Hybrid Cloud Defined
Hybrid cloud is an IT architecture that combines on-premise infrastructure (or colocation) with one or more public cloud platforms, connected by networking and unified by management tools. Workloads are placed where they run best: latency-sensitive applications near users, burstable workloads in the cloud, regulated data in controlled environments.
Architecture Patterns
Common hybrid patterns include: cloud bursting (on-prem primary, cloud for peak demand), tiered storage (hot data on-prem, warm/cold data in cloud), dev/test in cloud with production on-prem, and distributed applications spanning both environments. The choice depends on workload characteristics, data gravity, and compliance requirements.
Connectivity Requirements
Hybrid cloud demands reliable, low-latency connectivity between environments. Direct cloud on-ramps (AWS Direct Connect, Azure ExpressRoute) provide dedicated bandwidth with consistent performance. SD-WAN overlays enable intelligent routing between on-prem and multi-cloud resources. Bandwidth requirements scale with data movement — workloads with heavy data transfer between environments need substantial dedicated connectivity.
When to Choose Hybrid Cloud
Choose hybrid when different workloads have different requirements — compliance-sensitive data stays on-prem while scalable applications run in cloud. When you want to avoid all-in cloud vendor lock-in. When legacy applications cannot be refactored for cloud but new applications benefit from cloud-native services. When economics favor colo for baseline with cloud for burst.
Common Pitfalls
Underestimating connectivity costs and latency between environments degrades application performance. Treating hybrid as a temporary state (we'll fully migrate later) leads to under-investment in management tooling. Not standardizing infrastructure-as-code across both environments creates operational fragmentation and skills gaps.