools instead of on-site network servers and transitioning continuous operations (enabled by DevOps) into the cloud.

CloudOps can help encourage and utilize more cloud solutions within an organization. Companies that regularly and effectively use cloud services are arguably more innovative and can produce faster time-to-market service and solutions for their consumers—additionally, companies who properly leverage CloudOps can attain better management and financial budgeting of their cloud services.

By incorporating CloudOps into your company structure, you’ll be uniting the functions of the building, operating, monitoring, and managing web application delivery together in the cloud.

Benefits of CloudOps include:

Cost-effectiveness – Cloud services generally follow pay-as-you-go pricing plans, so you’ll only be paying for as much (or as little) as you use. Companies migrating to the cloud can eliminate the real-estate, utility, and upgrading costs of maintaining a physical data center infrastructure. CloudOps also aligns with FinOps, which is the practice of controlling and managing financial costs for the cloud.
Scalability – Short- and long-term growth trajectories can be met with instant capacity increases. Additionally, virtual or physical add-ons of equipment or storage can be supplemented in real time with a single push of a button.
Automation – Through the Cloud, routine provisioning tasks, such as monitoring and reporting, can be streamlined through accelerated automation.
Continuous operations – Cloud-based infrastructure allows for seamless software upgrades and maintenance conduct without the hindrance of service disruption or stoppage.
Enhanced security – Cloud service providers ideally incorporate the most advanced cybersecurity solutions and provide 24/7 threat monitoring to prevent cybercrime and infiltration.

How to choose the right solution to enable CloudOps

Some key indicators that a company should look for in a CloudOps solution include the following:

Rule-based operational governance using automation and orchestration
Pre-configured (out-of-the-box) and customized automation templates
Multi-cloud capabilities for resource provisioning
Self-service catalogs
Operational anomaly detection and trend analysis
The ability to integrate with ITSM systems for incident management and CMDB for asset inventory
Altogether, these indicators should orbit a secure platform with robust identity processes (AD/LDAP integration, role-based access control).

Conclusion

For many organizations, CloudOps is rapidly replacing the presence of physical network operations centers (NOC) – especially as more IT operations are transitioning from the material to the cloud. The reason is simple: A robust CloudOps environment is more agile, allows for more usage of cloud solutions, and produces faster service and solutions for customers. By leveraging CloudOps, companies can manage and budget their cloud services more effectively. Overall, CloudOps creates a cultural unity of operations, monitoring, managing, and building web application delivery – all in the cloud.

Virtusa vGovern is an agnostic, poly-cloud management platform that provides companies with unified visibility across FinOps, SecOps, CloudOps, and AIOps from a single pane of glass. With features like rule-based automation and orchestration, vGovern manages customers’ cloud environments in an agile and continuous fashion and enables customers to manage their cloud resources across multiple cloud vendors.

Contact us to learn more about how vGovern can elevate your CloudOps practice.

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