Cloudaware

CloudAware serves as our main multi-cloud management tool for managing our organization's multiple client platforms that require integration in a cloud form. We are working with over 20 different source types including AWS, Azure, Ansible, Cisco platforms, and ServiceNow platforms. All of these platform integrations and their one-stop management and placement are done on CloudAware.

We are currently using CloudAware because all these platforms come with their own vulnerabilities and threat detection challenges. We perform multiple activities in terms of patch management, costing management, and bringing in compliance and governance across the entire cloud integration. These activities are all performed through CloudAware, our one-stop multi-cloud management solution.

We have platforms of IBM, Microsoft, Azure, ServiceNow, and AWS on which different activities are being performed for operational excellence. Managing all of them at one place is something we are currently doing. We are also using CloudAware for its security aspects to detect foreign intrusions and any kind of impending cyber threats. Our major activity is definitely the comprehensive cloud management, which allows us to have a multiple management database in a real-time manner.

One of the best features that CloudAware offers is complete visibility. When we talk about a one-stop solution for the entire cloud management, CloudAware ranks at the top because I can have real-time visibility of all my platforms in a comprehensible manner that is easy to understand and assess. It also helps us in auto-discovering and normalizing the inventory for our compliance and governance requirements, eliminating a lot of wastage and significantly reducing our security risks. This is crucial as we deal with the government, where security risks are substantial. CloudAware is helping us scale up our cloud integration activities by automating tasks that were once manually intensive and providing accurate and transparent service cataloging. Furthermore, tickets raised on their platform are resolved within 24 to 48 hours, highlighting their responsiveness. This makes CloudAware one of the most cost-efficient platforms in the market, ranking in the top five or top six.

Our tech team has reported a few bugs in certain areas, such as cloud logs. Whenever there are new updates happening on the cloud system, the logs need to be updated regularly, but we sometimes feel there are lapses in terms of log accounts or traces. Once we report the issue, the ticket gets resolved, but a more streamlined cloud logs system would be helpful. Additionally, establishing a full-fledged audit control reporting structure is needed, especially since we conduct risk assessments. The team is working aggressively on these improvements, and I am in conversation with them on a fortnightly basis.

Our tech team has reported a few bugs in certain areas, such as cloud logs. Whenever there are new updates happening on the cloud system, the logs need to be updated regularly, but we sometimes feel there are lapses in terms of log accounts or traces. Once we report the issue, the ticket gets resolved, but a more streamlined cloud logs system would be helpful. Additionally, establishing a full-fledged audit control reporting structure is needed, especially since we conduct risk assessments. The team is working aggressively on these improvements, and I am in conversation with them on a fortnightly basis.

For user experience, I would advise their team to organize more orientation workshops and feedback sessions on a weekly basis. Currently, they take place monthly, but aggressive training on navigation, data reading, and understanding matrices is essential for newcomers. Enhancing training and capacity building is crucial, and there are no significant issues with integration, but further enhancement of integration features could also be beneficial.

I choose 8 out of 10 because while the functionalities and features are excellent, there are areas that need improvement in terms of capacity building, training, and developing new features. Additionally, addressing the downtime issues, especially on weekends when our operations often run, is crucial to avoiding data access disruptions during busy periods.

I have been using CloudAware for the past two years in this organization on a personal level, but before that, I have a total experience of approximately more than six years in running and operating CloudAware.

CloudAware is absolutely stable and reliable, allowing us to integrate multiple systems quickly with less downtime compared to before. CloudAware has indeed added stability, particularly regarding API integration processes.

CloudAware's scalability meets our organization's growth and changing needs. Initially, we started with 10 cloud systems, but now we manage approximately 30 to 35, requiring more customization. The flexibility of the CloudAware team complements our evolving governance and compliance requirements.

Customer support is decent but operates five days a week, and I request them to extend it to 24/7 to enhance ticket resolution speed. They are quick in resolving issues but could improve by offering support every day of the week.

Previously, we used a third-party in-house solution, but it was too expensive and not mature enough for our needs, which is why we moved away from it.

For accuracy and reliability, I give CloudAware a rating of 98% to 99%. We have not faced erroneous input or errors in data logs captured by the system, and our clients rely heavily on it due to its transparency.

We have definitely seen a return on investment, with net annual savings exceeding 2 CR compared to before using CloudAware. Our workforce has been reduced to half, optimizing human resources and improving productivity. CloudAware enhances metrics such as efficiency and scalability, enabling us to bring in more clients.

The savings from CloudAware impact our organization significantly, allowing us to establish a new risk assessment vertical thanks to the funds saved over the past three years. This vertical has been operational for two years and helps us reduce IT issues by leveraging predictive analytics to proactively address potential threats.

My experience with pricing and setup costs is that it is decent—neither too high nor too low. Our initial licensing was smooth, costing approximately $1,000 for basic setup. We renew our agreements annually without issues, but I do feel there is room for better features at a more cost-effective rate to attract more users.

Before choosing CloudAware, we evaluated other options such as ServiceNow, which had a high cost despite good performance, and Device42 for its asset tracking system. We also tested Asset Panda but encountered performance issues, leading us to ultimately opt for CloudAware due to better cost efficiency and features.

My advice to other organizations considering CloudAware is to assess their needs before approaching any cloud management system. It is vital to establish foundational pillars such as patch management, operational excellence, and compliance before committing. I recommend trying their 30-day trial, which can be extended, to ensure it meets your requirements without any initial cost.

