To understand the benefits of cloud technology, let's first take a look at the different options and their respective special features.
What are on-prem, private and public cloud solutions?
Let's start with the basics: there are three basic technologies, namely on-premises (on-prem), private cloud and public cloud. These are different approaches to how and where software data is stored. For end users, these approaches ultimately mean different ways in which they can use the software; they are therefore different models of software utilisation.
On-Premises (On-Prem)
With the on-premises variant - completely on-premises - the data and software are stored on the company's own servers. This means that the company retains full control over its data, but also bears full responsibility for security and maintenance.
Cloud solutions
The counterpart to the on-prem solution is cloud-based solutions. Here, the software is not hosted on the company's own servers, but on external servers, such as in a data centre.
Private vs. public cloud
Within cloud technology, a further distinction can be made between private and public clouds. While in the private cloud each user has their own server for their software in the data centre, in the public cloud the data of several users is stored on one server and separated from each other within the server.
A key difference between these models lies in the data architecture: the data in the public cloud is structured and optimised for cloud use in such a way that it can be stored separately from the data of other users within a server. The software must therefore be developed differently from the outset in order to fulfil these requirements.
On-prem vs. cloud technology: what are the advantages of cloud solutions?
So much for the differences between the models. But what are the advantages of cloud-based software over software that is hosted on the company's own server? What about costs, data security and performance?
Physical security
In terms of physical security, there are a number of risk factors when the software is hosted in-house - whereas a professional data centre can counteract these with targeted security measures. In particular, power failures, overheating, break-ins and inadequate fire protection are real sources of danger.
Power failures: A data centre is protected against power failures by emergency power generators so that a continuous power supply is ensured in the event of an interruption and the software can continue to operate without disruption.
Overheating: Overheating is prevented by water cooling systems, which also ensures that the servers can generally run at a higher basic performance.
Break-in: A data centre is also protected against break-ins and physical intrusion thanks to high and diverse security precautions.
Fire protection: Strict legal regulations for fire protection measures also ensure that the data in the data centre is also protected in the event of a fire.
Cyber security
The situation is similar when it comes to cyber security: While experts ensure the protection of sensitive data in a data centre, responsibility for data security in on-prem solutions lies in the hands of the company itself. At a time when cyber security is becoming an increasingly relevant issue for companies, this can pose a significant risk if not properly managed.
Costs
With an on-prem solution, the company is also responsible for the ongoing maintenance and servicing of the software itself. This involves a considerable amount of time and correspondingly high costs: installing updates, fixing bugs or adapting to new requirements are just a few examples. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular often have limited time resources and technical expertise, which usually makes choosing a public cloud solution the better alternative.
Private cloud vs. public cloud - what are the advantages of public cloud solutions?
The added value of hosting data in a professionally equipped data centre is obvious. But why does it matter whether the data is stored separately on a dedicated server or within a server?
More efficient server utilisation
A significant advantage of the public cloud is the more efficient utilisation of server capacity. As the data of several customers is processed within one server, capacity utilisation can be better planned - resulting in greater efficiency. This makes the public cloud a fundamentally more economical model that makes better use of available resources and optimises capacity utilisation.
More efficient software maintenance and servicing
Updates can be carried out quickly and centrally, bugs fixed, new versions installed and adjustments made to the software - after all, all services can be accessed simultaneously via one server. This standardised access simplifies maintenance and servicing considerably.
Renting instead of buying - lower costs thanks to a subscription model
The technical possibilities of the public cloud now also result in a different business model.
Licence sales: On-prem and private cloud solutions are based on classic licence sales, i.e. the sale of the right to use the software to the customer. After paying the one-off price, the customer is authorised to use the purchased software for an unlimited period of time. With the purchase of the software, however, the user is fully responsible for its maintenance and care. Newer versions must be purchased at a later date, possible bugs must be fixed or updates must be installed independently. In addition to the initially seemingly low one-off amount, there are a whole series of initially hidden costs associated with maintenance. In addition to these subsequent costs, there are also high internal personnel costs - after all, specialists have to take care of the implementation.
Subscription model: In contrast, a subscription model is common in the public cloud, i.e. renting the software for a monthly or annual fee. This model is ‘all inclusive’, meaning that all services are provided by the software provider - from installing the latest software version to fixing technical problems. In addition to the significantly higher efficiency, this gives the company greater planning security with regard to annual IT costs.
Conclusion
It could be said that the public cloud is in many ways the more forward-looking option compared to on-prem and private cloud solutions. While on-prem models present companies with the challenge of taking on all aspects of physical and technical data security themselves, cloud users benefit from optimum data protection in the data centre.
The subscription model of the public cloud solution also means that all additional costs relating to maintenance, servicing and care are included - and all additional costs that would be incurred internally by specially trained staff are eliminated.
The combination of cost efficiency, security and user-friendliness makes the public cloud the ideal solution - which is why we at Vanillaplan made a conscious decision in favour of it.