Published in BC9 on 27/02/2012

Despite the continually increasing uptake in Cloud computing technologies, there are still cynics that are keen to dismiss it as "just another fad" – a fad that will produce copy-cat service providers, who, eager to believe the "hype" and jump on the bandwagon, are likely to trip up time and time again. So how likely are we to see an increasing number of screw-ups in the Cloud as more and more businesses choose to adopt Cloud-based solutions?

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Published in BC9 on 13/02/2012

Anyone that has seen Channel 4's highly rated The IT Crowd will understand what I mean when I say that the IT support staff in the sitcom are not held in the highest of regards by the rest of Reynholm Industries' employees. Indeed, the majority of the sitcom is set in the IT team's office, or rather, their dark, dingy and unkempt basement, which is in stark contrast to the shining modern architecture and London views enjoyed by the rest of the organisation. Furthermore, despite the company's dependence on their services, the IT department is despised, and generally ignored, by the rest of the staff.

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Published in BC9 on 03/01/2012

Whilst Cloud Computing is still very much in its infancy, I expect great things are still to come for the industry once cruelly referred to as "just another fad". Below, I outline my predictions for the year ahead and where I see Cloud Computing technologies heading in 2012.

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Published in Data Centre Solutions on 20/12/2011

The Cloud Computing Centre has moved to 4,000 sq. ft. of purpose-designed premises to allow for a fully virtualised working environment. Located just minutes from Junction 9 of the M25, Leatherhead, this high-profile virtual office space is in a prime location for easy ‘commutability’ and client interaction. It also however, fulfils Cloud CC’s ambitions of becoming an entirely cloud-based business. The office move will also see the IT hosting specialist benefit from annual savings in the region of £180,000, as a result of significantly reduced facilities management overheads compared to its previous premises.

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Published in Cloud Computing 365 on 20/12/2011

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Published in Business Computing World on 09/12/2011

Power outages such as those experienced by the likes of Amazon, Google and Microsoft in recent months are not only hugely embarrassing for the cloud giants, but also incredibly disruptive for the affected users.

Take for example, Amazon Web Services’ latency issues in its Virginia data centre in April. A number of sites that use Amazon’s cloud to run their web services, including Hoot-Suite, Foursquare and Quora, were all knocked offline for several days, which was obviously hugely costly for all involved.

And with the cloud giants’ outage nightmares laid bare for all to see, the question must be asked, if things always break at scale, how can the risk be mitigated?

High profile cloud-based outages are enough to put any customer off from putting their confidence in a cloud computing supplier. After all, what company could survive without access to business-critical data for over 24 hours?

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Published in SNS UK on 05/10/2011

CCOMM IT Solutions, the IT solutions and equipment supplier has announced that the Cloud Computing Centre, the provider of tailored IT and cloud services, will be replacing its existing IT hardware with an entirely virtualised infrastructure. As part of the agreement, the entirety of CCOMM IT Solutions’ hardware and operating systems are to be replaced with one virtualised server, which will be hosted on-site. With operating systems replicated in a mirrored site, CCOMM IT Solutions’ entire infrastructure will be sufficiently backed up and readily accessible in the event of any system downtime, thus providing the IT solutions supplier with a secure, resilient and reliable service.

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Published in CRN Channelweb.co.uk on 29/09/2011

As the IT industry moves from traditional on-premise solutions towards cloud-based and virtualised services, many resellers are struggling to position themselves and their existing product offering.

Many are losing confidence in their services fit and are failing to evolve in line with customer demand. Those not yet considering cloud and virtualisation technologies are at serious risk of falling behind. A number of high-profile resellers have recently entered administration.

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Published in IT Director on 13/09/2011

Apollo Adhesives, providers of advanced adhesive products, has selected IT hosting specialist, The Cloud Computing Centre, to supply virtualised IT hardware to complement its new Microsoft Dynamics ERP solution. As part of the agreement, Cloud CC will be providing Apollo with two servers, two storage area networks (SANs) and communications equipment to link all four of the adhesive company’s sites together. Apollo also wanted Cloud CC to provide new IT hardware in a virtualised environment using VMWare, ensuring business continuity in the event of hardware failings.

The Apollo Chemicals Group, which comprises the Tamworth-based Apollo Chemicals Ltd. with its sister company, Raleigh Coatings, in Eccleshall, Staffordshire, is a provider of advanced adhesive products. The company manufactures industrial and commercial strength adhesives, as well as acrylics and solvent-based cleaners. It also offers adhesive coatings and tapes to a number of different target industries. Apollo’s 80 employees work across three separate sites on the same estate in Tamworth, Staffordshire.

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Published in SNS Europe on 14/09/2011

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Published in BBC News on 09/09/2011

Millions of Microsoft users were left unable to access some online services overnight because of a major service failure. Hotmail, Office 365 and Skydrive were among the services affected.

Microsoft was still analysing the cause of the problem on Friday morning, but said it appeared to be related to the internet's DNS address system.

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