Managed IT Services

Maximizing Your AWS Benefits with an MSP

Post by
John Snyder

Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides flexible cloud computing and storage without the need for any expensive equipment. With over 200 specific product offerings, and hundreds of configuration and design decisions within each product, it’s challenging to know where to begin without some guidance. Since most small businesses do not have the time or internal resources to dedicate to learning AWS, this fantastic resource can seem out of reach. A Managed Services Provider (MSP) like Net Friends is an ideal partner to help a business or organization take advantage of all the power and potential that AWS has to offer.

Top 3 AWS Projects for Small Businesses

The best introduction to AWS is through examples of how it’s commonly used in small businesses. Most organizations begin with setting up a Simple Storage Service (S3), or “bucket”, which essentially is a general use place to put data. An S3 bucket is incredibly flexible, notably by its ability to store and retrieve anything you can throw at it, and the convenience of accessing it from anywhere with lots of control.

Another common way small businesses use AWS is by creating an Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) server. This is known as a virtual server that does not require the organization to buy any hardware. With an EC2 instance, a business can start up a website or host a commonly used application rapidly and with confidence. If a small business was to setup their own server on equipment they purchase, the launch time would take weeks rather than minutes when leveraging AWS. If there was a configuration mistake with a physical setup, the business might have to live with that for the next several years. AWS is essentially an infinitely scalable resource, capable of handling any form of growth and demand while keeping monthly costs low.

And for those organizations who might be wary of putting business critical resources in the cloud, one of the best ways to utilize the power of AWS is as a disaster recovery or offsite backup resource. One of the most powerful benefits of AWS is that it has near limitless computing capabilities, so with some planning and preparation, just about any business could continue to run their critical operations within AWS if a localized disaster took out their on-premises infrastructure.

Why Partner with an MSP

A Managed Services Provider provides critical services to any small business considering or already using AWS. While it’s relatively straightforward to create an S3 bucket or EC2 virtual server, ensuring that they are created securely and with ongoing costs minimized takes expertise.

An MSP that understands your business is in the best position to optimize any AWS resources to fit your current and future needs.  

As you continue to use AWS over time, it’s typical for costs to steadily increase as the services are used more. Most businesses continue to add data and increase the use of their servers driving up storage and computer costs. An MSP has specialized tools and expertise to analyze your AWS instances and help you optimize your costs and experience. These assessments create an opportunity for you and the MSP to review best practices and stay in alignment on how AWS is helping you achieve your business goals. Just as important as these periodic assessments, your MSP can monitor AWS continuously to ensure that any spikes in usage or newly discovered security threats can be readily investigated and addressed.

AWS + A Trusted MSP = Peak Performance

As your business discovers the incredible power of AWS, you need a trusted IT partner to help you fully and securely leverage this resource. The more you put your business-critical assets in the cloud, the more you need to protect them and ensure they’re performing optimally. As we discussed above, an MSP can help you:

  • Securely deploy
  • Optimize costs
  • Monitor and manage
  • Consult on best practices
  • Optimize performance

An MSP partner will help bring their IT expertise to your business, helping map out a custom strategy for you to harness the power of the cloud. Whether your business is primarily attracted to AWS as a way to use Operational Expenses (OpEx) for your IT infrastructure, or to benefit from the speed and scale of the cloud, you want to make sure that you get this critical investment and strategic planning done properly. A Managed Services Provider like Net Friends will give you the guidance you need and will stand by their recommendations by committing to manage these resources for you.  

Reach out to Net Friends today to either begin or continue your cloud journey. Just like any great IT adventure, you’ll want to bring along a [net] friend with you to make sure you get the most out of the experience.

WHAT TO READ NEXT:
- 6 Most Common IT Concerns for Small Businesses
- Why Businesses Are Switching from CapEx to OpEx for their IT Investments
- Why Small Businesses Choose Microsoft Azure

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