FEATURE : CIO ’ S PRIORITY
to connect wirelessly to the Internet or sync with PCs and laptops . It was only when wireless technology and cloud computing reached maturity that smartphones and tablets came of age .
Finally , technology can work perfectly well , but not really solve a big enough problem to warrant significant investment . That ’ s why you often hear talk of ‘ killer apps ’ or use-cases that will give a new technology purpose and meaning . QR codes are
IT CAN BE THAT A TECHNOLOGY IS SIMPLY AHEAD OF ITS TIME AND THE COMPLEMENTARY TECHNOLOGIES THAT GIVE IT A CLEAR PLACE IN THE WORLD DO NOT YET EXIST .
Given the value modern businesses rightly place on their data and the consequences of failing to manage and protect it , this is something which must be considered as early in the tech lifecycle as possible . If you cannot confidently protect and manage data within an IT service or application , don ’ t deploy it .
An example of a technology that is moving through the various phases of the hype cycle at a rate of knots is containers – seen by many as a natural evolution of a virtualized environment – but designed to give IT managers greater control and flexibility over their applications . As little as around two years ago , containers had already begun their slide into Gartner ’ s so-called trough of disillusionment – the phase when businesses have begun to act on the hype but been disappointed by the lack of immediate outcomes .
However , fast-forward the clock to 2021 and containers are already a critical component of DevOps-led infrastructure and application modernization – with Kubernetes emerging as the dominant container orchestration platform . The business case for using containers enabled by Kubernetes is becoming well established , as microservices-based architectures have gained traction within the enterprise . an example of a technology that the world thought it had infinite uses for but struggled to take off until they found their calling in mobile boarding passes and ticketing applications . Experience therefore tells us that just because a new technology might not change the way things are done tomorrow , it doesn ’ t mean it won ’ t have a big impact long-term . With that said , it ’ s fine to get excited by the potential of a new technology . But as an industry we must learn to temper our expectations , and those of our customers , towards how quickly and how far new technologies will create radical and lasting change .
Contain your excitement
Even for those technologies which solve a real problem and are enabled by the right complementary technologies and are generally understood enough to be successfully tested and deployed , there are other challenges .
Any enterprise IT deployment requires investment , upskilling and cultural change from business leaders and employees . That means it can take years to build a compelling enough business case to convince budget holders to incorporate new deployments into their strategy . In addition , once a clear business case has been established – there are regulatory , cybersecurity and data protection requirements to throw into the mix .
This opens up new possibilities when it comes to protecting data within containerized environments . A general rule to live and die by is that if you can ’ t manage data , you can ’ t protect it .
So , deploying Kubernetes adds the vital orchestration layer , meaning there is now a significant opportunity for a single data protection platform that includes virtual , physical , cloud and containerized environments . Establishing more advanced data protection and backup credentials is one of the advancements that will help containers go from IT side project to achieving the return-on-investment businesses crave .
At the edge of reason
Another technology which presents certain data protection challenges is Edge Computing .
Currently , Gartner places Edge Computing right at the peak of inflated expectations on its hype cycle . As hyperscalers look to extend their ever-expanding data volumes and workloads to the Edge and the shift towards remote working creates a greater sense of urgency for businesses looking to transform digitally , the case for Edge Computing looks compelling . You can view this as a confluence of events that make Edge Computing more relevant .
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