Hybrid cloud

Hybrid cloud means mixing online services with systems you run yourself. Some data and apps live in the cloud, and some stay on your own computers or servers. Big organisations do this for cost, speed, or rules about where data must live. Most small businesses run almost entirely in the cloud, and that's usually the right call. A hybrid setup makes sense when some information must stay private, like a charity's case notes about the people it supports, or when a key program only runs on a local computer. In that case, the private data can stay on your own systems while everyday work happens in online tools. The cost is extra upkeep, so only keep local what needs to be.