Cloud Services We Manage
“The cloud” covers several different kinds of service, and each one changes how much you manage yourself. Software as a service (SaaS) is a finished application you log into, such as Microsoft 365. Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is rented servers and storage that you or your IT partner configure. Desktop as a service sits between the two. Most small businesses end up using a mix.
Managed Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 runs the email, Teams, and file sharing most offices depend on, and it is often the first cloud service a business adopts. Managed Microsoft 365 means we handle setup, licensing, security settings, and user support, so the subscription you already pay for is configured properly instead of left at its defaults. That includes multifactor authentication, sensible sharing rules for SharePoint and OneDrive, and an independent backup, because Microsoft keeps the service running but only keeps deleted data for a limited time.
Cloud Infrastructure (IaaS)
Some software still needs a server, such as an older accounting package, a line of business database, or a file share too large for OneDrive. Cloud infrastructure lets you run those servers in a data center operated by a major public cloud such as Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, or Google Cloud, instead of on hardware in your office. You size the server to what the software needs today and change it later without buying anything.
Virtual Desktops (VDI and DaaS)
A virtual desktop is a full Windows desktop that runs in the cloud and appears on whatever device your staff use: an office PC, a laptop at home, or a tablet at a job site. Files and applications stay in the data center rather than on the device, so a lost laptop does not carry company files with it. With VDI you own and manage the platform. Desktop as a service is the subscription version, which is usually simpler for a smaller team.
Hybrid and Multi-Cloud
Not everything belongs in one place. A hybrid setup keeps some systems on site and moves others to the cloud, and many businesses stay that way permanently because it suits how they work. Multi-cloud means using more than one provider, for example Microsoft 365 for email and files alongside a different platform for a specialized application. It adds flexibility and some complexity, so it should be a deliberate choice rather than an accident.
Cloud Migration
Cloud migration services cover the work of moving email, files, servers, and applications from your own equipment to the cloud. Most of the effort happens before anything moves: taking inventory, deciding what goes where, and planning the cutover so staff can keep working.
Deciding What Belongs in the Cloud
The most useful question is not “should we move to the cloud?” but “which of our systems should move, and when?” Answering it one workload at a time avoids the two common mistakes: moving something that runs better where it is, and leaving something on an aging server long after the cloud would have been cheaper and safer. When the honest answer is “some of each,” a hybrid cloud setup lets every system run where it works best.
Workloads That Usually Move Easily
Email, calendars, everyday documents, and shared folders are the natural starting point, along with software the vendor already offers as SaaS. Many practice management, EHR, and accounting vendors now sell a cloud version, so the move is often a matter of switching editions and migrating data rather than building anything.
Workloads That Need a Closer Look
Older applications that expect a database on the same local network can run slowly or break when moved without changes. Software tied to a physical device, such as a lab instrument, a plotter, or equipment on a manufacturing floor, may need a local component no matter what. These systems can often still move, but they need testing first and sometimes a hybrid design.
Files That Are Simply Large
Dental imaging, architectural and construction drawings, and video projects produce large files. Opening a large file from the cloud depends entirely on your internet speed, so these often work best with a local copy that syncs, or with a virtual desktop that keeps the heavy files and the software together in the data center.
Whatever moves, the cloud makes your internet connection part of your infrastructure. An office that runs everything from the cloud needs a connection sized for it and, for most businesses, a second connection from a different provider so one outage does not stop work.
Common Reasons to Move Now
Many businesses move to the cloud when something forces the question. The common triggers are:
- A server reaching end of life. Microsoft ends extended support for Windows Server 2016 on January 12, 2027, after which it no longer receives regular security updates. A business still running it has to upgrade, replace the server, or move the workload.
- Staff working from more places. Remote and hybrid work is far easier when files and applications are reachable securely from anywhere.
- An office move or lease change. Moving a server room is expensive and risky, and a move is a natural point to stop owning one.
- Keeping the business running during outages. During Santa Ana wind events, Southern California Edison has shut off power to customers in Los Angeles and Ventura counties as a fire precaution. Systems in the cloud stay reachable when the office is dark, so staff can keep working from home.
What Cloud Services Really Cost
The cloud is often cheaper than owning servers, but not automatically. You trade a large hardware purchase every few years for a predictable monthly cost, which is easier to budget and spreads out cash flow. The savings disappear, though, when nobody manages the account. Bills climb quietly through servers left running after a project ends, storage that grows without cleanup, and resources sized for a peak that never comes. Right-sizing those resources is ongoing work, not a one time setup.
