Laserfiche Cloud vs. Self-Hosted: A Stream of Thought from MuniRM

When the question of Laserfiche Cloud versus self-hosted (on-prem) comes up, our opinion is usually pretty clear—especially when we’re talking about smaller entities or municipalities with limited funds, outsourced IT, or lean internal IT staff. In most of those cases, cloud is absolutely worth serious consideration.

Why NOT On-Prem?

A big reason for that is hardware requirements. With cloud, Laserfiche is providing that infrastructure. With an on-prem system, that responsibility falls on your organization, which usually means a significant amount of on-site IT involvement (hardware/software updates, back-ups). If you don’t already have the staff or infrastructure to support that, it can quickly become overwhelming.

The next big reason: there are the (often hidden) server costs. On-prem solutions require servers to hold the repository, and those servers come with their own long list of expenses—the hardware itself, the software that runs on it, ongoing updates, security, and general maintenance. If you want to add a public portal on top of that, the costs increase even more. Typically, that requires an additional, public facing server, which means more space, more upkeep, security concerns and more long-term responsibility.

After working with many different entities that use both cloud and on-prem systems, one thing has become very clear to me: there are simply far fewer complications and issues with cloud environments. And that is the difference that really adds up over time.

Moving from On-Prem to Cloud

One thing I do want to be upfront about is that switching from on-prem to cloud can be messy. It can be done, but it’s not pretty—and I’ve seen vendors do a truly terrible job of it (not all vendors - my preferred vendor actually excels in these migrations). It can also be expensive because workflows must be completely rebuilt for cloud. That’s why, if you’re purchasing Laserfiche brand new, I strongly recommend starting in the cloud. If you’re already on-prem and thinking about switching, that’s a longer, more nuanced conversation that depends heavily on your vendor and your budget.

So, let’s break it down….

Pros of Cloud: Cloud comes with a lot of benefits:

• Laserfiche puts more time and effort into cloud, so new updates and upgrades (or just fancy features and improvements) appear there first.

• There’s no on-site server to maintain, which removes a major cost and security burden.

• Laserfiche solution providers handle technical support, meaning you’re no longer dependent on outsourced IT for Laserfiche-specific issues—this is one of the main reasons I favor cloud for small entities.

• Support is easier - it’s also much easier for us (and your vendor) to access our clients’ repository when help is needed.

• The user interface is simpler, and

• Users can access Laserfiche from anywhere with an internet connection. This is especially helpful for staff working in the field. With on-prem systems, they would need to VPN into the network first.

• Records management functionality—especially retention—is easier to use in cloud and includes built-in reporting and searching.

Cons of Cloud: I would be remiss not to admit that there are a few limitations to cloud (though the benefits far outweigh them).

• You can only have one to three repositories (muni-site licenses only get one), although in practice, that’s usually all you need. (NOTE: you can always purchase more for a fee if you want).

• You can only have one public portal (which I have only seen to be a problem for entities that are large and want to have an internal portal and an external portal – but I have opinions on that…mainly, you shouldn’t do it. It makes managing the repository quite difficult…)

• Some integrations can be more difficult, though this is improving constantly.

• Also, if you were to stop paying for Laserfiche entirely, you would have 30 days (After your expiration date) to export your items before losing access. This does not mean Laserfiche owns your records—you still own them—but access would end after that window. With on-prem, your records would still live on your server even if you stopped paying, although you wouldn’t be able to make changes or updates. You would still need to export them eventually, but you’d have more time.

Honorable Mention…

One concern I hear fairly often is about records living “in the cloud.” While it’s true that you must have access to the internet in order to access your records, Laserfiche does allow you to export records and all associated metadata into other storage environments. Additionally, those records are saved in formats that support ongoing access independent of Laserfiche itself. This is often a requirement for government electronic recordkeeping systems, so it’s worth explicitly calling out. On top of this, its worth mentioning that the SLA (service level agreement) for the cloud is pretty impressive, generally promising high availability (commonly around 99.9% uptime), with defined maintenance windows, and a service credit mechanism if availability falls below the guaranteed level. So we aren’t talking about major downtime like ::cough, cough:: Microsoft ::cough, cough::.

To Sum it Up

Overall, I really do recommend cloud. It’s simply more sustainable for long-term success.

When you start doing all the math—installation hours, hourly rates, and long-term maintenance—the difference between cloud and on-prem initial setup can be surprisingly small. In some cases, it ends up being only marginally less expensive to go on-prem at the start.

But one of the biggest differences between how I look at these implementations and how a salesperson might look at them is longevity. I’m thinking about what will support continued success years down the road. I’ve seen far more sustainability issues with on-prem systems. Many government organizations that started on-prem have ultimately moved to cloud, often at a significant—but necessary—cost. And because workflows are completely different between environments, that transition is long and painful.

Before making a final decision, I always recommend asking your vendor direct questions—about any potential hidden costs, the true cost of public portals (including their server), and the price differences between cloud and on-prem tools like Forms and Import Agent. If you are unhappy with your vendor, or are still trying to decide which vendor to use, I cannot speak highly enough of my friend and previous colleague Laura Froyum. She is with my preferred vendor, CDI, and has been working for them for an ungodly number of years (like 17 or something!!). She is excellent at laying things out for you – and will know the pricing structure (which can be somewhat convoluted) way better than I would. And, I can honestly tell you – she understands the challenges that municipalities face, and will keep your needs as her top concern.

At the end of the day, the work MuniRM does can support either. Whether you have cloud or on prem ultimately doesn’t matter at all to us. But, in my experience, on-prem solutions often come with more hidden costs and more long-term challenges, and I truly believe cloud is the better path forward for most small municipal entities.

Don’t forget to file it fierce,

Megan Gregor, CMC, MILS

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