In-House QuickBooks Server vs. QuickBooks Cloud Hosting: Top 6 Differences

In this day and age, a majority of the accounting demographic prefer QuickBooks Desktop as the premier software for their business accounting tasks.

However, the most common question that often strikes the small and relatively new business firms is whether to go for an in-house QuickBooks server or QuickBooks Hosting? Let’s understand the difference between the two first.

An in-house QuickBooks server setup involves the purchasing and placement of a physical server in the company’s premises. The local server is then installed with QuickBooks Desktop software

QuickBooks Hosting, on the other hand, is opting for the cloud services of a third-party hosting provider. The cloud service provider installs the QuickBooks licenses in the cloud servers, which you can access through Internet-connected devices like smartphones, laptops, and tablets.

The functionality offered by both is the same. The only difference is who hosts it.

Here are some of the factors that can help you in drawing a comparison between in-house QuickBooks server setup and QuickBooks cloud hosting.

1. Access to the QuickBooks Software

When you are trying to choose between in-house server setup and QuickBooks cloud hosting, it is very vital to take note of the modes of access offered by each.

In the case of in-house QuickBooks server setup, the QuickBooks software can be accessed on the local systems only. As a result, you are bound to your desk if you want to accomplish your accounting tasks.

However, with QuickBooks hosting, you can access the QuickBooks Desktop from any location with the help of the Internet. All you need to do is login to the cloud portal of the service provider with the help of authorized credentials.

2. Scalability of Resources

Small business firms have limited business dimensions and possess a small number of employees and clients. Thus, too extensive methods for storing and managing accounting data might not be feasible for them.

In an in-house setup, the businesses are responsible for bearing all the costs related to purchasing, setting up, and maintaining the local hardware. Moreover, as the business grows, the hardware setup must also be upgraded regularly.

Such enterprises can best match their accounting model with QuickBooks hosting as they can start off small and plan scalable expansion as and when the need arises. With the flexible cloud environment, you can scale your resources as per the business requirements.

3. Resolution of QuickBooks Issues

Setting up your own in-house QuickBooks server requires a dedicated workforce at your premises. Highly skilled IT professionals are needed to get things in order to carry out the seamless functioning of QB software. This results in added costs and efforts.

The keynote feature of hosted QuickBooks is that the complete setup and its maintenance is the responsibility of the service provider. The competent cloud service providers deploy experts to look after your issues round the clock for swift and efficient resolution.

4. Backup of QuickBooks Data

Storage of data on backup servers is essential since hardware devices can malfunction at any time, either by natural causes or through any human mishap.

With QuickBooks hosting, it is the responsibility of the hosting provider to keep your data safe and to provide you with a complete backup of your data as and when you demand it.

In-house setup, on the other hand, involves the installation of massive servers at various locations so that you can extract data from a backup server in the event of any calamity. With this type of setup, you are solely responsible for keeping a backup of your data safely. For small needs, this is too much to invest in.

This is why QuickBooks hosting is the first choice for small and medium scale business professionals.

5. Time and Money Saving Factor

QuickBooks hosting saves your efforts along with your valuable billable hours and money. You need not install the bulky server and hire IT experts to tackle the issues of QuickBooks software and its setup.

All that the clients need to do is pay monthly rent and they can continue with seamless functionality of their QuickBooks software in remote locations, day or night.

Thus, unless client requirements are too massive, users generally don’t go for the hefty investment of time and money involved in setting up the entire multi-user, mobile accounting functionality on the premises.

6. 99.99% Uptime and 24×7 Customer Support

Providing a 99.99% uptime requires a lot in terms of hardware and technical expertise. The functionality revolves around directing the data and operability through some other server if the main server crashes or is under maintenance.

This can only be achieved if the data centers storing your applications and data have a redundant infrastructural setup, including hardware, cabling, power, and cooling.

Since hosting providers serve a massive client base, they have all such setup installed, and they easily make the possibility for delivering 99.99% uptime feasible. Moreover, any issues can be dealt with by their support team which is available 24×7.

Contrarily, those opting for the in-house QuickBooks server setup have to look after these functionalities for themselves, which again is a critical and tiresome task to commit to.

Final Note

QuickBooks on cloud offers all the features of QuickBooks desktop with added benefits of cloud technology, like remote accessibility, on-demand scaling, and optimum performance. Moreover, it eliminates all the hassles of on-premise QuickBooks setup like IT support, capital and operational expenses, backup, and upgrades.

Thus, QuickBooks hosting is the most cost-efficient option for small businesses. For larger firms, however, a cost-analysis can be done to check the feasibility of a comprehensive server setup on-premise.