Businesses here have started tapping into "cloud" computing services over the past several years, but each is using the cloud differently, depending on the size and structure of the business, some technology industry experts here say. Also, some businesses here say they're holding off leaping to the cloud until they can see clear cost advantages.

Josh Hagel, owner of Spokane Web development company Linchpin Studios LLC, says, cloud computing initially was seen as an impractical option for most businesses, reserved for those that had the time and financial means to maintain a then-complicated technological approach to remote data storage and communication.

"You had to be a professional to do it," Hagel says, pointing out that even if servers were familiar territory for some, cloud computing was, in essence, a new frontier.

He says within the last three years, however, the technology that previously was too complicated to be an asset for most businesses transformed into something Hagel now regards as straightforward and practical.

Josh King, vice president of operations at Spokane-based Peacock Virtual Solutions LLC, says that in simple terms, cloud computing enables businesses to use off-site data storage and programs accessible through the Internet instead of buying software and installing it on in-house computer systems or servers, allowing a user to manage and share information from any machine, King says. Cloud computing in its simplest form would be something such as Google mail, he says, because mail is hosted on an off-site server, or the cloud, rather than on an internal email server.

"Your web-accessible device becomes that portal; it's a means to access that data, but it's not my life," King says. "If the battery dies, I'm not out of luck."

He says he perceives the size of the business affecting how that business utilizes cloud services. He says the trend is for smaller businesses to use cloud services as the backbone of their operations for everything from data storage to email.

"They're picking it up as a way to run the business from the back end," King says.

For larger businesses, he says, the trend has been to use cloud technology more for data management and office connectivity. King says larger businesses started picking up on cloud technology before smaller businesses began relying on those services.

"Larger businesses are using it for the same reasons, but more on the data storage, file management side," he says. "How do we make sure certain groups have access to certain files no matter where they're located?"

King and Hagel see cloud computing as a way for smaller businesses to streamline their processes while keeping overhead low. For some firms and larger businesses that have operated for years on their own servers, the transition can be more difficult, and some, like Coffman Engineering Inc., have found that it's not in the company's best interest to move all operations to a cloud server.

"It's a lot easier to start fresh in the cloud than migrate from the old," Hagel says.

Pete Krueger, IT manager for the Spokane office of Coffman Engineering, says that the company looked seriously at using the cloud for its backups, but found that wasn't cost effective, given the company's current operations.

Coffman Engineering, which occupies offices here at 10 N. Post downtown, currently uses what are called optimization services provided through Riverbed Technology, a San Francisco-based IT company, to streamline file sharing between office locations. Krueger says Riverbed does have cloud capabilities. However, to push backups to the cloud through Riverbed, Coffman would have to purchase a new piece of equipment, one that Krueger says is too expensive to justify at this point.

"All of our needs are basically being met right now with the solutions we have in place," Krueger says. "It would be a bit more streamlined to go that way, but not enough to offset the cost."

Krueger says the cost for the company to back up to a cloud server would have been 10 cents per gigabyte a month. The engineering firm currently backs up about 8 terabytes of data a month, which equates to more than 8,000 gigabytes, or $800 a month if applying the cloud service fee.

"It's probably an option later on, but it just needs to get more cost effective," Krueger says. "The technology is still kind of new, and it doesn't really work for us at this point."

The engineering firm uses design software that generates large file formats. Krueger says the firm mostly uses AutoCAD, two-dimensional and three-dimensional design software, and Autodesk's Revit, a program for architectural and engineering modeling.

Krueger says although cloud services for backups at Coffman aren't a feasible option at this point due to its current IT restraints. Coffman does use what could be called a private cloud for disaster recovery and client file transfer protocol sites.

"All our FTP is through the cloud," Krueger says. "We set up FTP sites to collaborate with our clients."

Krueger says those FTP sites allow clients to access plans and files. Each project has its own FTP site that is password protected.

"If our clients need to get a file to us, and if it's too big for email, they can go to that FTP site and they can copy the file to there," he says.

Krueger says the engineering firm uses a hosting company for all FTP sites, keeping them off company servers for security reasons.

Hagel speculates that storing content off-site in the cloud can be more secure than keeping files on-site.

"If you're storing that information locally, the odds of you staying up on security patches and firewalls is actually very low," Hagel says. "If you go in the cloud, they have security departments where that's what they do and they monitor their network."

Krueger says the equipment Coffman Engineering was looking into buying encrypted any data pushed to the cloud, keeping data fairly secure.

The Spokane office of Coffman Engineering acts as a hub for disaster recovery. Krueger says important project files from other offices are copied and pushed to the Spokane location through a private cloud. Critical files sometimes are backed up as frequently as every half hour.

"Anything that changes throughout the day gets replicated to Spokane," he says, adding that this centralized backup plan still is cheaper for the firm than a cloud alternative.

Other firms are beginning to adopt pieces of cloud technology, but still are managing to keep portions of storage on-site. Paul Anastasi, managing partner and certified public accountant for Anastasi & Moore PLLC, a Spokane-based accounting firm, says his firm plans to migrate to a virtual desktop format, something he says can best be described as a mini cloud.

With this format, Anastasi's firm will push desktop operations to servers located at a service provider

Anastasi says the move which is expected to happen in early November, will increase efficiency and give employees the ability to operate remotely.

"There are a lot of people traveling or who are working parents, and the more flexibility they have to do their work in remote locations, the better," Anastasi says.

He says the firm will still have an on-site server used for backups, but backups also will be stored off-site. Anastasi says several other accounting firms, including Spokane Valley-based Dingus, Zarecor & Associates PLLC and Anderson Peretti & Co. CPAs PS, use the technology Anastasi plans on implementing in a few weeks.

For smaller businesses, or newer ventures, Hagel says free, cloud-based services, such as Google mail, or Dropbox, provide a host of options that can help them to cut operating costs. For Linchpin Studios, which is in the process of migrating completely to the cloud, Hagel says his staffing needs don't warrant switching from the free version over to the paid version of Google apps, a collaboration service that offers email capabilities, and internet-based word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation services.

"The cloud has basically changed how we deal with information and store it," Hagel says.