There was a time when we questioned the viability, if not the necessity of investing in cloud computing. Yet over the last couple years, that question has been answered with a definitive yes.

Today, the subsequent debate has turned to benefits of the private cloud over the public cloud. With pundits on both sides still weighing in, this is a discussion that still rage in many quarters.

Many organizations, citing concerns around security, have been less than enthusiastic about the idea of turning over sensitive customer information and company intellectual property to a 3rd party. They point to breaches such as those experienced by Amazon EC2 and RSA Verisign as evidence that public cloud vendors are less than capable of properly security their data.

For these organizations, the private cloud is the answer. Yet while it may seem the private cloud is the best compromise - providing the virtualization benefits, cost savings on server hardware, and more security, this is a decision that is still wrought with its own set of perils. It is imperative that organizations understand that housing data internally still requires careful evaluation and planning. So before you set up a private cloud, here are six things to consider.

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