Cloud Repatriation Isn’t A Retreat, But A Reconsideration

You might read statistics like these as evidence that there will be a massive shift back to on-premises architectures. Yet the reality is that cloud repatriation is more complex and nuanced. In many cases, it’s not about readopting the same on-premises configurations that companies were using prior to public cloud adoption; it’s more about taking advantage of new hybrid cloud opportunities or finding better ways to integrate on-premises workloads with public cloud services.

Cloud repatriation

How repatriation is changing cloud computing?

The simplistic assumption about cloud repatriation is that it means more organizations will shift back to an on-premises model, with cloud architectures becoming less important as a result. But the reality is more complex. Although for some organizations cloud repatriation means simply converting workloads back to an on-premises model, for others it entails migrating to more sophisticated types of cloud-based architectures, not abandoning the cloud altogether.

Best practices

Repatriation is not a retreat

As noted above, cloud repatriation in many cases isn’t about going back to whatever architectural model you used before adopting the public cloud. Instead, it’s a way to improve performance, cost or other factors by adopting a more sophisticated architecture.

Make sure you can handle the complexity

Because cloud repatriation tends to make architectures more complex by integrating public cloud and on-premises resources, it’s important to make sure the extra management burden is worth it. Is saving a little money on your storage or VM costs worth having to monitor cloud-based and on-premises components of a workload at the same time Maybe, but assess these considerations before jumping on the repatriation bandwagon.

Keep your workloads portable

You never know when you may need to shift your architecture yet again to meet a new goal or take advantage of a new opportunity. For that reason, strive to keep your workloads portable as you perform cloud repatriation, so that you can easily migrate again in the future if you choose. Think about the future of the public cloud: Before deciding to repatriate your workloads in a way that leads to more complexity, think hard about whether simply leaving them in the public cloud isn’t the best long-term strategy. A particularly important consideration here is that public cloud services have a history of becoming both cheaper and more functional over time.

Conclusion

But instead of thinking of cloud repatriation as merely a way to set back the clock to the pre-cloud age, approach it as an opportunity to build more powerful architectures-with the understanding, of course, that with added power comes additional complexity.