Are You Spending Too Much on the Cloud?

Cloud computing has revolutionised the way businesses operate, offering scalability, flexibility,and cost savings.

However, many companies are not optimising their cloud usage and end up wasting money on unused, unneeded, or underutilised resources.

In 2024, cloud waste averaged 32% for businesses.

That’s a large chunk of a company’s spending being wasted when it could be optimised.

With companies using so many cloud apps these days,cloud infrastructure budgeting should be a high priority for any business.

So how can you avoid cloud waste at your business and make the most of your cloud investment?

Here are some tips to help you reduce costs and improve efficiency.

Monitor and analyse your cloud usage.

 The first step to reducing cloud waste is to understand how you are using your cloud services and where you can optimise.

You can use tools like Microsoft Cost Management to track your cloud spending, identify trends,and get recommendations for cost optimisation.

Implementing cloud-use monitoring tools like this can also help you set budgets, alerts, and policies to prevent overspending and enforce best practices.

Right size your cloud resources.

One of the main sources of cloud waste is over provisioning, which means allocating morere sources than you actually need.

For example, you may be paying for a premium cloud application plan and only be using a fraction of its capacity, leaving alot of waste.

To avoid paying formore than you need, you should regularly review your resource use and adjustthe size, type, and configuration of your resources to match your actual needs.

You can also use automation tools to dynamically scale your resources based on demand.

Delete or archive unused or idle resources.

Another common sourceof cloud waste is keeping resources that are no longer needed or used.

For example, you may have forgotten to delete a test environment after a project iscompleted, or you may have snapshots or backups that are outdated or redundant.

To avoid this, you should implement a lifecycle management policy that defines when and how todelete or archive your resources.

You can also use tools like AWS Trusted Advisor or Azure Advisor to identify and remove unused or idle resources.

Optimise your cloud storage.

 Cloud storage is one of the largest components of cloud spending, and it can also be one of the mostwasteful if not managed properly.

To optimise your cloud storage, you should consider the following factors:

• Storage Class: Different storage classes have different performance, availability, and pricingcharacteristics. You should choose the storage class that best suits your data access patterns and retention requirements. For example, you can use hot storage for frequently accessed data, cold storage for infrequently accesseddata, and archive storage for rarely accessed data.
• Compression: Compression can reduce the size of your data and lower your storage costs. You can use compression tools to compress your data before uploading it to the cloud or use built-in compression features offered by some cloud services.
• Deduplication: Deduplication can eliminate duplicate copies of data and reduce your storage footprint. You can use deduplication tools to automatically move duplicate data to lower-cost tiers or delete them.

Leverage reserved instances and spot instances.

 Reserved instances and spot instances are two ways to save money on cloud computing by committing to acertain amount of usage or taking advantage of market fluctuations.

 Reserved instance sallow you to reserve capacity for a fixed period of time (usually one or three years) and get a significant discount compared to on-demand pricing.

 Spot instances allow you to bid for spare capacity that is available at a lower price than on-demandpricing but with the risk of being interrupted at any time.

You can use reserved instances for predictable and steady workloads, and spot instances forflexible and interruptible workloads.

Educate your team on cost awareness.

 Creating awareness about cloud costs among your team members is essential.

Educate developers,administrators, and other stakeholders about the financial implications oftheir actions in the cloud.

Discourage “shadowIT,” which is the use of cloud tools by employees without getting proper clearance first.

Encourage best practices such as tagging resources,implementing cost-effective architectures, and adhering to optimisationguidelines.

A cost-aware culture can significantly contribute to reducing cloud waste.

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Need Help Eliminating Your Cloud Waste?

Cloud waste can multiply fast if you don’t have a plan to address it.

Cloud cost optimisation is not aone-time activity, but an ongoing process that requires constant monitoring,analysis, and adjustment.

By doing so, you can enjoy the benefits of cloud computing without breaking the bank.

 Does your Melbourne area business need help taming its cloud spending?

Please contact us today fora free consultation. Call 1 300 991 030 or fill out the form on this page.

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