6 Benefits of moving your SFTP server to the cloud

Cloud computing is becoming more popular each year, and since the 2020 pandemic began, over half of businesses in the US have migrated their workloads to the cloud. Fewer than 10% don’t use any kind of cloud storage.

Moving to the cloud offers many benefits such as more flexibility, easier collaboration, and data loss prevention. And while many services have moved to the cloud, a lot of businesses have left their SFTP server on-premises where it has to be updated and maintained regularly. Why not move SFTP to the cloud as well?

Couchdrop made this possible by developing an easy-to-setup SFTP server specifically for the cloud. With just a few clicks, you can have a fully-functional SFTP server that integrates directly with the cloud storage you’re already using. But if you already have an SFTP server that’s working, is it worth it to move it to the cloud?

Moving SFTP to the cloud offers several advantages. Making the move will provide you with 6 major benefits: you have no servers to maintain, no planned downtime, directly connects to cloud storage, it scales to meet your needs automatically, and it will save you time and money in the long run.

1. No server maintenance or management

As many homeowners will tell you, one of the most challenging parts of owning a home is being in charge of all the maintenance. You can’t call the owner to fix a bulging leak in the ceiling, cold air coming out of the heater, or to change a lightbulb because you are the owner.

When you rent, all this is covered as part of the cost. Since you don’t have a dedicated physical server in Couchdrop and instead make use of virtual servers as needed, the same principle applies here. Couchdrop’s serverless SFTP solution means you don’t have to purchase your own server. You pay your monthly subscription which includes “renting” nodes to use for your tasks. And our team will handle the rest.

A major benefit of Couchdrop is that you don’t have to worry about server maintenance and upkeep. If an issue comes up with a node you’re using, a new one will automatically spin up to carry on with the tasks. We expect failures to happen and plan for them ahead of time. It’s inevitable to happen occasionally when dozens of devices are running thousands of services simultaneously. And when it does, the system is redundant and the load is shifted over to another machine to keep carrying on.

2. No Downtime

A reliable server will rarely go down due to issues like overworking. However, that doesn’t mean there is no downtime. When adjustments need to be made–such as updating to the latest security patches–the server needs to stop in order to implement the patch. Unfortunately, this means it can’t provide its key services until the update is complete.

There is also the possibility that the server goes down for another reason. Maybe an essential piece of hardware malfunctioned and failed. A sudden failure can cause catastrophic results to the people who rely on it, making the repair an urgent priority.

None of these are issues with Couchdrop. Because we have multiple machines working on your tasks and we expect failures, situations like updates and failures won’t affect your work. Another machine will simply spin up to assist with your tasks if needed. This means no needing to schedule planned downtime or worrying about contingencies in case of a server failure.

3. Connects directly to cloud storage

One particularly useful feature with Couchdrop’s cloud SFTP is that it integrates directly with over 30 cloud storage platforms. You can connect your storage in the Couchdrop web portal and even have your SFTP server transfer files directly into a specific directory of your cloud storage.

Couchdrop lets you connect as many storage options as you like, meaning you can easily transfer files from Google Drive to Dropbox, Box to SharePoint, or any other combination you need. You also have the option to connect to another external SFTP server and transfer files to and from there and into and out of cloud storage to your server.

Once the storage integration is connected, you can access the files directly in Couchdrop. This means you can manage everything directly in the Couchdrop web portal without logging into multiple systems and managing several windows and logins at once.

4. Scales to meet your needs — automatically

Since Couchdrop works by having a bunch of machines work together to accomplish your tasks, there has to be something in place to decide when it’s time to add more resources. So how do you know when you need to do this to ensure your requirements are met?

Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about that. All of that is handled by the software automatically. For simple file transfers, one machine will probably be plenty. But if you’re transferring 5000 files to different directories at once? It might take a few more.

The Couchdrop system handles all of this intuitively and automatically. When the current number of machines seems to be reaching its limit, it will spin up another to lighten the load. Conversely, when there’s an abundance of resources, some nodes will switch off when they are no longer needed.

5. Faster speeds

Automatic scaling helps make sure you have enough computer power for your file transfers. But it can also make those transfers go faster. If you have multiple, large file transfers that need to happen at the same time, such as moving company documents into SharePoint every day, cloud SFTP may be able to reduce how much time those transfers take.

In Couchdrop, you can go one step further by using Couchdrop automations. You can set automation workflows based on an action–such as when a file is uploaded–or at a specific time, such as daily at 7PM. This way, all of your files could transfer between systems at once, and use Couchdrop’s cloud architecture to finish quickly.

6. Saves time and money

All of these benefits add up to mean you have less time spent on maintenance, upkeep, and server issues. Since Couchdrop’s serverless SFTP scales to meet your needs and has no downtime, it will save you time and money compared to other SFTP solutions.

You won’t have to spend time identifying issues with the server should a problem arise. You won’t need to purchase hardware or send out a specialist to maintain a physical server. And you won’t have to lose potential revenue by scheduling downtime for necessary server updates.

Couchdrop’s cloud SFTP servers are easy to set up and affordable too. Simply register an account and you can try it free for 14 days. There's no credit card required and no other hoops to jump through.

Try SFTP in the cloud and see Couchdrop makes file transfers simple and straightforward while helping you save time and money.