Bytes Blog: Simple, Optimised, Secure: Improving Distributed Cloud Efficiency with F5
Tuesday 27th February 2024
Are you struggling to balance the flexibility and scalability of the cloud with complex multi-cloud infrastructures? If so, you’re not alone. While cloud-first strategies might make you think everything should be in Public Cloud, the reality is that it’s most frequently used for business continuity and disaster recovery. Currently only 15% of the average organisation’s apps are hosted in Public Cloud.1
Research also finds that fewer than half of organisations have any apps deployed in the cloud, and overall, 37% of app portfolios are hosted in traditional, on-premises data centres.2 This reluctance to deploy apps—especially critical ones—to the cloud often stems from concerns for control over data, security, and costs.
Complexity is another common barrier. At Bytes, our teams have routinely witnessed organisations use modern technologies in traditional ways, creating a cloud infrastructure that is more complicated than it needs to be.
Complexity Creates Concern
Multi-cloud’s fragmented strategies, plans, technologies, and implementations make efficient operations difficult. Not only are apps deployed in multiple environments, but so are support technologies such as security and management tools. Organisations identified their top multi-cloud challenges as:3
- Too many tools and APIs (39%)
- Inconsistent security policies (36%)
- Optimising app performance (36%)
Proprietary cloud tools and security inconsistency combine to create a larger problem, as tool sprawl often leads to management headaches and can increase risk. Separate toolsets for cloud and on-premises environments add yet another layer of complexity. This fragmentation isn't merely a technical hurdle; it's also a strategic, operational, and resource quagmire, driving up costs and complicating the path to otherwise tangible business outcomes.
A unified strategy is the solution, but many organisations are unsure of how to get there. In the meantime, they’re left to struggle with operational inefficiencies, spiralling expenses, and wasted budgets.
Unify to Successfully Transform
Connecting the various parts and pieces of a modern, distributed IT environment, including networks, clouds, and applications, is a necessity. But instead of a hastily constructed, ad hoc solution, consider a unified platform instead. With the proper strategy created with a trusted partner, your infrastructure modernisation can ensure simplicity and consistency across your entire distributed cloud infrastructure.
It is time to get on the right path to build a stable and secure multi-cloud foundation that enables your distributed cloud strategy. Bytes can help streamline design, delivery, and operations of your multi-cloud solution. As an F5 partner, we can also help you leverage SaaS-based tools for simplification, optimisation, and security in the cloud.
Simplification - Connect apps and clouds easily with a single tool for modern multi-cloud networking. F5 Distributed Cloud Services not only enable secure networking but also provide simplified management across security and application delivery with a single console. This also allows you to have consistent policies everywhere, in the cloud and on premises.
Optimisation - F5 analytics combined with Bytes FinOps experts ensure resources are used wisely. Automation and orchestration in F5 Distributed Cloud Services help accelerate app deployments and improve performance, while on-demand scaling supports peak usage and increases application uptime without over provisioning. Further control your cloud spend with FinOps and multi-cloud performance management from Bytes.
Security - Bytes has more than 25 years of security expertise to ensure you have a robust security strategy. Easily get consistent security in every environment with SaaS-based F5 Distributed Cloud Web App and API Protection (WAAP) to guard against threats like the OWASP Top 10 and automated attacks. Opt for an even higher level of protection with managed services from Bytes’ 24/7 SOC.
With a unified approach, Bytes and F5 can help you create a resilient multi-cloud platform that streamlines security, networking, and application performance. Reduce multi-cloud complexity to improve efficiency and take full advantage of cloud’s benefits.
To find out more contact your Bytes account manager, or email [email protected] to schedule a discovery session with the Bytes team/F5, in which you will learn the full platform capabilities of Distributed Cloud, as well as see how it fits within your organisation’s IT infrastructure.
Citations
1. F5, 2023 State of Application Strategy Report, March 2023
2. F5, 2023 State of Application Strategy Report, March 2023
3. F5, 2023 State of Application Strategy Report, March 2023
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