8 Reasons Why Data Lakes Are Shifting to a Hybrid Cloud

Updated July 28th, 2023
Hybrid cloud data lake

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Data lakes are a central repository for diverse and unstructured data, they have emerged as a crucial solution to this challenge.

However, as the demands on data lakes grow and technological advancements continue to shape the cloud landscape, a new trend has emerged—data lakes are shifting towards a hybrid cloud approach.

The adoption of hybrid cloud architecture is revolutionizing the way data lakes operate, offering a powerful combination of on-premises infrastructure and cloud services.

In this article, we will explore the compelling reasons driving this transformation and the benefits that organizations can reap from this strategic shift.

Let’s dive in!

Table of contents #

  1. What is a hybrid data lake?
  2. What is a hybrid cloud data lake?
  3. Why are data lakes adopting hybrid cloud?
  4. What are hybrid cloud data lake standards?
  5. What is hybrid cloud data lake governance?
  6. Summarizing it together
  7. Related reads

What is a hybrid data lake? #

A hybrid data lake is a data management architecture that combines the features of traditional on-premises data storage and cloud-based storage. It allows organizations to store vast amounts of raw data, whether structured or unstructured, in its original format in a cost-efficient manner, while enabling flexible data processing and analysis.

The “hybrid” aspect of the data lake comes from its ability to leverage the advantages of both on-premises and cloud storage. On the one hand, on-premises storage often offers more control over data and can provide faster access in certain circumstances.

On the other hand, cloud storage is generally more scalable and cost-effective, especially for larger datasets, and it allows for greater accessibility from various locations.

A hybrid data lake strategy allows organizations to strike a balance between these two approaches, choosing where to store data based on factors such as cost, performance, security, compliance, and business needs. This flexibility enables an organization to optimize their data architecture to best support their business goals and analytical needs.

Now, let us understand what is a hybrid cloud data lake.

What is a hybrid cloud data lake? #

A data lake in the cloud is a centralized storage repository that allows you to store structured and unstructured data at any scale. It’s hosted on a cloud platform like Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and others. The data can be ingested in real-time or batch processes and can be stored as-is without the need to convert it to a specific schema.

Data lakes in the cloud offer several benefits which include:

  1. Scalability: You can quickly scale your storage capacity up or down based on your needs. You only pay for the storage you use, which makes cloud-based data lakes cost-effective, particularly for large volumes of data.
  2. Flexibility: You can store any type of data—structured, semi-structured, or unstructured—and perform different types of analytics—from dashboards and visualizations to big data processing, real-time analytics, and machine learning.
  3. Accessibility: Data in the cloud is accessible from anywhere in the world, and numerous users can access the data simultaneously.
  4. Security: Cloud providers often offer robust security features, including encryption for data at rest and in transit, as well as identity management and access controls.

Examples of cloud-based data lake services include Amazon S3 for AWS, Azure Data Lake Storage for Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Storage for Google Cloud. These services integrate with other tools in their respective ecosystems to ingest, process, manage, and analyze the data in the data lake.

That brings to core point of this section, which is: Hybrid cloud data lake

A hybrid cloud data lake is a data storage and analytics solution that leverages both on-premises and cloud-based resources. It allows for the storage and analysis of vast amounts of data in its raw, unprocessed format, but unlike a traditional data lake that resides solely in the cloud or on-premises, a hybrid cloud data lake can span across both.

This kind of architecture offers flexibility and has several potential benefits:

  1. Optimized costs: Depending on the specific needs and existing infrastructure of an organization, it can be more cost-effective to store certain data on-premises and other data in the cloud.
  2. Enhanced security: Some organizations choose to keep sensitive data on-premises for enhanced security and control, while storing less sensitive data in the cloud.
  3. Improved performance: Keeping data close to where it is generated or used can improve performance by reducing network latency.
  4. Regulatory compliance: Some regulations require certain data to be stored on-premises, making a hybrid approach necessary.
  5. Flexibility and scalability: The cloud component allows for easy scaling as data volumes grow.

