14 DAY TRIAL // Amazon's cloud offering is still the most popular in the business, despite plenty of competitors. But these days, to expand its user base, Amazon has to look beyond those that prefer a cloud setup and lure in those who would rather have an on-location setup.
There are many reasons to run servers on-premise, though most have to do with a false sense of security than anything else.
Still, sharing hardware with other companies may not only be a risky proposition for some companies, it may be impossible due to rules and regulations.
This is where Amazon's new CloudHSM comes in. Many companies are required, either by regulation or by contract, to have a Hardware Security Module, i.e. a machine dedicated to ensuring the security of the communications inside and outside the company.
But the whole point of a cloud setup like Amazon offers is that you don't get physical machines. That is, unless you really want to.
The new CloudHSM aims to provide the same security benefits as a regular HSM, while also enabling companies to use a cloud like Amazon's.
"For some applications and data subject to rigorous contractual or regulatory mandates for managing cryptographic keys, additional protection is necessary," Amazon explained.
"Until now, organizations' only options were to maintain data in on-premises datacenters or deploy local HSMs to protect encrypted data in the cloud," it added.
"With AWS CloudHSM, customers maintain full ownership, control and access to keys and sensitive data while Amazon manages the HSM appliances in close proximity to their applications and data for maximum performance," it explained.
A dedicated CloudHSM is not cheap, it's $5,000 up front and $1.88 per hour after that, Amazon estimates an average of $1,373 per month.
Amazon already offers hybrid cloud options or virtual private clouds, which are segregated from the rest of the users, for government customers or companies that require them.