Multi Cloud Kubernetes is a Unique Take Towards Both Concepts

More than 90% of the organizations around the world are actively using some form of cloud computing tech. Whether it’s infrastructure, data storage, or the many other solutions offered in the cloud, it’s hard to deny the profound impact that cloud technology has had on our lives. As impactful as a traditional cloud approach is, there are ways to improve on it, namely with multi cloud Kubernetes. 

Oracle estimates that 98% of enterprises using public clouds have adopted a multi cloud infrastructure, working with a handful of cloud providers to choose the best services from each. In fact, a large majority of the organizations that are using a cloud infrastructure chose a multi cloud approach. Enthusiasm towards this approach shows no signs of slowing down, with Kubernetes singing a similar tune.

Kubernetes, a popular open-source container orchestrator, has become the go-to solution for over 50,000 organizations worldwide, with adoption rate in the United States alone being 52.4%. And for good reason, too. Kubernetes users site increased scalability and flexibility, higher cost savings, and stronger solution uptime and just some of the benefits of the container orchestrator. 

Kubernetes deployments within a single cloud are capable of achieving unparalleled automation for services while freeing up much needed resources and development time. What would Kubernetes deployed on multiple clouds entail?

What is the Kubernetes Multi Cloud Approach? 

At a glance, the Kubernetes service is responsible for managing containerized workloads. Kubernetes is responsible for providing a framework that runs and manages these different workloads, while taking care of scaling and health checks. 

In order to provide the best management to containers, Kubernetes clusters are deployed. Kubernetes clusters are nodes that run containerized workloads, equipped with a central control plane that is responsible for mobilizing a pod of containers. Kubernetes operations sees clusters deployed onto clouds, with a multicloud Kubernetes approach involving one of two strategies:

• Single cluster deployed and existing in multiple clouds, such as with Azure and Google Cloud Platform
• Multiple clusters deployed and existing within multiple clouds, connecting them through a centralized layer

It’s important to note that the second architecture is also seen as a multi cluster Kubernetes deployment and offers a higher degree of flexibility, but may also incur higher costs and networking challenges. In any case, multi cloud Kubernetes clusters provide immense scalability to companies looking to take up the challenge. 

Building and using a Kubernetes multi cloud architecture is perfect for teams looking for reliable cloud operations and cost efficiency, though at the expense of increased complexity and security risks.

Multicloud Kubernetes Benefits

In itself, a multi cloud approach presents a ton of unparalleled benefits. When coupled with an automated orchestrator such as Kubernetes, companies hosting this tech are subject to experience benefits such as:

Removing the Threat of Vendor Lock-In

One of the biggest hurdles within a single cloud deployment is vendor lock-in. 

Cloud providers offer core parts of a solution, like infrastructure and storage, as well as unique and niche solutions within a single ecosystem, making it extremely convenient for companies to build an application from the ground up. While a single cloud approach works for some organizations, many companies find themselves becoming too dependent on the solutions offered by their providers, subjecting them to any price changes or service sunset the provider sees fit. In fact, this very case has happened with one cloud provider this year, leaving many users scratching their heads, wondering what to do next. 

The fact of the matter is, migrating from a single cloud after your app has become dependent on it is extremely difficult. Not only is migrating data and services strenuous, but finding alternatives to the niche solutions that these providers create are often a challenge in itself. Because of this, many companies find themselves trapped with their current provider, forced to pay ever-increasing cloud bills just to keep their solution afloat. 

Using multiple clouds allows companies to escape vendor lock-in, while increasing their reliability and uptime. Organizations can strategically spread out their solution usage to different clouds, ensuring that their app still operates even if one cloud is down. While open source alternatives to unique solutions offered by a single cloud are hard to find, a multi cloud approach represents a long term solution compared to the short term gain of a single cloud provider. 

Stronger Disaster Recovery and Backup Measures

In the same vein, single cloud dependence extends itself to cloud service outages. Just this year, Microsoft and AWS experienced outages, creating issues when trying to access critical services like S3 storage, Microsoft 365, AWS RDS, and so on. An outage from a cloud provider means that solutions built with their services are also out. How does a multi cloud Kubernetes approach help combat this?

Having multiple clouds in your toolbelt allows you to simply shift operations to another cloud if one experiences outages. Organizations can also replicate their services into another cloud, having those run at the same time as the main infrastructure in order to preserve business continuity. Along with the strong health capabilities of Kubernetes, these multi cloud backups allow you to operate normally, worry free of disaster. 

Increased Cost Efficiency

For some companies, working with multiple cloud providers may prove to be more cost effective than working with a single provider.

