Hosting and Cloud Services

Cloud services allow organisations to scale their IT resources up or down according to the requirements of the business without having to invest or waste capital. The model is simple - centrally managed, dynamic, automated, always-on IT services delivered over the internet. Today the very notion of a new product or service without it having some form of cloud linkage is hard to imagine. There is a new generation of thinking regarding how IT products and services are delivered and how they are consumed; cloud – in whatever guise – is the platform of choice for a long time to come.

Cloud services enable an organisation to benefit from a powerful IT infrastructure without the headaches of management and maintenance, and access to world class IT hardware and software without the hassle of capital investment, procurement, multi-vendor management, data management, or even a server room.

Cloud gives total peace of mind that the right IT support will always be available whatever the shape of the organisation. Perhaps most important of all, it allows executives to focus on the organisation’s performance rather than its IT operations.

Shared Cloud Services

Shared cloud services provide organisations with a powerful and professionally managed IT infrastructure, with a low total cost of ownership. Economies of scale are created through a large pool of centrally managed computing resources, which support multiple customers with a range of commonly used applications and services. Each organisation’s data is carefully protected and managed, but the cost of hardware, software and experienced IT professional is shared.

Shared cloud services are the fastest, most flexible and cost efficient way to create, access and manage IT resources. Pure processing power and storage is instantly available from large-scale, high-end hardware, professionally managed on a 24/7 basis, running a wide range of industry leading applications. Though centrally managed on shared hardware, each company’s data remains private and is securely managed to the highest standards.

Shared cloud services provide businesses with an IT system without the hassles and costs of ownership, and the flexibility of enterprise class back office services like email and storage, and applications such as customer relationship management (CRM), without the need for heavy capital investment. SaintGroup’ shared cloud services can be centred in the UK, USA or RSA and are ITIL/ ISO accredited for security, resilience and compliance and data and intellectual property remains the customer’s property at all times.

SaintGroup’ shared cloud services provide:-

• A virtualised environment for applications and servers

• Centrally managed and maintained storage platform

• Customisable CRM platform

• Microsoft Exchange mailboxes, mailbox management storage and backup OR POP/IMAP Alternative technologies

• Flexible response to changes in workload demands

• Stronger disaster recovery

• Faster deployment

• Improved availability

• Better utilisation of IT resources

• Simplified management

Dedicated Cloud Services

Dedicated cloud services provide organisations that have particularly demanding IT requirements with a cloud-based computing infrastructure that is exclusive to that organisation. Typically a dedicated cloud service would support the processing of millions of transactions or similar activity that needs dedicated processing power, or the very highest levels of security. While still more cost-effective than an equivalent in-house solution, dedicated cloud services deliver lower economies of scale for the end-user organisation.

A dedicated cloud service effectively recreates a company’s own server room within SaintGroup’ data centre operations. It provides additional layers of performance and security for companies, or parts of a company, that have specialist applications or particular security requirements. Economies of scale and expertise are still realised from a cost perspective, but specific hardware is reserved for single company usage. Dedicated hardware can even be additionally protected physically, through high security cages with passcodes restricting access to specific IT professionals.

Where security of data, at rest or in motion, is of the upmost importance, SaintGroup’ fully managed dedicated cloud services provide ease of use, maximum availability and flexibility. SaintGroup’ shared cloud services can be centred in the UK, USA or RSA and are ITIL/ ISO accredited for security, resilience and compliance. Data and intellectual property remains the customer’s property at all times.

SaintGroup’ dedicated cloud services provide:-

• Centrally managed and maintained storage platform

• Customisable CRM platform

• Microsoft Exchange mailboxes, mailbox management storage and backup OR POP/IMAP Alternative technologies

• Secure remote access services

• Desktop virtualisation

• Transformational professional services

• A virtualised environment for applications and servers

• Access to next generation carrier networks, backed by service level agreements

• The ability to differentiate between the needs of the consumer against the enterprise

• A “convergence ready” infrastructure that can integrate with the rest of the environment

• A flexible IT service model that can transform the business, its infrastructure and working practices, culture and attitudes