If Business Central SaaS vs Business Central On-Premise would be two professional boxers, who would win? 🥊
I am often asked by customers to help them decide between SaaS vs On-Premise. Especially those moving from old legacy systems, are still reluctand about having their financial data in the cloud.
However, once you analyse the facts, the decision is not that difficult:
1️⃣ Cost of Ownership
SaaS: Typically, SaaS has a lower upfront cost since it operates on a subscription model that covers licensing, maintenance, and updates. For large databases, there is a potential for high storage costs
On-Premise: Requires a higher upfront investment for hardware, software licenses, and IT infrastructure. Ongoing costs include maintenance, upgrades, and potentially higher IT personnel costs.
2️⃣ Scalability and Flexibility
SaaS: Offers high scalability with the ability to easily add or remove users and adjust resources based on needs. Updates and upgrades are managed by the Microsoft, ensuring access to the latest features.
On-Premise: Scalability can be more complex and costly, requiring additional hardware and IT resources. Upgrades can be disruptive and may require significant planning and downtime.
3️⃣ Data Security and Compliance
SaaS: Microsoft ensures data security, often complying with high industry standards and regulations. However, some organisations may have concerns about data being stored offsite.
On-Premise: Offers more control over data security, allowing higher personalisation of the security measures. Organisations can ensure compliance with specific regulations, but this requires significant internal resources.
4️⃣ Integration and Data Access
SaaS: Integration with on-premise systems can be challenging and may require additional tools or services. Additionally, there is no direct access to data, extraction can be done using APIs or direct export via the frontend.
On-Premise: Offers extensive customisation capabilities and easier integration with other on-premise systems. Allows for tailored solutions that fit specific business needs.
5️⃣ Performance and Reliability
SaaS: Generally, provides high performance and reliability with robust infrastructure managed by Microsoft. However, performance can be affected by internet connectivity issues.
On-Premise: Performance is highly dependent on the organisation’s infrastructure. Can offer better performance in areas with unreliable internet connectivity but requires significant investment in reliable hardware and IT support.
6️⃣ Maintenance and Support
SaaS: The upgrade of the core product is smooth and delivered automatically, reducing the burden on internal IT teams. This allows organisations to focus on core business activities.
On-Premise: Requires internal IT resources to manage maintenance, support, and updates. Often, upgrades are resource-intensive and lead to downtime during updates.
