A DIY cloud may not have the backing of
the likes of Google, however it is going to
offer a secure environment for you and
any employees to access the content. It’s not often that a home
user or a small business is targeted by a legion of international
hackers, whereas the big cloud names are probably running a
constant battle with nefarious forces attempting to gain access
to any of its cloud users’ contents.
SECURITYOnce you’ve set up your DIY cloud
there’s very little needed to keep
it running. However, beyond the
core cloud software you use, the computer it’s set up on will
inevitably require operating system updates and the
occasional reboot; as well some TLC from time to time, as most
computers often seem to crave. Updates can have the habit of
‘breaking’ some feature further down the line, which can be a
costly pain when that feature has something to do with your
DIY cloud setup.
MAINTENANCETo link the security aspect of the cloud, a
DIY cloud offers a higher degree of privacy.
Mainly, this is due to the simple fact that you
own the space, it’s your storage and you can populate it with
whatever you want. Some cloud providers may well be limited
when it comes to privacy, for whatever reason, so a DIY cloud is
your own and therefore yours to do with as you please.
PRIVACYThe initial cost of setting up your own DIY cloud
may be a factor worth considering. If you’ve
any computer hardware going spare, such as
a motherboard, processor, memory, hard drives, case and so
on, you’re able to use them to build your own cloud server,
something we’ll look at very shortly. If you don’t have the kit to
hand, then you’ll need to buy them in. It needn’t be particularly
expensive and refurbished computers will work just as well as
ones that cost thousands; incidentally, you’re able to create a
Raspberry Pi cloud with the right components. COSTAlthough most folks these days are more
technically savvy than they initially think they
are, setting up a DIY cloud can be a fairly
complex affair. Thankfully there are easy to use apps and
programs available for a range of operating systems. These
will help to make the setting up and accessing process much
simpler, especially when compared to the way you used to have
to set up an online, available storage solution. SETUPOne thing you need to be
especially aware of is that
using your own DIY cloud
eliminates the disaster recovery protection you get through an
average cloud service. If something goes wrong with a cloud
service provider, generally, your files are still safe within the
company’s backups. Should your house or business ever fall foul
of something disastrous, let’s hope not, then losing your DIY
cloud will effectively lose all your cloud data. You therefore need
to factor in another level of backup and disaster protection. DISASTER RECOVERYWhilst using one of the many services available is perfectly fine, a small business or
home user may want a little more than the service is offering. That little extra could
come in the form of far more space without monthly payments or complete control over
the cloud contents.
Why Would You Consider a
Do It Yourself Cloud?
In such circumstances, having your own cloud is preferable to that of using one of the current solutions. For
example, as an individual, you can set up your own cloud with the computer hardware you already own; making it
available to friends and family to access, or simply just for your own private use. Likewise, if you own a business, you
can opt for your own cloud, again using already available computer hardware connected to the company’s router and
providing as much storage as is needed for home workers or those on the road.
Taking a few points into consideration here, let’s see what advantages and disadvantages a DIY cloud can offer both
the home and SMB user:
YOUR VERY OWN CLOUD
Advanced Cloud Uses