Data is the life blood of life sciences, biotech, and pharmaceutical companies. But without thoughtful organization and management of that data, the work of scientists and data analysts can be severely hampered. In this post we’ll take an introductory look at FAIR data principals that you can use to guide your data management strategy.

In part 1 of this post I discussed the use of availability zones and regions to have fault tolerance for an application such that if an AWS or Azure data center goes offline you can still operate your application.

AWS (Amazon Web Services) and Microsoft Azure are the #1 and #2 (respectively) public cloud vendors. There is a good chance that any cloud application a Biotech or Life Science company is considering is hosted by one of these vendors.

What is happening on January 14, 2020? Microsoft will end extended support for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 on January 14, 2020. That means there will be no more updates of any kind even if security flaws are found.

When Biotech and Life Sciences companies sign up for cloud applications you are relieved of the burden and expense of hosting the application yourself.

NOTE: I am not an attorney. You should always consult an attorney for any legal advice when entering into a contract. These suggestions are based on my experience as an IT professional negotiating many cloud services contracts.

NOTE: I am not an attorney. You should always consult an attorney and your Regulatory Department for advice on regulatory compliance. This information is based on my experience as an IT professional implementing electronic signature systems for Biotech and Life Sciences companies.