Cloud Computing
Portability
Definition
In cloud computing, portability is the ability to move applications and data from one cloud environment to another with minimal disruption. This can be between different public cloud providers or between a public and a private cloud.
Why It Matters
Portability is a key goal for organizations that want to avoid vendor lock-in and maintain flexibility. It gives them the freedom to migrate workloads to a different provider if they find better pricing, performance, or features elsewhere.
Contextual Example
An application built on standard open-source technologies like Kubernetes is highly portable. The same container images and configuration files can be used to deploy it on Amazon EKS, Google GKE, or Azure AKS.
Common Misunderstandings
- Achieving 100% portability is often difficult and may require sacrificing the use of a cloud provider's unique, value-added services.
- Cloud-agnostic tools and architectures are designed to maximize portability.