N10-009 Question 45
Single answerDeployment models: Public, Private, HybridA healthcare company wants to modernize its infrastructure. Patient records and imaging systems must remain on company-owned systems to meet strict regulatory and internal security requirements. However, the company also wants to use scalable cloud-based resources for its public website and for temporary increases in compute demand during quarterly reporting. Which deployment model best meets these requirements?
- A
Public cloud
- B
Private cloud
- C
Hybrid cloud
- D
Community cloud
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
Explanation
The best answer is Hybrid cloud. A hybrid deployment model is used when an organization needs to keep some workloads in a private environment while using public cloud resources for other services. This is especially common when regulated or sensitive data must remain under tighter organizational control, while less sensitive or highly variable workloads benefit from the elasticity and on-demand scaling of public cloud platforms. In practice, this allows organizations to support compliance, security, and performance requirements without giving up the operational flexibility of cloud services. This aligns with common industry guidance from major cloud providers and NIST cloud computing definitions, which distinguish public, private, and hybrid deployment models based on ownership, access, and workload placement.
- A. Incorrect.
Public cloud is incorrect because the scenario requires certain sensitive workloads, such as patient records and imaging systems, to remain on company-controlled infrastructure due to compliance and security requirements. A public cloud alone would not satisfy the stated need to keep those systems on company-owned resources, even though it would provide scalability for the website and reporting workloads.
- B. Incorrect.
Private cloud is incorrect because it would support keeping regulated workloads on dedicated company infrastructure, but it does not best address the requirement to use cloud-based scalability for the public website and burst compute capacity. A private-only model may be possible, but it does not align as well with the stated goal of combining internal control with external elasticity.
- C. Correct.
Hybrid cloud is correct because it combines private infrastructure for regulated, sensitive systems with public cloud services for scalable or variable-demand workloads. In this scenario, the company can keep patient data and imaging applications in a private environment while placing the public website and temporary reporting workloads in a public cloud. This is a common real-world use case for hybrid deployments.
- D. Incorrect.
Community cloud is incorrect because this model involves shared cloud infrastructure for organizations with common requirements, such as similar compliance or mission goals. The scenario does not describe a shared environment among multiple healthcare organizations; instead, it describes one company needing both dedicated internal control and external scalability.