Abstract
The cloud has arrived and will remain. Without adequate AWS support, your company is leaving itself vulnerable to significant risk.
But how do you know what adequate support should include when there is so much complexity and unfamiliarity surrounding the cloud?
This article will examine your options, weigh their advantages and disadvantages, and assist you in determining the appropriate level of AWS support for your company.
Do You Have AWS Support?
Avoid making the common mistake of assuming that just because you invested in the cloud, it will be fully supported.
Keep in mind that Amazon provides you with virtual IT infrastructure as the cloud provider. AWS's cloud computing platform serves as an example of that.
An additional duty is the upkeep and support of that infrastructure. Many businesses have encountered difficulties in this area, particularly those that were forced to migrate to the cloud unpredictably during the 2020 lockdowns.
A cloud system's infrastructure-as-a-service model means that the vendor is merely providing you with a subscription to its technology. Everything else follows, including your acquisition of complete support to guarantee that everything continues to function as expected.
When to Reevaluate Your Existing AWS Support
If you're in any of the following situations, it would be wise to review and reevaluate whether your current AWS support plan is adequate or whether you even know what support you have in place:
- If you're not happy with the AWS support service you currently have
- If a partner installed your cloud without providing ongoing support,
- if your cloud costs have exceeded your expectations or been challenging to manage
- If your cloud costs in an unfamiliar OpEx model are too erratic
- If you find it difficult to keep up with Amazon's frequent AWS platform updates
- If your internal team accepted the assignment without the required expertise
- If a current internal employee in charge of cloud support is leaving
- If your company is expanding and your cloud support is struggling to keep up.
So from whom should you obtain cloud support?
Since no two businesses are exactly alike, your ideal choice for cloud support will be specific to your own.
It's crucial to conduct a thorough analysis of your IT infrastructure, how you use it, and the options that fit within your spending limit before making a choice that will protect you in the long run.
We'll assist you in evaluating those options and providing advice as necessary in the section that follows.
You should feel completely confident in your cloud deployment and the risk it poses. You'll know the most effective way to accomplish that by the time this article is finished.
Understanding the AWS Support Options
You can pick from several options for AWS support. Many of you may even have an arrangement in place with one of these on some level already:
- Obtaining AWS Support Directly from Amazon
For users of its cloud services, Amazon does provide some free AWS support.
If you're just getting started with the cloud, this is primarily a safety net for you. But beneath the surface, it offers only the bare minimum in terms of value.
Online resources like forums, wikis, documentation, and impersonal contact with an (often very busy) help desk are the main delivery methods for this.
Amazon also provides cloud support for live cloud deployments, which is based on a ticketing system for troubleshooting issues.
Enterprise-level customers have access to a more attentive support service, but it is very expensive and typically only offered to businesses of a certain size.
The four tiers of AWS support plans are as follows:
- Developer
- Business
- Enterprise On-Ramp
- Enterprise
- Employing a Partner
The vast majority of businesses choose this option the most frequently. It's possible that you already have a partner who is in charge of supporting your AWS deployments. Similar to Microsoft's long-standing practice before it, Amazon does promote the use of technology partners within its cloud ecosystem.
Partners come in a wide range of sizes and shapes, providing numerous services. These groups were established to keep Amazon from having to interact directly with its cloud customers.
Amazon matches you with partners through its partner network for AWS support which is at the right level for the size of your business or cloud investment.
Small Expert Partners or Consultants
These are frequently one-man bands or small groups with just a few members.
When you collaborate with a partner in this way, you're essentially bringing on board a new team member who will be there for you when you need them. However, that team member's dependability will be constrained because they will always have to balance obligations to their other clients with a limited amount of time.
The services these partners provide won't be able to scale either. Therefore, if your company expands and your cloud environment does as well, you may outgrow the level of support your partner can offer.
Medium-Sized Partner
The mid-tier partners will have several teams working within their companies, frequently concentrating on various specialties or particular regions of the cloud ecosystem.
Teams from some partners, for instance, might only work on specific Amazon products, like virtual machines.
Because of this, you must make sure that the expertise you hire is in line with the needs of your particular cloud environment.
Another crucial point to keep in mind is that these medium-sized partners typically follow a project- or consultancy-based model, with support coming from a dedicated team that has been assigned to you.
When compared to the impersonal support provided by Amazon directly, this is far preferable.
Large-Size Partner
His bigger partners frequently collaborate closely with Amazon. Even the direct reseller from whom you purchased your cloud service could be among them.
They'll likely closely follow Amazon's procedures and organizational conventions, and they'll have plenty of resources at their disposal to guarantee you get thorough support.
Even so, some of these partners are so large and have so many customers that you'll encounter difficulties akin to those encountered when dealing with Amazon directly.
It's also possible that these big consultancies will have a main line of business and hire smaller, more specialized partners to offer services under their brand.
- Supporting and Keeping Up Your Cloud Environment (DIY)
Of course, another option is to use your internal resources to manage and support your cloud environment.
On the surface, saving money on a partner might seem like a financially sound decision. But this is much trickier than you might think. Often, it is already too late by the time that becomes obvious.
In some ways, taking on the responsibility of cloud support carries the highest level of risk.
For smaller and medium-sized businesses as well, the drain on internal resources that results from full-time cloud management is frequently unsustainable.
Another option is to bring on a lone consultant to support your cloud daily, but these are frequently very expensive.