Just like you, I too have faced many challenges in the course of my career. One of these was the Student-Resources dilemma, as I was learning, how could I afford to work with the resources I would need to really develop my skillsets. Although at the time, I solved this with make-shift servers from old computers, this meant I could only access these servers from home. Eventually, I would learn about Power BI and the joys of using cloud computing to manage, house, and unleash the power of my data.
What’s Wrong with On-Prem?
Before I can really get to the joys of a cloud-first approach I need to outline some of the down-sides of an on-prem environment. For some organizations, the on-premises servers seem like the perfect solution. These organizations usually value the security of being able to house these computers in their own building. These org’s usually also like the fact that they can purchase capital assets to house and manage their data. Even I was skeptical of the cloud at first. Why would I pay every single month for something I can do at home for FREE! What I discovered, however, was that there is a shadow side. One organization I worked with had an on-prem data center and data warehouse. The plus side for this org? Well, they were able to capitalize the purchase of the hardware and licenses for the OS and the server technology. This organization, however, needed to be mindful of their infrastructure utilization and limited access to this data. That meant, only specific individuals could have access to the data through complicated requesting processes. Making use cloud-based BI tools required complying with stringent and complicated policies around exporting data out of this environment so that the IT department could ensure consistent experience throughout the workday. This lead many (myself included) to find ways of bringing data to where it needed to be so that it could be accessed.
Introducing “the Cloud”!
Cloud computing is nothing new for most people. Using platforms that store your data in the cloud, share your photos, and connect you with others will be familiar with most at this point in time. The turning point for me? Being able to bring data to individuals in a fast and easy-to-use manner. Using my own resources, I couldn’t develop tools near as good as those available in the cloud. The infrastructure I run would not be able to handle the load under which data needs to be consumed these days. Not to mention, the long-term “win” of cloud-based financing. As I mentioned earlier there is a shadow side. I will confess that I circumvented certain guidelines to be able to give my stakeholders access to the data that they needed. One such guideline was a volume-based restriction, preventing myself and others from exporting too much data out of the on-prem data warehouse. One way I got around this was to periodically run a script that transformed the data into a flat file which was uploaded to a cloud-based storage solution. From there, my BI tool of choice could access and import this file for consumption. Suppose this organization was to have a cloud-first approach? Analysts like myself would be able to have virtually unlimited access to the data that they need, whenever they need it! This means executives that need the data to make decisions have the data that they need when they need it wherever they need it.
Although there is no “perfect solution” and everything has pro’s and con’s its important to make the right decision for you. You may have data already and need to store it in a place that’s more accessible, consider a cloud-first approach. Supposed you already have an on-prem environment, consider the ways in which you could unlock your data by bringing it into the cloud!