Five Advantages of On-Premises File Sharing

Today’s workers are familiar with Dropbox, Google Drive, or one of the many file sharing options available on the cloud. Many ask their IT department, why should I have to switch to an on-premises system for work documents? Novell argues there are some reasons to use an on-premises file sharing solution for business documents, and users should evaluate their situation before abandoning internal servers.

From time to time, you may read about cloud security being a mild concern, but for the most part the cloud is favorably hyped as an all-encompassing option. Once you dig below the surface and compare options, however, there are user advantages that go along with the IT department’s drive toward an on-premises file sharing solution.

The end goal with such collaboration technology is to enable workers to be more productive while keeping work environments more secure and manageable. Good on-premises file sharing tools are just as easy to use as the cloud-based solutions you might be familiar with, so consider how you and your organization can benefit from the following points.

Click through for five reasons business users should consider an on-premises file sharing solution for business documents before abandoning internal servers, as identified by Novell.

File versioning control

File version control is easier with an on-premises system. Productivity slows when workers are accessing and editing different versions of the same document. Whether it’s an older or newer version, someone has to get up to speed. On-premises solutions fix this by giving everyone access to a single file, one that does not actually get copied anywhere.

System structure and file organization

Do you know where your files are? It can be hard to find a file when one employee writes it, someone else moves it, and then another moves it again. Workers can waste a lot of time looking for a particular document they need for a project. With an on-premises solution, folder structure and organization stays — no need to recreate it.

Space, size and amount of files

Most people use consumer-grade cloud services because the apps are free and easy to use. However, storage space is limited on those applications, so users can only put in a few really big files and nothing else. This process can be taxing if you are trying to get multiple large PDFs to a home computer from work. On the other hand, on-premises solutions don’t use another group’s servers — they use your organization’s servers. Files sizes are not an issue.

Security concerns

You can probably think of some very high-profile data breaches that have made the news recently. Usually, someone besides the hacker is responsible for the breach. That person locked the door, but forgot to close the window. On-premises solutions use existing security in the IT environment to protect files while still allowing users access to the data. So you’re in control of security, not someone else.

IT relations

An organization functions well when there are symbiotic relationships between departments. Do something that makes IT’s life easier — exclusively using their on-premises file solution — and they might make your life easier by getting to that service request a little faster. Everyone is less stressed, and you can get on with work.