When you compare quotes from cloud service providers, ask how each of these is handled:
The cheapest arrangement that still works is usually the one reviewed regularly, where unused resources are shut off and servers are resized as needs change.
- Compute and storage, priced by size and by how many hours servers run.
- Licensing, including Microsoft 365 plans, Windows Server, and any database or application licenses that move with the workload.
- Data transfer, since moving large amounts of data out of a cloud provider can carry charges that are easy to overlook.
- Backup and recovery, which is usually separate from the base service.
- Migration labor, a one time cost that depends on how many systems move and how much testing they need.
- Ongoing management, meaning monitoring, patching, security, user support, and regular cost reviews.
Who Secures What in the Cloud
Cloud security works on a shared responsibility model. The provider secures the physical data centers, the hardware, and the core platform. You, or the partner managing your cloud, are responsible for what sits on top: your data, who can sign in, how settings are configured, and how accounts are protected. The split shifts with the type of service. With SaaS such as Microsoft 365, the provider runs the application and you control users, sharing, and data. With IaaS, you also own the server’s operating system, patching, and network rules.
The NSA’s Top Ten Cloud Security Mitigation Strategies, published in March 2024 with CISA as a partner on several of them, puts upholding the shared responsibility model first. In practice, the customer side of cloud security comes down to a few habits:
Our cloud security service covers this customer side: access controls, configuration reviews, monitoring, and response.
- Identity first. Multifactor authentication on every account, separate administrator accounts, and access removed promptly when people leave.
- Settings reviewed, not assumed. Sharing, storage, and network settings checked against a baseline instead of left at defaults.
- Logs kept and watched. Sign-in and administrative activity recorded long enough to investigate a problem.
- Your provider held to the same standard. The same NSA guidance has a separate item on managing risk from service providers, which applies to us as much as anyone.
Cloud Services for Medical, Dental, and Legal Offices
Regulated data can live in the cloud, but the paperwork and settings have to be right. For practices that handle electronic protected health information, every cloud provider that creates, receives, stores, or transmits that data is a business associate under HIPAA and needs a signed business associate agreement. HHS guidance is explicit that encryption alone does not remove that requirement: a provider that stores only encrypted data, without the key, is still a business associate. Signing the agreement is also only the start, because the provider’s agreement covers its side, while access controls, audit logging, and sharing settings remain the practice’s job. Our HIPAA compliance services cover the risk analysis, policies, and documentation that sit around the technology.
Law firms and financial offices face similar questions about client confidentiality, retention, and who can reach which files. The same principles apply: know where the data lives, limit access to the people who need it, and keep a record of who opened what.
How a Cloud Migration Runs
The difference between a smooth move and a painful one usually comes down to planning. A well run migration usually follows the same sequence:
You do not have to move everything at once. For most small businesses, a staged move spread over several weeks is both safer and easier for staff to absorb.
- Inventory. List every system, its data, its users, its licenses, and who holds the administrator passwords.
- Decide workload by workload. Choose what moves, what stays, and what gets replaced by a SaaS version.
- Design. Plan identity, security settings, network access, backup, and the monthly cost before anything moves.
- Pilot. Move a small group of users or one system first and fix what the pilot reveals.
- Migrate in waves. Schedule cutovers after hours or over a weekend, with a rollback plan if something does not work.
- Decommission and tune. Retire the old hardware safely, wipe its drives, and review the new setup once real usage settles.
Planning the Exit Before You Move In
It sounds backward, but the best time to plan leaving a cloud provider is before you sign. Confirm that you can export your data in a usable format, that your business owns the administrator accounts rather than a vendor, and what the contract says about notice periods and data deletion at the end. These details cost nothing to settle at the start and can be expensive to untangle later, whether you change providers or change IT partners.
Local Cloud Support in Los Angeles
Cloud services in Los Angeles run over the same internet as anywhere else, but planning a move and running it well afterward is easier with a partner who can sit down with you in person. Cloud work is part of our managed IT services in Los Angeles, so the same team that supports your staff also manages the cloud behind them.
That proximity matters on the days a migration needs hands on equipment, such as retiring an old server, wiping its drives, or installing a second internet connection. We work with medical and dental practices, law firms, financial offices, construction companies, and manufacturers, and the right cloud solutions look different for each, depending on their software, their file sizes, and the equipment that has to stay on site.
If you are weighing a move, or want a second opinion on a cloud setup you already have, book a free consultation and our team will review what you run today, what would benefit from the cloud, and what it would realistically cost.