Cloud computing enabling big data programs

Dealing with big data has been an enterprise problem for several years. Collecting vast amounts of important information that require massive storage space and specialty management tools was a major challenge without the cloud, Government Computer News reports.

Businesses that had to collect big data, whether it be repositories of consumer information, industrial information or other content, typically had to make a few sacrifices, especially in terms of scalability. The report said the old axiom used to be that a company could deal with big data, or it could have a scalable information management program. Both could not be achieved together.

According to the report, the advent of cloud computing is changing this trend by giving companies the technological infrastructure they require to deploy big data systems without sacrificing performance, flexibility and scalability. In some cases, the scalability of the cloud has become so prevalent that many organizations are forced to address big data because the technology is creating so many opportunities to create new types of information.

The report said the trend toward scalability in the big data sector has the consequences of creating a growing environment for big data in enterprise and public sector markets, while also revolutionizing the information management climate.

These inherent consequences of cloud computing's scalability in terms of big data has dramatically changed industry paradigms for addressing information in enterprise systems. The report explained applications that dealt with large quantities of data previously had to employ throttling or other complex performance-enhancing tactics to maintain performance while processing information. With the cloud, enabling applications with the ability to perform adequately while handling big data is much simpler, the report said.

When businesses initiate cloud computing systems to address big data, the report said they need to truly understand what it really is. Big data is not just documents, files and other static information that is stored on enterprise servers and requires careful organization. Instead, big data also comes from social media channels, wiki pages, geolocation sources and surveillance technology. The key distinction in these systems is that they not only create large quantities of data, but also generate information that changes frequently and needs to be updated regularly.

Because big data requires constant updates, the report said businesses need to use information management tools that are capable of working as flexibly and efficiently as the systems that are creating the information. Cloud computing comes into play in meeting this need by enabling scalable hardware and software environments that can adapt to an ever-changing data environment, the report said.

Advanced development techniques and technologies will be needed to deal with big data in the cloud, according to the report. For example, the report said current systems for metadata will not necessarily be adaptable to big data because the information changes so rapidly and requires such an economy of scale that simply adding descriptive tags will not meet the information management needs. Therefore, advances in metadata will be needed to keep up with the pace set by cloud computing and big data.

Whenever businesses move any data systems in the cloud, especially ones as important as big data, they need to address risk management. While the cloud is a reliable technology that can be just as secure as on-premise solutions, businesses still need to address specific risks that come with using the technology, SYS-CON Media reports. Overall, businesses need to focus on reducing risk that occurs when moving data to a third-party facility if they expect to be successful in the cloud, the report said.