Part 3 - How Data Moves - TheCloudGuy Series on Transforming your Company into Cloud and SaaS

In Part 2 I focused on which products are good to Cloudify and which are not. ?Part of this consideration is understanding the network, or rather collection of networks, the Internet, which make this possible. So….

What happens to my packets on the way to and from the cloud??

• Connectivity is so assumed sometimes; one doesn’t stop to?think for a minute about how that works. So before?I jump into implementing cloud and the challenges?I’ll provide a brief overview here. Some?definitions
• Device - this is the physical interface to access some cloud service - typically a laptop, tablet, phone, connected watch, doorbell, thermostat, or camera (and much more…)
• Local Access Network (LAN) - my in house/in-enterprise network - usually ethernet or Wifi
• Access Network / Wide Area Network (WAN)- this connects our house/enterprise to the internet but is not the internet in itself. Mainly there are:
• Fixed line networks that provide DSL/Fiber/Cable like AT&T, Verizon or Comcast
• Mobile networks that connect?via 4G (LTE) and 5G - like AT&T Mobile, T-Mobile
• Satellite networks - e.g. DirectTV, Thompson
• ?The Internet - this is collection of close to 100,000 networks (this is not a typo) connected to each other and allowing traffic to flow across them.?https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autonomous_system_(Internet). Typically, a packet of data will traverse 3-5 networks and 10-20 hops in totality before reaching its destination.
• Data Center - this is where the Cloud Server performing the service is located. Typically, enormous buildings with thousands of servers
• Networking Devices - these are spread all over the internet and access networks and data centers providing routing of packets, load balancing, security and more
• Content Delivery Networks (CDN) - these are virtual networks consisting of up to hundreds of thousands of servers spread in access networks and replication content and applications for faster cloud experiences

This is a very simplified and partial view of cloud componentry. But every time you press a button on your favorite app remember your packet goes from your device to local network, access network, the 10-20 internet hops, to the data centers, through all the networking devices to the Cloud server. And back in the reverse path. Each one of these segments is a potential failure point hence appreciate how well the cloud works despite this enormity!

In the next post we’ll look at Cloud-First vs. non Cloud-first companies and compare the opportunities and challenges for each in growing their cloud presence

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*** As usual, feel free to contact me at [email protected] ?if you’re looking to engage with me on a consulting/advisory basis as an operating partner, fractional CXO and work on cloudification, transformation, turnaround, growth, product strategy, VC & PE advisory, or start-up mentoring, more here ***