“Cloud” has become a bit of a buzzword. If you’re not moving to the cloud, you must be left in the 80s is the implicit assumption. But there can be good reasons to opt for an on-premise data warehouse or lakehouse (note: in this post we talk about “data warehouse” because that’s a more known term, but we have a strong preference for the next generation of data warehouses, i.e. “the data lakehouse”).
On premise data warehousing solution: what is it?
An on-premise data warehouse is a data warehouse that is physically located on the premises of the organization that owns it. This means that the organization is responsible for the hardware, software, and maintenance of the data warehouse.
Comparing the benefits of on premise data warehousing solutions with cloud data warehousing solutions
The table below gives an idea of the differences between on premise and cloud based data warehousing solutions:
| Feature | On-Premise Data Warehouse | Cloud Data Warehouse |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Data is stored on the premises of the organization that owns it. | Data is stored in the cloud, which is a remote server that is managed by a third-party provider. |
| Cost | Upfront costs are higher, but the long-term costs can be lower. | There are no upfront costs, but the monthly costs can be higher because you contribute to the profit margin of the cloud provider. |
| Complexity | More complex to set up and manage. | Easier to set up and manage. |
| Maintenance | Requires regular maintenance by the organization. | Maintenance is handled by the cloud provider. |
| Scalability | Can be difficult to scale up or down as needed. | More scalable, as you can easily add or remove resources as needed. |
| Security | The organization has complete control over the security of the data. | The cloud provider is responsible for the security of the data. This can lead to “lock-ins” i.e. vendors make it hard to get your data out of their platform to increase retention. |
| Compliance | Can be a good option for organizations that need to comply with strict regulations. Certain country and/or industry regulations demand that data stays within the country’s borders. | May not be a good option for organizations that need to comply with strict regulations. |
| Performance | Can offer better performance for certain types of workloads. | Can offer consistent performance for all workloads. |
On-premise data warehouse solutions are perfect for organizations for which data security and ownership of data is critical. Think: government, financial services and healthcare.
Hybrid data warehousing solutions
Large enterprises often have a complex data infrastructure that has grown over decades and may include cloud data warehousing as well as on premise data warehousing. We call this a “hybrid data warehousing environment”. Most existing data warehousing solutions are cloud-only. Snowflake and Databricks do not offer on premise solutions. IOMETE’s architecture allows for flexible deployment options and supports hybrid solutions. The big advantage is a unified environment for all data, irrespective of where the data lives.
What is better: an on premise or cloud-based data warehousing solution?
Ultimately, the best choice for an organization will depend on its specific needs and requirements. If an organization needs to have complete control over the security of its data, if it needs to comply with strict regulations such as GDPR or HIPAA, or if it needs to run complex queries, then an on-premise data warehouse may be the best option.
However, if an organization is looking for a rapidly scalable solution, then a cloud data warehouse may be a better choice.
Whatever your data infrastructure and deployment requirements may look like, consider the IOMETE data lakehouse platform with its modern architecture and flexible deployment options.
Book a 30 min discovery call to learn more.