I recommend that organizations consider CloudAware as a backbone for their cloud operations. With its ongoing updates to meet current needs and its relevance to organizational requirements, it is worth exploring and experiencing performance firsthand. I give CloudAware an overall rating of 8 out of 10.

Currently, we are using CloudAware for many of our consulting areas. We use Oracle Cloud, Google Cloud, and AWS servers for most of our work, and all storage, government documents, and data storage occur in those clouds. The areas around vulnerability and cybersecurity represent the majority of our use cases through CloudAware.

I can provide a specific example of how we use CloudAware for cybersecurity vulnerabilities. We have large, secretive, and confidential databases captured over the past 50 years for the Indian agriculture ecosystem. These databases have very limited domain visibility and are susceptible to cyberattacks. In the past, we used multiple platforms, and there were cases where files were attacked and everything was lost from the server. From the past three to four years, we have not found any cases of attacks because all risks and potential attacks are being proactively communicated by the software to our tech team, allowing us to take proactive and reactive measures to avoid such attacks. This demonstrates a very proactive approach in terms of reducing cybersecurity risks for our databases.

CloudAware is quite usable in terms of handling cyberattack cases faster. In a month, we acquire approximately five to ten attacks, and although these attacks appear smaller in number, they are of very high intensity because one attack can deplete all files in our storage. These five to ten attacks are managed very proactively, and we have seen that the system assists greatly because many escalations arise around those attacks, and the system helps resolve incidents in a much faster manner. This is something unique about CloudAware, and it is the reason we have remained with this platform for the past three years.

There are many features that organizations use, and we are currently using CloudAware for cybersecurity management. We are also using details to manage our different cloud services in an integration platform. We now have very seamless integration happening because much of our work is on multiple different platforms, and managing the entire work across those cloud servers at once is very difficult. This is being taken care of very well, and our Azure platform, our SaaS platforms, and everything are being managed in a unified manner with only one resource deployed for managing this, and that person is doing very well through this platform. This is definitely one of the operational excellence aspects we are achieving. We are reducing time, improving the overall operational experience for our clients, and the heavy files or humongous data files stored are properly tagged and cataloged, which helps us greatly because searching for files on the server that are twenty to twenty-five years old would not be humanly possible without this assistance.

Regarding the seamless integration feature of CloudAware, we are parallelly working on approximately five to six different cloud servers, and the integration is being done through API integration. CloudAware's best feature is that it is very easy to integrate with other Oracle Cloud or Google Cloud servers. It does not pose any technical glitches in terms of integration, and there are no heavy codes required by my IT team for doing that integration. It is quite seamless and very quick. The entire IT infrastructure becomes very secure and strengthened overall after integration, as any servers vulnerable to outside attack or outside threat are identified and secured. This is the reason we started integration from the very first day of deployment.

CloudAware has positively impacted our organization in various ways. There has been a drastic improvement in operational excellence. Earlier, half of the IT team was involved only in the complete management of configuration database servers, but after deployment, we have reduced our manpower load, and now only three people are required for managing the end-to-end integration and security checks. The tracking of databases and software we work through these servers has become very easy. We now have real-time configuration management where the database is continuously being updated. With just one click, I can check all my cloud assets, what they are working on, and how they are all being managed in real-time. Our visibility has increased to approximately one hundred percent. Our cloud spending, which used to be huge, has been reduced to a great extent, and our monthly billing has drastically slowed down. This is something positive we have seen over the past three years, with every year showing reduced monthly billings, which is good for us as a mid-large organization.

The only thing I feel CloudAware could improve upon is the customization options available. We are a very flexible and slim organization in terms of monitoring and managing our customized features accurately, and when a partner is unable to provide that, it becomes cumbersome for us to continue with them long term. Currently, there are certain features we struggle to obtain in the deployment phase. CloudAware has existed for ten to fifteen years, but it seems they have not come up with any solution for small organizations. Many of my centers for technological excellence want to use CloudAware but are unable to due to the comparatively high costs. Although CloudAware is the best solution, it is not fit for smaller organizations. Initially, when my tech team faced difficulties during the deployment, the UI showcased during the tutorials was complicated, especially during the reporting phase. Now that we are veterans, it is fine, but many faced challenges during initial understanding, so simplification during deployment would be beneficial to encourage more users.

These were the major areas where improvement is required. From an Indian tech scenario perspective, I humbly request CloudAware team to consider adding more customization features and more threat handling capabilities. Approximately seventy percent of organizations are focused on threat management across their cloud servers, a space where CloudAware excels, and additional customization would enhance overall security while increasing CloudAware's revenue.

We have been evaluating the software for over four to five years, but we purchased the subscription in the last three years only. Therefore, we have been fully using CloudAware for three years.

The initial tuning and conversation with their team was amazing. They have been very positively engaged, getting things resolved quickly, which attracted us to them. They offered a free trial for one month and encouraged us to explore all features. Our feedback has been answered quickly in a professional manner without pressure to commit. We received thirty to thirty-five percent discounts initially for six months, making us very happy. Annual licensing is on a bit higher range but satisfying enough for us to continue.

CloudAware is deployed in our organization on-premises.

Return on investment, cost savings, and fewer employees needed are all accurate. Operational excellence for our organization drives our success. We have cut costs significantly, especially on manpower. Earlier, we were using pricier platforms that did not fulfill our feature requirements. The real-time database management for risk management has improved, with twenty-four-seven customer care resolving incidents within twenty-four hours, making my clients very happy.

The pricing is definitely on the higher end, but it is acceptable for an organization like us due to the satisfactory features we are using. In comparison to competitive products, CloudAware is in a higher price range. Our overall review rating for this product is nine out of ten.