How to choose a virtual machine provider?
Selecting a virtual machine and cloud provider doesn’t have to be challenging, as long as you know what to look for. The virtual machine needs to fit your workload needs and business budget, of course, but other factors play key roles between you and your virtualization environment. Below are ten things to consider when selecting a virtual machine service provider.
1. Reliable support
Ensure there’s 24/7 customer support by phone, email and chat or walk away. You want a real person on the other end of the line to help you through critical IT situations. It’s also important to note which cloud providers offer additional services for more hands-on backing.
2. Managed options
Does the cloud provider offer both unmanaged and managed solutions?
If you don’t know virtualization technology in and out, consider a provider that’ll be responsible for setup, maintenance and ongoing performance monitoring.
3. Software integration
Will your virtual machine environment play well with others?
Operating systems, third party software, open source technology and applications help you deliver more solutions across your business. You’ll want a virtual machine provider with both support for and strong partnerships with the industry’s most-used software suppliers. Note: Stay away from vendor lock-ins.
4. High-quality network and infrastructure
How up-to-date is the infrastructure your new virtual machine will run on?
This includes dependable bare metal servers, modern data centers, and the network backbone. A cloud provider should be able to deliver its part of the deal with state-of-the-art hardware and high-speed networking technology.
5. Location
The closer the data is to your users, the less hassles you’ll run into with latency, security, and timely service delivery. A good global network of scattered data centers and POP locations is central to having data where and when you need it most.
6. Backup and recovery
What plan does your cloud provider have in place for keeping your virtual machines up and running in the face of unexpected events?
Do they also provide add-on backup and redundancy options for your virtualized environment?
Continuous operation is something you should take seriously.
7. Scalability ease
How fast and easy will it be for you to spin up, spin down, reserve, pause, and update your virtual machine?
The word you want to hear most when it comes to virtual machine scalability is “on-demand.”
8. Varied CPU configurations
The more configurations, the better. Not every virtual machine configuration fits every workload during every season of usage. Be sure to look for a virtual machine provider that delivers varied configuration packages for both single and multi-tenant requirements.
9. Security layers
Ask your provider about them, then ask about them again. Your business data is currency in the highest form, especially when dealing with sensitive client information. Private network lines, federal data center options, built-in encryption features, and meeting regulatory compliance standards are essential to protecting your most valuable asset.
10. Seamless migration support
Your IT priorities will always evolve. This we all know. Any virtual machine provider should be able to help you lift and shift between hybrid, on-premise and off-prem environments. Look for full data ingest, over-the-network and application-led migration options.