Cloud computing gives us more mobility than ever before, enabling us to attend videoconferences on smartphones, create presentations on laptops, edit files on tablets while watching a soccer match - provided there's a reliable internet connection.

Imagine Canada. In an instantaneous collapse earlier this year, its business collapsed as an internet service provider (ISP), which had over 10 Million customers, botched an update for maintenance that affected them all.

Cloud computing offers numerous advantages, such as:

Enhance productivity via scalability; pay-as-you-go price structures; greater flexibility.
Reduce costs associated with managing and paying for in-house infrastructure and avoid being locked into dealing with just one provider should anything go wrong.

Building a Plan to Replace Lost Internet

Last month, almost one quarter of Canada's Internet capacity went offline for several days or longer, leaving some individuals unable to connect for only 12 hours and others unreachable for days on end. There were numerous ripple effects caused by this disruption: Rogers users could no longer call emergency assistance; some nonprofits could no longer assist vulnerable groups; traffic signals in Toronto that depended on cell technology also became desynchronized;

What can we learn from this experience? Businesses should always have a contingency plan ready.

Building a redundant internet connection will help keep your business online in case of system issues, intrusions or power outages. To make this work, however, a different internet provider must be used - doing this reduces the likelihood that both primary and backup internets go down simultaneously.

Consider investing in a backup cellular connection if your primary internet connection utilizes wires. A router equipped with 4G support could automatically switch over in case of failure, providing you with another network option should disaster strike.

Redundancy can be defined as any repeated action that is undertaken for no other purpose than duplicative reasons, with repeat costs incurring twice in comparison to traditional redundancies. Internet redundancies provide businesses a great way to protect their business, productivity and brand image by being proactive about protecting themselves online redundancies are becoming an invaluable service to maintain continuity for business operations and brand reputation.

Although you may not be able to add another IT provider, at least contact your existing one and inquire as to their backup plan and ensure their systems don't go offline during an outage.

Many businesses were left scrambling following the Canadian outage, leaving many businesses confused and uncertain of how best to prepare. Given today's prevalence of technology, more ISP outages are likely. Be proactive by planning for redundancy; our experts can reduce communications failure risks. Call us at 404 932-5940 now.