Did you know Acumatica offers options for hosting your ERP in a private cloud environment? Two of the licensing options that are available for Acumatica Cloud ERP customers allow for the instance to implemented in a single tenant instead of the default SaaS (Software as a Service) model that is inherently multi-tenant. This choice also enables you to opt to host your software with your own cloud service provider (CSP) instead of Amazon Web Services (AWS), empowering you to leverage personalized managed IT and security services with closer oversight.

Here is what you need to know about private cloud hosting your Acumatica ERP, and how Secure Cloud Services (SCS) can help:

Acumatica Private Cloud Subscription or Perpetual License

The two licensing options for an Acumatica private cloud are the Private Cloud Subscription (PCS) and Private Cloud Perpetual (PCP) licenses.

• PCS is an annual subscription that retains many of the benefits of SaaS, such as continuous updates delivered through the cloud. The key differences are the lower initial licensing costs, added choices for storage and hosting provider, and the ability to scale the number of licenses up or down during renewal.
• PCP offers perpetual licensing equitable with traditional ERP per-user pricing, with larger upfront costs but full internal ownership of the software in perpetuity. The application can be hosted on-premise, with customers having to pay for Software Maintenance to receive updates manually.

Why Should You Host Acumatica in a Private Cloud?

Acumatica provides one of the most flexible licensing models in the ERP market, eschewing stricter contracts that limit the number of users or what type of application environment you can deploy in. This flexibility gives SMBs and midmarket companies access to a wider range of opportunities when migrating systems and data to the cloud. It also allows those with stricter requirements for factors like infrastructure, seasonality or compliance to leverage a more agile deployment that gives room to move resources around as needed.

Here are a few reasons why you should host your Acumatica instance in a private cloud:

• IT Support – A privately hosted network infrastructure can be supported more directly by either an internal or outsourced IT team (or both). Since managed service providers (MSPs) and value-added resellers (VARs) are also able to work as a CSP, working with a partner that can fit two or all of these roles will allow you to consolidate points of contact, costs and architectural knowledge that will streamline support engagement.
• Security & Compliance – While public cloud providers have to ensure server security as a matter of practice, it still may not meet your required level of cybersecurity oversight, especially if data controls need to be carefully monitored for compliance. A private cloud lets you meticulously regulate how your data is handled and demonstrate proactive enforcement to auditors.
• Scalability – Cloud-based environments are a significant leap from legacy deployments and require new ways of thinking, different resource sets, and a considerable shift in workforce practices. Rather than jumping into SaaS and forcing change that may not follow, choosing to privately host your software will grant much greater flexibility in how and when you migrate.
• Business Continuity – While AWS has their own failsafe’s and redundancies to protect their network, you are still at the mercy of their internal processes if something goes wrong and you lose access to your data for an extended period of time. Hosting internally or with a CSP grants access to personalized business continuity planning, handcrafted to address your greatest risks, and safeguard your most precious systems and data.

What are the Benefits of Hosting in a Public Cloud (SaaS)?

There are still some benefits to choosing Acumatica SaaS and hosting your ERP in a public cloud. Here are some of those you should weight against the advantages of a private cloud:

• Data Storage – Acumatica offers tiered levels of data storage available online, from 50 gigabytes (GB) to 500 GB. This lets you store as much data as you need in the cloud instead of separate drives kept onsite, providing connectivity and redundancy in the event of downtime.
• No User Licenses – Acumatica is unique in ERP pricing for offering options that feature no per-user costs, instead charging based on resource consumption. Customers have access to multiple levels of transaction volume tiers calculated on a month-to-month basis, with several license types available.
• Publisher Management – While your VAR is still your main support resource on the software usage side, speed and bandwidth are handled by the publisher and AWS on an Acumatica public cloud. This means that the hardware hosting your ERP is selected and maintained to provide maximum performance, ensuring you have enough dedicated CPU cores according to your license plan.
• Lower Upfront Costs – SaaS has the lowest upfront costs and as well the lowest potential total cost of ownership (TCO) of the available hosting licenses. You only pay for your subscription while Acumatica handles all of the backend requirements, including hardware maintenance, antivirus and server connectivity.

Similarities Between Acumatica SaaS, PCS and PCP

No matter which hosting option you decide, each version of Acumatica maintains the same core functionality delivered via a browser-based user interface (UI). Users also receive access to the latest technology improvements with each update, regardless of how they are managed. Most importantly, every model still retains the ability to leverage the key benefits of the cloud, whether public or private.

Want to Learn More about Private Cloud Hosting for Acumatica?

Flexibility, agility and malleability is what makes Acumatica your top choice for cloud ERP, and the knowledge and experience the Secure Cloud Services team has with providing IT and hosting support for your software is what makes us your top choice for managed your solution, no matter which environment you choose. Reach out to our experts and learn more about the different options to host Acumatica – private cloud, public cloud, on-premise or anything in-between.

Contact SCS here to get a better look at private cloud hosting for Acumatica, and discover how we will support and secure your data regardless of your hosted environment.