When you develop an app, you have the option to host the app on its own dedicated local server or run the app in the cloud.
Both options are valid, but there are many advantages to running your app in the cloud rather than on a dedicated server that are important to note before you finalize your app development.
Dedicated Server vs. Cloud
When you host an app on a dedicated local server, you host it on a physical hardware server that is used only by your app and your business. No other businesses use that server; you own it and it is only for your use.
On the other hand, hosting an app in the cloud means that you are choosing to host that app on a virtual server that is used by other organizations. In the cloud, you share a virtual environment with other businesses and their apps—but don’t worry, your data remains secure.
As you will see from the details below, there are several benefits to running your app in the cloud instead of on a dedicated server.
3 Reasons to Run Your App in the Cloud
There are several reasons why it may be a better idea to run your app in the cloud rather than on a dedicated server. Keep reading to learn more details about the benefits of running your app in the cloud.
1. Cut Costs
When you host your app on a dedicated server, you have to pay for the server and its capacity in its entirety—regardless of how much of the server space you’re actually using.
When you run your app in the cloud, on the other hand, you only pay for the server space that you use. Sharing the virtual environment in the cloud with other businesses and developers allows you to pay less for the space that you do use.
Depending on which cloud provider you use, you also may have the option to increase or decrease the amount of space you pay for depending on how much space you need for any given month or year. This flexibility allows you to significantly cut the costs of the amount you pay to host your app.
2. Better Security
Some of the most major concerns many businesses voice regarding running their app in the cloud are concerns about whether running your app in the cloud offers as high a level of security as hosting your app on a dedicated server.
Not only does the cloud offer as much security as a dedicated server, it can actually offer better security for your app than a dedicated server is able to give you. The cloud is used by tons of major companies—such as Google, Amazon, etc.—that invest billions of dollars into keeping the public cloud secure. You can benefit from these investments too if you run your app in the cloud. Cloud providers are also heavily committed to providing reliable, stable security and privacy to keep your app and your data safe from hackers or other infiltrators.
3. Faster Download Speed
Apps download much faster when they are run in the cloud than when they are hosted on a dedicated server. This might seem like a small benefit, but download speed can make or break the success of your app in the mobile app marketplace.
Consumers are impatient. They don’t want to wait very much time at all for their app to download, and they are likely to lose interest in an app if it doesn’t download very quickly. The faster download speed that hosting your app in the cloud allows can help maintain users’ attention that might have been lost had the app been hosted on a dedicated server and downloaded more slowly.
There are advantages and disadvantages to hosting your app in the cloud and running it on a dedicated server. However, more and more businesses are beginning to recognize that the benefits of running your app in the cloud far outweigh the drawbacks of this option and choosing to make the switch from dedicated local servers to the virtual public cloud.