In a hybrid cloud data lake, data can flow between on-premises and cloud storage as needed, and analytics tools can be run wherever it makes the most sense. Hybrid cloud data lake solutions require careful management to ensure data is stored and processed in the most effective way, while still ensuring security and compliance. This often involves the use of data management and orchestration tools.

Why are data lakes adopting hybrid cloud? #

Data lakes are adopting hybrid cloud architectures for several compelling reasons. A hybrid cloud approach combines the advantages of both on-premises infrastructure and cloud services, allowing organizations to store, manage, and process data more effectively.

Here are some of the key reasons why data lakes are adopting hybrid cloud:

  1. Scalability
  2. Cost efficiency
  3. Data security and compliance
  4. Disaster recovery and business continuity
  5. Geographic distribution
  6. Bursting and elasticity
  7. Integration with cloud services
  8. Future-proofing

Let us understand each of them in detail:

1. Scalability #


Hybrid cloud provides the flexibility to scale storage and processing resources both on-premises and in the cloud. Data lakes often deal with vast amounts of data that may fluctuate over time, and hybrid cloud allows organizations to expand or contract their storage and computing capabilities as needed.

2. Cost efficiency #


Hybrid cloud models offer cost optimization by allowing organizations to use on-premises infrastructure for routine or steady workloads, while leveraging cloud resources for peak demands. This way, they can avoid over-provisioning on-premises hardware and only pay for additional cloud resources when necessary.

3. Data security and compliance #


Data lakes often contain sensitive and valuable data. Hybrid cloud models enable organizations to retain more sensitive data on-premises, where they have better control over security measures and compliance requirements, while still using the cloud for less sensitive data or for analytics processing.

4. Disaster recovery and business continuity #


Hybrid cloud setups can enhance disaster recovery capabilities. Organizations can replicate critical data to the cloud, providing an off-site backup in case of on-premises failures or disasters. This ensures business continuity and data availability even in challenging situations.

5. Geographic distribution #


Hybrid cloud allows data to be distributed across multiple locations, offering better performance and reduced latency for users in different regions. This is particularly beneficial for global organizations with distributed teams and customer bases.

6. Bursting and elasticity #


During periods of high demand, organizations can “burst” their workloads to the cloud, taking advantage of its vast computing resources. This enables faster data processing and analysis without compromising the performance of on-premises resources.

7. Integration with cloud services #


Cloud providers offer a wide range of specialized services for data analytics, machine learning, AI, and more. By adopting a hybrid cloud approach, organizations can seamlessly integrate these cloud services into their data lake architecture to gain additional insights and capabilities.

8. Future-proofing #


The technology landscape is ever-evolving. A hybrid cloud strategy allows organizations to adapt and adopt new technologies and cloud advancements without disrupting their existing on-premises infrastructure.

Overall, a hybrid cloud approach empowers data lakes with greater agility, enhanced performance, improved cost-effectiveness, and the ability to maintain high levels of data security and compliance. By striking a balance between on-premises infrastructure and the cloud, organizations can leverage the best of both worlds to drive innovation and achieve their data-driven goals.

What are hybrid cloud data lake standards? #

Setting up a hybrid cloud data lake involves adhering to certain standards and best practices to ensure efficient, secure, and compliant data management. While there isn’t a universal set of “hybrid cloud data lake standards,” the following principles are often used:

  1. Data governance and security
  2. Interoperability
  3. Data management
  4. Scalability
  5. Compliance
  6. Data integration
  7. Portability

Let us understand the principles in detail:

1. Data governance and security #


Both on-premises and cloud components of the hybrid data lake should adhere to rigorous data governance policies to ensure data quality, privacy, and security. This includes using encryption for data at rest and in transit, managing access controls, and keeping audit logs.

2. Interoperability #


Systems, applications, and tools used across the hybrid cloud data lake should have the capability to interact and exchange data seamlessly. Open standards like restful APIs can be used to facilitate interoperability.

