Originally posted on http://www.vmware.com by Keith Nakasone

There are many types of cloud solutions and architectures, each with their unique benefits to agencies. In this blog post, the second of four in the multi-cloud series, we will discuss the differences of multi-cloud and hybrid-cloud architectures. You can find the first post of the series, here.

The pandemic has created an opportunity for the private and public sector to consider alternative solutions to ensure that work can continue from any cloud, any application, and any device. Virtual work is the new normal for many organizations, and we need to ensure that we have a common understanding of cloud solutions moving forward.

Multi-cloud is being discussed at length in government circles right now, but we receive varying definitions of multi-cloud —and a lot of overlap between “hybrid cloud” and “multi-cloud.”

So, what’s the difference between hybrid cloud and multi-cloud? 

In a hybrid cloud environment, an agency runs a combination of private and public clouds. VMware, for example, has partnered with the Space Force to implement a hybrid cloud that leverages the elasticity of unclassified hyperscaler clouds to build applications that are continuously delivered, using DevSecOps methodologies, to on-premise private clouds on classified government networks at various US and Coalition space operations centers worldwide. 

A multi-cloud environment has multiple public clouds, in addition to on-premise clouds. While the differences are minor, they each carry benefits that are important to varying use cases. The key factor for multi-cloud is having visibility and interoperability across all installations of all clouds that are running within an enterprise. That’s a true multi-cloud environment.

VMware helps agencies run all your cloud solutions from one platform, eliminating the need to refactor applications each time – and giving an agency the ability to create an integrated cloud ecosystem.

Building future acquisitions for multi- and hybrid-cloud solutions will improve the success in delivering the freedom of choice, flexibility, agility, with a true holistic security framework to protect your data “in transit” and “at rest.” You can learn more in the first post of my Multi-Cloud for Government blog series, which discusses the gap between acqusitions and IT.