This article makes the case that nearly all AS/400 and IBM i environments have operated in a hybrid setting from the very beginning—surrounded by Windows, Linux, and AIX servers—and that today, these same organizations are inevitably consuming public cloud capacity as well. Citing the latest IBM i Marketplace Survey, it highlights that Windows Server (75%) and Linux (49%) remain the dominant companion platforms alongside IBM i.
CloudSAFE, a managed services and cloud provider with deep IBM i heritage, argues that many companies are poorly managing their cloud environments in terms of operations, governance, and especially cost control. The article emphasizes the importance of FinOps (Cloud Financial Management)—not simply as a cost-cutting exercise, but as a discipline for making better economic decisions across hybrid infrastructure. Key FinOps pillars discussed include cost visibility, budgeting/forecasting, optimization, governance, chargeback, and anomaly detection.
