Why should you choose a managed open-source platform service?

Open-source software has gained tremendous popularity in recent years due to its many benefits. In this blog post, Krishna Kumar S, Associate Director, Tata Communications, explores the benefits of managed open-source platform services and why they are worth considering for your business.

As the source code is publicly available, developers can modify, customise, and improve the software to meet their specific needs. This results in increased flexibility and control over the software, making it easier to integrate with other tools and systems. However, managing open-source software can be challenging for many organisations, especially when it comes to security, compatibility, and scalability. To address these challenges, many businesses are turning to managed open-source platform services, which provide seamless technical support, maintenance, and management of open-source software.

Choosing a managed open-source platform service can be a smart move for businesses seeking to streamline the operations of managing the platform service and focus on their core operations. By outsourcing the management of their open-source software to a third-party provider, businesses can save time, reduce costs, and benefit from the provider’s expertise and support.

With a managed service, businesses can avoid the burden of managing and maintaining complex infrastructure, updates and upgrades, security, and troubleshooting, allowing them to focus on their core products and achieve their business objectives.

What is Open Source?

Open-source software is often developed collaboratively by a community of developers and is typically licensed under an Open Source license, which allows users to freely modify and distribute the software as long as they adhere to certain conditions. This is in contrast to proprietary software, where the source code is not shared and controlled by the software vendor.

Here are some examples of open-source services based on various use cases:

Web Development: Open-source services like WordPress, Drupal, and Joomla allow users to create websites without any coding knowledge. These services offer customisable templates, plugins, and themes that can be used to create a unique website.

Cloud Computing: Open-source software like OpenStack and Kubernetes are widely adopted for managing cloud and workloads.

Data Analytics: Open-source services like Apache Hadoop and Apache Spark are used for big data analytics. These services allow users to process large amounts of data and derive insights that can be used for business intelligence and decision-making.

Increased Usage of Free and Open-Source Platform Services

The adoption of open-source technology has grown significantly over the past few years, and this demand is expected to grow in the future.

The adoption of open-source software has become a popular choice among organisations for various reasons. The primary advantage of using open-source services, as cited by 68% of organisations in a recent survey by Opensource.com, is cost and time savings. By leveraging existing open-source code, developers can significantly reduce the time spent writing new code from scratch, resulting in significant cost reduction.

In addition, 48% of the organisations reported that using open-source services increased their app development and maintenance efficiency.

“With open-source software, developers can access a vast library of pre-existing code and tools, which can help streamline the development process and reduce the overall workload.”

These benefits, coupled with the flexibility and security that open-source software provides, have led to its increasing adoption in various industries.

While open-source software offers many benefits, managing it can be challenging for many businesses. The responsibility of maintaining, securing, and updating the software can be a daunting task, especially for organisations with limited resources and expertise. This is where managed open-source platform services come into play.

Managed open-source platform services provide businesses with a fully managed solution that allows them to focus on their core product development while leaving the management and operations to the experts. This has led to a surge in the adoption of open-source platform services, from start-ups to large enterprises.

Introducing Managed Open-Source Platform Services

As more businesses turn to open-source technology to power their products and solutions, managed open-source platform services are emerging as a powerful solution that offers the best of both worlds: the flexibility of open-source software, along with the comprehensive support and security of a managed service provider.

With managed open-source platform services, businesses can leverage open-source software’s full potential without worrying about installation, configuration, updates, security, and ongoing maintenance.

“By partnering with a managed service provider, businesses can benefit from various managed open-source platform services offered, like database management, containerisation, DevOps, and much more.”

Open-Source vs Managed Open-Source Platform Services

Here are some of the salient points when comparing open-source software with managed open-source platform services for businesses.:

Open-Source Software:

• Available for free or low cost, as the software is freely available for download and use
• Highly customisable but requires significant technical expertise for developing products and solutions using native source code.
• Community-driven support may be available through forums, online documentation, and user groups
• Requires businesses to invest in additional security measures for making code free of vulnerabilities and compliant with security standards
• Requires businesses to handle installation, configuration, and maintenance, which can be time-consuming and costly

Managed Open-Source Platform Services:

• Offered as a subscription-based service, with varying costs depending on usage and support levels
• Managed by a third-party provider, which handles all aspects of installation, configuration, maintenance, updates, and product continuity support
• Highly scalable and standardised that can be consumed as a service, which reduces the total cost of development for businesses, enabling them to bring their products or services to market faster.
• Provides dedicated technical support, with access to experts who can help resolve issues and provide guidance on best practices
• Includes additional managed services around security, such as data encryption to protect against cyber threats, regular backups, and proactive monitoring.
• Offers SLAs (Service Level Agreements) to ensure uptime, performance, and availability, reducing the risk of downtime and business impact.
• Avoid vendor Lock-in since the source code is freely available and accessible, making it easy for businesses to switch providers.

By working with a managed service provider like Tata Communications, businesses can build on open-source software while still benefiting from the managed platform services that are offered. Tata Communications IZO Cloud Platform & Services, provides managed platform services that enable businesses to build solutions leveraging it.

Partnering with a managed open-source services provider can help businesses unlock the full potential of open-source platform services, enabling modernisation and accelerating their digital transformation journey. With enhanced performance, greater security, and lower costs, businesses can achieve their digital transformation goals with ease and confidence.

In conclusion, businesses that want to harness the benefits of open-source software while minimizing the challenges of managing it in-house should consider partnering with a managed open-source platform service provider. While open-source software offers many advantages, managing it can be complex and resource-intensive, which can detract from a business’s core operations.

“By opting for a managed open-source platform service, businesses can leverage the power of open-source software while enjoying a hassle-free experience.”

With Tata Communications as their partner, businesses can rest assured that they have a trusted partner who will enable them to achieve their digital transformation goals with ease and efficiency.

To learn more on how Tata Communications can help, click here.