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What Is On-Premise Software?
On-premise software runs on servers your organization owns and controls, inside your own data center or private cloud, rather than on a vendor's hosted infrastructure. The application and your data stay in your environment, under your security model and your authentication. You decide who has access, where the data lives, and when anything changes.
of CIOs plan to move at least some workloads back from the public cloud
For years the industry treated cloud as the default and on-premise as the legacy option. That assumption is reversing. IT leaders are repatriating to regain control of their data, escape per-user subscription fees that climb every year, and reduce how much of their operation depends on a single vendor's roadmap.
The catch has always been building it. Custom on-premise applications used to mean a large development team, long timelines, and code that only one or two people understood. That is the problem m-Power solves.
On-Premise Software vs. Cloud (SaaS) Software
The difference comes down to who controls the software, where your data lives, and how you pay for it. Here is how on-premise software compares to cloud-hosted SaaS.
Why Build On-Premise Software with m-Power?
m-Power is a low-code development platform that runs in your environment, over your existing databases. It lets a small IT team deliver the custom applications the business keeps asking for, while keeping everything under your control.
Your Data Stays Yours
Applications run over your databases, in your environment, using your authentication and security model. Sensitive data never has to leave your network.
You Own It
m-Power is licensed once. The applications you build belong to you and keep running on your terms, with no recurring per-user fees as you grow.
Runs Over Your Existing Data
No data migration and no new data model to adopt. m-Power builds directly over the relational databases you already use.
Built by Your Team
A template-driven build process means a small team can deliver production-grade web applications, with as much custom code as you want to add.
No Vendor Lock-In
m-Power generates standard code using the same technologies your developers already use. Applications can run and be maintained independently of the platform.
On-Premise or Private Cloud
Run m-Power where it makes sense for you, in your own data center or a private cloud you control. The choice stays in your hands.
The Case for Keeping It On-Premise
Three reasons IT leaders are choosing on-premise software again, and how m-Power supports each one.
Keep control of your data
When your application is hosted by a vendor, your data lives in their environment and your governance depends on their controls. That is a hard position to defend when leadership, legal, or an auditor asks where sensitive information actually sits.
On-premise software keeps the answer simple. Your data stays inside your network, governed by the same security model you apply everywhere else. With m-Power, you decide exactly what each application can see and who can use it, because it all runs in your environment.
Stop paying more every year
Per-user SaaS pricing looks reasonable on day one. Then headcount grows, premium features get added, and the bill climbs every renewal. The software you depend on quietly becomes one of your largest recurring costs, and leaving it means losing everything you built.
m-Power is sold on a perpetual license and supports unlimited users and applications. As you roll software out across the business, the cost does not follow you up. As an example, Sunstar replaced canned software with a custom m-Power CRM and saved around $120,000 a year in the process.
Build over the systems you already run
Off-the-shelf software handles most of what you need and then stops short on the last stretch that is specific to your business. That gap is where backlog piles up and shadow spreadsheets multiply.
m-Power fills the gap by building directly over your existing databases and ERP, with no migration and no altering the underlying system. It is also a practical way to modernize legacy systems without a rip-and-replace. You add the reports, portals, dashboards, and workflows your business is missing, and they run on-premise alongside everything else. Behind it all is a real services team that can help with a project or build it for you when a need goes beyond a support call.
Software You Can Build Your Business On
mrc has built application development software since 1981. More than 1,500 companies worldwide run on m-Power, much of it on-premise, over the databases that keep their business moving. When you choose m-Power, you get a platform that stays in your control and a team that stays behind you.
Read customer case studiesOn-Premise Software: Common Questions
What is on-premise software?
On-premise software runs on servers your organization owns and controls, inside your own data center or private cloud, rather than on a vendor's hosted infrastructure. The application and your data stay in your environment, under your security model and your authentication.
What is the difference between on-premise and SaaS software?
SaaS software is hosted by the vendor and accessed over the internet, usually for a recurring per-user subscription fee, with your data living in the vendor's environment. On-premise software runs in your own environment, where you control the data, the security, and the infrastructure. m-Power is licensed once and runs on-premise or in a private cloud you control.
Is on-premise software more secure than cloud software?
On-premise software lets you apply your own security model, authentication, and access controls directly, and keeps sensitive data inside your network. That control is why regulated and security-conscious organizations often prefer it. Security still depends on how the software and infrastructure are configured and maintained.
Can you build custom on-premise software without a large development team?
Yes. m-Power is a low-code platform that lets small IT teams build production-grade web applications over their existing databases using a template-driven build process. Both developers and non-developers can build with it, so a two or three person team can deliver applications that normally require a much larger group.
Why are companies moving software back on-premise?
Many organizations are repatriating workloads from the cloud to regain control over data, cut recurring per-user costs that climb as they grow, and reduce dependence on a single vendor. On-premise software supports that shift by keeping the application and data in an environment the company owns.
Learn how m-Power can help you
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