Cloud monitoring is a process which involves the review and managing of a cloud workflow. Both automated and manual tools and services can be used to confirm that any given cloud is completely functional and performing as it should.

It is a crucial process for any business relying on cloud technology, and it can be implemented as an automated software that provides information and insights to cloud administrators regarding the performance of the cloud.

A number of capabilities can be delivered by cloud monitoring, starting with the monitoring of cloud data over a number of different distributed locations. It can also help to eliminate possible breaches by delivering visibility into users, applications, and files.

A good clock monitoring system provides excellent reporting and auditing, so that all security standards can be maintained and enforced. It’s also possible to use monitoring tools to merge with different cloud providers, thereby gaining additional information and insights.

There are a number of such systems available in today’s marketplace, but one of the best is the Cisco Cloud Security system, which has become very popular because of its comprehensive approach to monitoring and security.

How it all works

The tools used to perform cloud monitoring can be either in-house tools or independent tools provided by a SaaS host. In-house tools are delivered by the cloud provider and this is a popular option because these tools come packaged along with the cloud service, so that integration can be easily carried out and no actual installation is required.

Those tools provided by an SaaS provider might end up costing a little more and could potentially have integration issues. However, they’re still an excellent option, because SaaS providers are generally expert in managing the costs associated with cloud architecture and measuring its performance.

Regardless of the specific cloud monitoring tools being used, they all deliver the same service and provide the same function. For the most part, they’re responsible for monitoring problems in the cloud that could potentially obstruct a business or interfere with delivering a service to the customer. In order to accomplish that, these tools will provide data in the following areas:

• Errors – Whether the errors are machine-made or attributable to humans, any good cloud service has to be able to detect them and correct them promptly, in order to maintain performance. That means these errors are not generally known to the end user, so any business can still have good customer retention and profit by improved sales.
• Agility – In the highly competitive business world of today, it’s necessary to have lightning-fast products and instantaneous troubleshooting. In order to optimize any business’s website along with its applications, cloud monitoring has to be able to provide data and metrics relative to cloud speed.
• Cybersecurity – with the number of cyberattacks constantly increasing, it’s super important for cloud monitoring services to identify any breaches in the cloud. It’s also necessary to detect any security gaps and make sure the network is secure before any attacks can be carried out.

How cloud monitoring leads to better business decisions

Resources of a cloud can always be monitored in quite a few different ways. One possibility is by using in-house applications or another system that is also hosted within the cloud. Both approaches have some advantages, although the majority of organizations tend to use cloud-hosted solutions to monitor the resources of a public cloud. Here is how cloud monitoring can lead to better business decisions for your organization:

• Cloud monitoring tools make use of APIs to communicate with any given environment, allowing for seamless interactions that only require authentication credentials.
• Monitoring solutions hosted in the cloud require no in-house footprint, meaning it’s not necessary to invest in resources for maintaining and updating the monitoring system.
• Monitoring tools generally come pre-configured, which makes them pretty easy to install.
• These solutions are basically free of all disasters, because they’re stored in the cloud rather than on any organization’s workstations or servers. That means there will be no service interruptions when local problems arise.
• Given that cloud monitoring solutions are cloud-based, it’s much easier to scale them across organizations of different sizes, and that makes them capable of growing right along with your business.
• Since cloud monitoring solutions are disaster-free, your network will experience less downtime and far fewer errors, which will result in a better customer experience.
• Cloud monitoring tools proactively detect problems that might prevent your organization from providing crucial services to customers, including good performance, functionality issues, and the potential for cyber-attacks.
• Service providers are responsible for maintaining cloud monitoring hardware and tools, and that saves your organization a great deal of time, while also providing you with peace of mind.
• Most cloud monitoring solutions are updated automatically and regularly, so it’s not necessary to plan for this or to schedule any kind of updates.
• Since cloud monitoring solutions have up-to-the-minute reporting, it’s very easy to audit speed metrics as well as a number of other KPIs. These solutions are also compatible with a number of different devices such as smartphones, laptops, tablets, and desktop computers, which means system performance and application performance can be monitored from any location around the globe.

With all the benefits provided by cloud monitoring tools and devices, far less time can be devoted to managing and monitoring the cloud, because those functions are being done automatically. That frees you up to address more important issues regarding business operations. The information provided by these tools and devices can help stave off costly cyber-attacks, improve cloud performance, and identify errors quickly so they can be addressed. With this wealth of information available at your fingertips, it becomes much easier to make better business decisions, both for the present and in the future.

Sources:

1. https://www.nutanix.com/info/cloud-monitoring
2. https://global.hitachi-solutions.com/blog/cloud-monitoring/