As your business grows, storage of all your data is a key concern. One thing that may come to mind is, “Should we have in house servers, or move completely to the cloud?” This article will address the pros and cons of both options.

In-House Server

For decades now, in house servers have been the standard on how businesses store their data. There are some clear advantages to having your own server on the premises. First, you have no third party access to your data. It is all in-house, and there is no one else you have to go through to get access to your information.

Another benefit is that should the internet go down, you are still able to access your data. With an in-house server, your local network still allows you to continue working on files. Also, when it comes to backups, you have direct control over when and how that occurs.

A disadvantage to having your own server in house is that you have to have space for it. When we say “space” we mean a place for a server to be secure, as well as well ventilated. Another disadvantage is that unless you are using the cloud for backups, you are susceptible to data loss depending on how frequently you take your data offsite. For example, if you had your server crash, and the last time you took backups offsite was 3 months prior, you have 3 months of data to re-enter once you get the server up and running.

Cloud Server

Cloud servers are very popular with businesses today. They have many benefits that a traditional server does not have. First, there is no need or expense for hardware onsite. This can be especially attractive for smaller companies in which buying a physical server may be a financial burden.

If you are thinking about disaster recovery, a cloud solution is a must. With cloud servers, they are usually hosted on multiple server farm locations throughout the country. Also, backup responsibility rests upon the cloud server provider and not on you.

The disadvantages of solely being in the cloud are that depending on the provider you choose, the costs can still be a bit expensive. Also, if the internet does go down, then you will not have any access to your information until it all comes back up again. If you are needing to do a full data recovery, this could be time consuming, which again means you are going to be down for awhile.

Our Recommendation

There is no “one size fits all” type of solution when it comes to a situation like this. You need professional guidance, with a staff of IT professionals that know what they are talking about. Call us today, so we can go to work for you.