Hybrid Cloud

A hybrid cloud (commonly referred to as hybrid cloud) is a computing environment that combines on premises infrastructure (private cloud) with public cloud services, allowing data and applications to be shared between them. This model provides greater flexibility, scalability and cost efficiency while maintaining security and compliance for sensitive workloads.

Key Components of Hybrid Cloud

A hybrid cloud architecture typically includes:

• Private Cloud: On premises or hosted infrastructure dedicated to a single organization.

• Public Cloud: Third party cloud services (e.g., AWS, Azure, Google Cloud) that provide scalable resources.

• Hybrid Cloud Management Platform: Tools like VMware Cloud, Azure Arc, AWS Outposts or OpenStack that unify management across environments.

• Networking & Connectivity: Secure connections via VPN, Direct Connect (AWS), ExpressRoute (Azure) or SD-WAN.

• Orchestration & Automation: Tools like Kubernetes, Terraform or Ansible for workload portability.

How Hybrid Cloud Works

• Workload Distribution: Critical or sensitive workloads run on private clouds, while scalable or less sensitive tasks use public clouds.

• Data Synchronization: Data is replicated or shared securely between environments.

• Bursting Capability: During peak demand, workloads can "burst" into the public cloud for additional resources.

• Unified Security & Compliance: Policies are applied consistently across both environments.

Use Cases of Hybrid Cloud

1. Enterprise IT Modernization

• Run legacy apps on premises while migrating new apps to the cloud.

2. DevOps & CI/CD Pipelines

• Use public cloud for development/testing, private for production.

3. Big Data & Analytics

• Process large datasets in the cloud while storing sensitive data privately.

4. Disaster Recovery (DRaaS)

• Replicate on premises systems to the cloud for backup.

5. Regulated Industries (Healthcare, Finance)

• Keep compliance-sensitive workloads private while using cloud for scalability.