Cloud file transfer: upgrade to the most secure cloud configuration

I get it. You’re probably thinking, “Cloud file transfer? We already have an MFT solution and it’s checking all our boxes. Why rock the boat now?”

Large organizations that rely on MFT have mature, dedicated teams. They’ve invested time and resources into building a well-oiled process – and they really don’t want to change it.

On the other hand, the complexity of MFT operations is growing, as is the sheer volume of transfers. You might be embarking on a risky journey without even knowing it. Here’s why a managed cloud file transfer solution is likely the best answer to enterprise requirements surrounding modernization, security, compliance, and resilience.

We’re all in a forced march to the cloud

You may soon have little choice on cloud adoption. You might be facing an EOS/EOL announcement, or fast-changing security standards. It may seem a bit odd to talk about cloud modernization in 2024, as it’s virtually a given by now.

But for MFT, this is a substantial shift: you don’t move the plumbing in a house overnight, and that’s what MFT is. MFT is the foundation of all the pipes of data transfer that have been inside enterprises for decades, and to disrupt that and modernize by leveraging cloud technology is no small task.

At the same time, in 2024, businesses see cloud migration not just as a cost-saving measure but as a crucial catalyst for innovation, agility, and success across industries. Other drivers and benefits to cloud adoption include:

AI-as-a-Service: In the race to leverage AI, Cloud services offer a fast ramp – a very fast and very available playground for your teams to engage and innovate on.

Increased adoption and benefits of serverless computing: it is still in its very early stages for the file transfer space, but it is a growing topic of conversation. Serverless computing helps reduce the burden in managing infrastructure, which is significant.

Sustainable Cloud Computing: we are seeing great improvements by providers around net zero commitments, allowing enterprises to better leverage the cloud to meet their sustainability goals.

It’s not just about lifting and shifting your MFT to the cloud. It’s about using this opportunity to modernize and clean up your integrations. We see this significant focus in our customer base in the following ways:

• Organizational disruption, with cloud-enthusiastic leadership changes at the most senior levels
• Aggressive cloud initiatives with timelines that require monumental change and disruption in 2-4 years (these are accompanied by many cloud feature requests)
• Re-skilling, requiring heavy investment in upskilling teams to support cloud tech
• New competition from cloud native hyperscalers that are being considered as a viable replacement

Finally, we’ve now reached a tipping point where cloud spend is starting to outgrow traditional, non-cloud spend and we’re in a trajectory that’s expected to grow aggressively in the next couple of years.

Cloud modernization requires ongoing expert support

It’s only a matter of time before you’ll find yourself backed into a corner as business applications move their operations to the cloud.

The good news is, it’s not a black-and-white proposition. Large, mature organizations are best served by an enterprise-grade, dedicated, and high-end solution in the cloud. But the cloud has many colors.

Today’s emerging reality is that enterprises need solutions that work in a hybrid cloud model. They have a mix of legacy systems that continue to run on-premises, which need to interconnect with the cloud, whether it’s single- or multi-tenant, and regardless of the vendor.

4 out of 5 companies today use multiple IaaS or PaaS providers, making hybrid cloud a standard necessity.

In most large enterprises, nobody wants to get married to one vendor, so being able to operate within multi-cloud scenarios is becoming the normal architectural pattern – especially with considerations like SecNumCloud or sovereign cloud in specific regions.

Axway can offer the flexibility of a truly hybrid cloud, off the shelf – and not just some degree of openness with connectors or a technical bridge to other clouds.

That flexibility means you can move to the cloud on your terms – without negatively impacting daily operations. And it’s much simpler when you let trusted experts do the heavy lifting.

Learn more about Zero-downtime updates for MFT.

Do you really want to be in the business of risk management?

The volume of transactions is exploding to serve new digital experiences your customers have come to expect. Meanwhile, cybersecurity threats come to light almost daily as you deal with stricter regulatory compliance, and more pressing IT governance, cloud sovereignty, and SLA concerns.

See also: How to support secure MFT amid the data breach crisis

Oh, and there are also IT talent shortages to contend with. Can you afford to spend time and resources doing all of this? Do you really want to continue to internalize resources and skills to manage all this complexity?

The truth is, there’s never been a more secure cloud. All major providers have invested heavily to build better security and resiliency capabilities to win more confidence and trust.

Especially with evolutions around quantum safe cloud computing coming into effect in 2024, it’s becoming more and more viable for enterprises to consider the cloud as a place that they could leverage and use safely with their data.

With an MFT solution that’s operated for you in the cloud, you don’t need to worry about having the skills and expertise in-house to manage these complex operations.

A real-life managed cloud file transfer implementation

Growing information security requirements were one reason Textron sought out a managed cloud file transfer solution. Founded in 1923 and headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Textron is a multi-industry company with a global network of aerospace, defense and intelligence, industrial, and financial businesses.

Previously, the company leveraged an on-premises deployment of Axway SecureTransport to meet its demanding file transfer requirements. But over time, they found they were spending more and more of their time remediating vulnerabilities and firefighting security threats such as DDoS attacks and invalid login requests.

They wanted to spend less time on management and maintenance tasks and more time supporting the business. So, Textron moved their proven SecureTransport solution to Axway Managed Cloud Services for MFT: a fully managed service backed by the technical expertise of a world-class support team.

Our experts worked with Textron to carefully plan their cloud migration, but the lift was worth it:

“We no longer need to spend our days and nights remediating vulnerabilities and firefighting technical issues — with the Axway Cloud, we can focus on delivering value-added services to the business,” says Al Gutierrez, IT Senior Architect at Textron.

Learn more about how Textron made their move to a managed service delivered in the cloud in the following interview, or read the full case study here.

If we are managing, hosting, and operating cloud MFT on your behalf, we have the watch so you can have peace of mind. Our security teams know how to manage this type of situation and secure critical data flows around the world, with 24/7 availability.

Do you really want to continue to manage this complexity and expose yourself to risks for which you may not have the resources or skills?

Managed services like cloud MFT are starting to make a lot of sense

Ernst & Young analysts note that adopting managed services can be a faster, more effective route to transformation:

“Businesses that are ready to let managed services take on those functions that are board-critical but not business-differentiating can free leaders to focus on the innovation that will drive recovery.”

MFT needs to be an integral part of your overall digital transformation process, and you can’t have digital transformation without the cloud. The world is moving to adopt a SaaS (Software as a Service) model, which is why I believe tomorrow’s MFT will be an outsourced cloud MFT, managed by an expert vendor on behalf of their customers.

Axway Managed Cloud Services gives you the best of both worlds: the power of a cloud platform with the business and technical expertise of a world-class team. Here’s what that means:

• A single-tenant, private cloud; we operate server space storage on AWS or Azure for you, in any region.
• We protect your enterprise against the latest cloud-based security threats, vulnerabilities, and intrusions with the most robust security accreditations available.
• Our SLA is platinum-level with 99.99% availability. It’s MFT you can depend on, with a guarantee you simply won’t find elsewhere.
• And we’ll be there every step of the way.

For more than twenty years, we’ve been securely managing critical business process environments and lowering operational costs for hundreds of enterprises. Let our reliable experts operate, manage, and secure your MFT processes while you take care of more important things – like growing your business.