3. Data management #


Implement comprehensive data lifecycle management policies, covering aspects like data ingestion, processing, storage, archiving, and deletion. Both cloud and on-premises components should maintain consistent data management practices.

4. Scalability #


The hybrid data lake architecture should be scalable to handle fluctuating data volumes and computational needs. This involves leveraging the scalability of cloud services while ensuring on-premises resources can cope with demand.

5. Compliance #


Regulatory compliance standards like GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, etc., should be adhered to, which can influence where and how data is stored and processed. Compliance requirements could be a deciding factor when determining which data resides on-premises and which data is stored in the cloud.

6. Data integration #


A hybrid data lake should have robust data integration capabilities to bring together diverse data sources. Standards and tools for ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes should be in place.

7. Portability #


Data and applications should be portable to avoid vendor lock-in and ensure flexibility. This involves using formats and tools that are widely supported across different systems.

These principles form the basis of a well-managed hybrid cloud data lake. Adhering to these can ensure your hybrid data lake is secure, efficient, flexible, and capable of delivering the insights you need.

What is hybrid cloud data lake governance? #

Hybrid cloud data lake governance refers to the rules, policies, and procedures implemented to manage, secure, and ensure the quality and compliance of data within a data lake that spans across both on-premises and cloud environments.

Data lake governance is crucial to maintaining data integrity, security, and privacy, and to ensure the data lake remains a reliable source for data-driven decision making.

Key aspects of hybrid cloud data lake governance include:

  1. Data quality management
  2. Data security and privacy
  3. Data cataloging and metadata management
  4. Data lifecycle management
  5. Regulatory compliance

Let us understand each of them in detail:

1. Data quality management #


Ensuring the accuracy, consistency, and reliability of data within the data lake. This can involve validating incoming data, cleaning and transforming data, and periodically checking data for errors or inconsistencies.

2. Data security and privacy #


Implementing security measures to protect data, such as encryption, access controls, and monitoring tools. For data privacy, you’ll need to ensure compliance with regulations like GDPR, CCPA, and others, which may involve anonymizing data, obtaining user consent, and implementing procedures for data access and deletion requests.

3. Data cataloging and metadata management #


Keeping track of what data is in the data lake and how it’s structured. This often involves creating a data catalog that contains metadata about the data, such as where it came from, when it was added, and its format. Metadata management helps users find the data they need and understand its context.

4. Data lifecycle management #


Managing the flow of data through its lifecycle, from ingestion and storage, through use and archiving, to eventual deletion. This can involve defining data retention policies, archiving old data, and deleting data that’s no longer needed.

5. Regulatory compliance #


Ensuring that data storage and usage comply with relevant laws and regulations. This can involve implementing audit trails, ensuring data privacy, and demonstrating compliance through documentation and reporting.

Implementing effective governance for a hybrid cloud data lake can be complex, due to the need to coordinate policies and procedures across different environments. However, with the right tools and strategies, it’s possible to maintain a high level of data quality, security, and compliance in a hybrid cloud data lake.

Summarizing it together #

In conclusion, the shift of data lakes towards a hybrid cloud architecture is driven by the need for increased scalability, cost efficiency, data security, and seamless integration with cloud services.

By combining the advantages of on-premises infrastructure and cloud resources, organizations can effectively manage their ever-expanding data sets, optimize costs, and maintain greater control over sensitive information. The hybrid cloud approach enables data lakes to adapt to changing demands, ensuring high performance during peak workloads and enhanced disaster recovery capabilities.

As technology continues to evolve, embracing a hybrid cloud strategy empowers data lakes to remain agile and future-proof, positioning them as critical assets in achieving data-driven success. With the convergence of on-premises and cloud technologies, the future of data lakes lies in the seamless synergy of the hybrid cloud, revolutionizing how organizations harness the power of their data to drive growth and excellence.

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