A traditional multi cloud deployment sees companies picking and choosing services from individual cloud providers, combining them to make up their deployment strategy. In most cases, cloud providers will offer their services in a pay-as-you-go model within a contract, allowing companies to jump from cloud to cloud if they find their services don’t meet expectations. Oftentimes, sales reps will offer more competitive pricing if it means having another company work with their provider as well.

Injecting Much Needed Flexibility 

When working with a single cloud provider, your access to tech is only limited to the tech that your provider offers. Open source solutions can be integrated, however it isn’t guaranteed that integration will sit well within a single cloud ecosystem. 

Having multiple cloud providers enables companies to pick and choose between services that providers offer. If certain providers are known for certain services, companies working with providers can mix and match these solutions and create a deployment that’s unique to them. The flexibility of choice extends to factors such as cost saving, availability, innovation roadmap, and so much more. 

With Kubernetes being as portable as it is already, companies looking to switch from a single cloud provider to a multi cloud deployment will have an easier time doing so. 

Multi-Cloud Kubernetes Cons and Challenges 

A multi cloud approach coupled with the power of Kubernetes presents unparalleled benefits for the organizations taking that route. However, shifting to multi cloud environments also creates its own set of challenges and cons to be cognizant of:

Management and Integration Complexity

Different clouds have different ways of operating. From provisioning multiple Kubernetes clusters to mobilizing resources allocation through different APIs, working with each cloud will be a highly individualized experience. While multi cloud is a long term solution, the initial integration process will be extremely complex, especially considering that some cloud providers complicate the way their services interact with their own environment. Not only will your team be responsible for integrating these services into a single app and creating a competent communication network, but you may require specialists to work with certain services.

With the amount of different moving parts within a multi cloud deployment, multi cloud Kubernetes management can be a struggle for teams that aren’t well equipped to handle it. In the event that hiring a specialist is the most efficient option, a multi cloud deployment might not be the best solution cost-wise. Teams looking to switch from a single cloud to a multi cloud loadout must be aware of the initial complexity of integrating, and the long term task of efficient management. 

Security Worries

Involving more than one cloud in your environment opens it up to more security leveraging, especially when it comes to public cloud. With all complex systems, it’s important to be wary of the security risks that a big change can introduce. What can you do to safeguard your systems?

Multi Cloud Kubernetes Success Stories

While multi cloud Kubernetes isn’t necessarily the newest innovation, the profound impact this combination of tech has had on its user is undeniable. Here are some stories of organizations that have found success:

JP Morgan Chase

JP Morgan Chase uses a multi cloud Kubernetes platform in order to manage mission-critical applications. Because the applications dealt with the company’s trading up, a minimum of 99.99% uptime was expected- multi cloud Kubernetes delivered that and more, further reducing infrastructure overhead by 40%.

Amazon

A huge provider of cloud services itself through AWS, the parent company Amazon uses multi cloud Kubernetes for its online retailer service. Deployments from multiple clouds allow the titan to handle unexpected traffic hikes during peak seasons through workload distribution. An impressive 30% improvement to application responsiveness can be attributed to their multi cloud Kubernetes deployment strategy, with the preservation of business continuity being another welcomed result.

Form3

Form3 is a fully managed payment technology platform. Previously working with a single cloud provider, Form3 eventually took the leap and adopted a multi cloud Kubernetes strategy, increasing their uptime and reducing disasters as a result. Using three different cloud providers, Form3 utilized each Kubernetes solution offered by each platform, providing a truly unique approach to the proven strategy. 

Transitioning to a Multi Cloud Architecture with Lyrid

Multi cloud Kubernetes represents the combination of efficient cloud operations with powerful Kubernetes automation. By mobilizing Kubernetes clusters through multiple clouds, companies can enjoy the flexibility and cost-effectiveness of a traditional multi cloud deployment with the scalability and headache-free operations of Kubernetes.

The benefits and strengths of multi cloud Kubernetes are certainly undeniable, but so are its shortcomings. Let’s face it, deploying multi cloud Kubernetes can be hard, let alone managing it. 

Lyrid is here to help. 

Lyrid’s Managed Kubernetes solution centralizes management and deployment of Kubernetes clusters across multiple clouds, all within a single interface. Our platform walks you through the most critical steps of Kubernetes, including cluster provisioning, cluster configurations, resource auto scaling, and more. Our managed Kubernetes solution is also open source, letting you integrate your favorite plugins and other preconfigured solutions to your liking. Deploy and manage however you dream possible with Lyrid. In the demo below, we deployed our clusters across three different providers, including cloud providers like Google Cloud and AWS, as well as on-prem infrastructure like the ones hosted by our partner Biznet GioCloud.

To learn more about Lyrid Managed Kubernetes and the Lyrid cloud platform, book a call with one of our product specialists! We would be happy to walk you through our platform!