Cloud Storage, It is one the buzzing word of the technology this year and with trend it created many of the big giants of internet are into the list of providers of this service. If you are new to this technology please refer to my previous post on cloud storage service. Storing your files from any place with internet connectivity is one of the driving force for this technology.
I remember placing the executable C programs in my file host and copied it back into my College PC using command “wget file_name” directly to execute it during exams and which student doesn’t like this idea unless if you are a nerd.
Already there are number of traditional storage companies readily available to store your files like media fire, rapid share etc and you know why you want to opt for cloud storage now. Let us take a look at the important characteristic points and features of the cloud storage services that help you to distinguish the services and chose the best according to your needs.
| 1. Value for Money |
| Cost is one of the key factor, Compare the amount of cost you need to put in to buy the services offered by the provider, that can restrain you to set of providers. |
| 2. Auto Back Up, Sync and Availability |
| Backing Up your files at regular intervals of time and synchronizing automatically for all the computers you have can be considered as one of the factors. Service provider may provide a software utility to automatically sync and back up your data. Back up is first half of the story you must be able to pull it back to your PC, the data will be replicated across cloud servers to enable you to access your files anytime with 100% up time or availability and this may depend on the service you buy. |
| 3. Ease of Use / API |
| This term refers to how well you can use the services of the provider that you have bought. See if the service provider is offering you with any demo account to see the ease of use of the services and identify any special features that are special for that particular provider |
| 4. Scalability in Storage, Bandwidth, Geographic Servers |
| Scalability may be one of the important aspect for your growing business needs, This feature will allow you pay for the services that you use. Storage Scalability refers to increasing or decreasing the data storage capacity that you already had, Bandwidth Scalability refers to increasing or decreasing the bandwidth matching to your business needs and Geographic Scalability refers to the geographic locations of the cloud servers to enable you to access your files from anywhere. |
| 5. Security |
| Security is an important aspect if you are placing files in cloud, Even service providers consider it as sensitive issue and deal in the form of encryption during the transfer between local storage and remote storage. |
| 6. Support |
| Good Service provider will offer you with excellent technical customer support 24*7, You can try contacting the support team via live chat or by email before you advance to buy the services from them and can see how well they respond for your queries. |
| 7. Customer Feedback / Review |
| If you are satisfied with any one of the provider just Google about the service provider to see what the people in web world are saying about the service provider, you may see either positive or negative feedback. |
I must say these are some of the bare minimums that you can look in a cloud storage providers apart from these there are many parameters from customer point of view. The list can be like
File Sharing : Ability to share your files in cloud with your friends.
Folder Sharing : Ability to share entire folder with your friends.
Unlimited File size Limit : Ability to upload a file of unlimited size into the cloud storage.
Files with Version : Ability to store the file in the form of versions with every new upload of same file.
Restoring Deleted files : Ability to restore your files that are deleted from cloud.
Event Log : Storing the events in the form of log.
Drag and Drop Upload : As discussed in ease of use and API , this is a feature of ease of use.
Mobile App Access : Ability to access the cloud from mobile.
Platform and Device Support: Support for multiple platforms of different devices like Mobile, Desktop, IPAD etc.
There are many features that cloud storage provider can offer you , Hope you found at least few aspects that you can look in a cloud storage service provider and Good luck.
