Staying On-Premise or Moving to the Cloud? That is the Question!
Owning and maintaining an IT infrastructure can be a complicated and costly industry if not done along with the best business practices. At the same time, cloud services cannot always maximize the benefits of your existing installation, i.e.: unrestricted bandwidth. Choosing between the two models when upgrading is the dilemma companies nowadays face.
On-premise model
Also known as shrink wrap, on-premise is a type of hardware and software model that is installed and operated from a customer's in-house server and computing infrastructure. It utilizes an organization’s native computing resources and only requires a licensed or purchased copy of software from an independent software vendor.
Although some debate the on-premise model as being outdated, there are still very valid reasons as to why companies should stay on-premise:
- Centralized analytics in the data center
- Better control of IT operations
- Mass file storage
- Unlimited software integration
- Increased business intelligence functionalities
In order to make a long term profitable decision, businesses need to understand the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) of materials, licenses and requirements to run their software and their operations effectively under the on-premise archetype.
SaaS – Hosted model
Cloud has evolved to mean many things to many companies from different sizes. Essentially, cloud computing is the use of hardware and software that are delivered as services over the web (off-premise or “out of the building”), either publicly, privately or as a hybrid cloud network model.
There are many reasons organizations are thinking of moving their on-premise computer equipment to the cloud:
- Global expansion
- Hardware refresh
- Establishment of a new business strategy
- Guaranteed uptime (SLA)
- Easily maintained security and compliance
- Greater control of IT costs
However, regarding the on-premise model, companies need to understand the different types of cloud models: - Infrastructure as a service (IAAS) vs. Platform as a service (PAAS) vs. Software as a service (SAAS) – as well as their options and costs.
Regardless of your predilection for one model or another, it is worth analyzing and fully understanding all of your options and their medium to long term impacts.
Need help planning and scoping your upgrade project? Don’t hesitate to call on us.
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