Since SaaS companies require resources to network their software applications, they often turn to a third-party hosting service. These service providers store an application’s software and any other files on their virtual servers, which allows both the business that owns the app and the customer paying for a subscription to access this software anywhere in the world as long as they have an internet connection.

In this article, we will discuss the benefits of using cloud-based hosting, the differences between cloud and in-house service providers, and some key features to look for when choosing the right host for your company.

IaaS and its Benefits

The benefits of this Infrastructure-as-a-Service, or IaaS, are very similar to the Software-as-a-Service model. Here are some of the advantages of an IaaS system.

1. Maintenance

Like SaaS, the host of this software maintains the infrastructure remotely so that their SaaS client doesn’t have to do it in-house. This means that they manage and upgrade their servers on a regular basis, and since the software is located in a cloud-based environment, these updates happen instantaneously without the SaaS client having to download extra equipment or purchase additional software.

2. Cost Effectiveness

Software companies no longer have to allocate funds towards the maintenance of their servers, as the host takes care of this themselves. Not only does this leave room in the budget for other necessities, it relieves the IT department from being tasked on the upkeep of this hardware, so they are able to focus on higher priorities within the company. Using a cloud-based host also means that a business doesn’t have to invest in this hardware or its updates, as upgrades are included in their payment plan.

3. Scalability

Preparing for your company’s growth is easy with a cloud-based host. This network is set up to provide room for any scaling business as it grows with your company. With a simple upgrade in their pay scale, server hosts will handle the additional processing power so you don’t have to. This feature allows any company the adaptability necessary to meet market needs as they evolve within the industry and take on new customers.

4. Security

Hosts provide protection against any kind of cyber attacks that try to disrupt your service. As they monitor data usage and the patterns surrounding user behavior, they are aware of any irregularities within this power consumption and traffic, and can take proactive steps to prevent things like distributed denial of service attacks or any kind of data hacking. This keeps not only your company’s data safe, but also the information collected from your customers.

5. Recovery

Since all data is stored in the cloud, this allows for easy backups and retrieval. It also provides multiple ways for data to be recovered by using any device that has access to the internet such as a tablet or mobile device. Service can be restored quickly if it’s interrupted by something like a website crash or natural disaster affecting the server hardware. 

Cloud Hosting vs. Server Clusters

Another option for service providers includes utilizing infrastructure located on private server farms, or server clusters. An organization maintains these servers to process large amounts of power necessary for enterprise companies to fulfill their computing requirements or store vast amounts of data. 

This sounds very similar to cloud hosting, but the main differences are the size of power each process and the accessibility of these resources. Cloud hosting is considered a private service since they are only accessible to a select group of users through a secure internal network. As previously discussed, software hosted on a cloud-based server offers more flexibility in terms of global access to resources involving infrastructure and scalability to accommodate a company’s eventual expansion throughout its lifetime.

With an in-house server, users have more control over their data and its management, including the security of this information since no one else has access to it. This is certainly a benefit for any software company, but in order to utilize it, they must have the right amount of investment capital to be able to afford the required hardware. In addition, room in the budget for the IT department to maintain this infrastructure is critical. Besides monetary requirements, businesses who wish to use server farms need to make sure they have the physical space and conditions necessary for this equipment to be properly stored.

Despite all of this, in-house infrastructure generally costs less than cloud-based providers because the service isn’t based around a monthly subscription. There are, however, some big drawbacks to using server clusters rather than the flexible service provided by cloud hosting.

Since this service provider is located online, there’s no need for a software company to buy or maintain physical hardware. This is especially helpful for smaller businesses who don’t have the capital nor the space required for this infrastructure. They also don’t need to pay their IT department to update or manage this hardware, as it’s all taken care of by the host. If a company wishes to expand their processing power as their business grows, they simply have to upgrade to the next pay scale within the host’s service, which doesn’t interrupt business processes or user service.

Cloud hosting also provides a faster uptime, so applications can be launched much more quickly. Since the cloud is web-based, data is able to be backed up and retrieved through their internet connection, which allows a company to do this from any device with web access.

There are pros and cons on both sides, and all are reasonable advantages or disadvantages. Either can be implemented if the service structure fits within your company’s requirements. As long as you are aware of these differences and how to choose the best service, both are viable options for hosting application software.

How to Choose the Right Host

There are a multitude of options to sift through when trying to decide on the right host for your software. Here is a list of the most important aspects to understand before you make that decision.

1. Availability

The main objective of choosing a cloud-based host is to utilize the availability of its services. A good host should have a healthy network carrier connectivity, including multiple carriers as well as fiber optic options for faster, more reliable connection. A global network is also ideal, so that your software can be accessed by users anywhere in the world.

The location of their data centers should also be taken into account, and whether or not they have multiple locations. They should be placed in areas of the world with admissible climate conditions or control over heat and humidity, and not prone to natural disasters.

An ideal host should also have healthy relationships with connections to internet exchange points (IXPs), which are locations where different internet providers and content delivery networks (CDN) connect with each other. This allows a network provider to share a transit path, and therefore shorten the distance between other networks. Using IXPs reduces latency and round-trip time (RTT), or the time it takes for a network request to travel from its starting point, reach its destination, and return back to the initial location. Not only is this a faster transfer of data, it’s also a lower cost than that of transferring traffic through a third-party network or transit provider.

Hosts should also be equipped with points of presence, or PoP, which are similar to IXPs but on a smaller scale. They refer to the access points where more than one network shares a connection, and since they are located near IXPs, this proximity determines the speed of traffic a host can provide. PoPs should include reliable base stations for access to these connection points, as well as proper network switches for distributing and managing connection speeds.

The key to a host service with good availability means that the service you’re paying for goes uninterrupted and is reliable. And because this is all handled over the internet, startup should be immediate and easy to implement. Hosts should also have a strong support service, with a clearly outlined service-level agreement (SLA) so you know not only what to expect from their service, but also what penalties can be implemented if this agreement isn’t fulfilled.

2. Abundant Power Supply

In order for a host to process large amounts of data, they must have the infrastructure necessary to supply the power you need. You want to trust that there won’t be any latency issues, or your page loading time doesn’t drive away customers. Beyond this, the time it takes for a page to load can also affect search engine rankings. 

The energy efficiency of a data center should also be taken into account. Studies have shown that data centers outrank local servers in terms of energy efficiency, with tools such as high-performance servers and automated cooling systems.

3. Room for Scalability

As your SaaS company grows, so will its requirements for hosting additional features. Choose a host that can continue to manage your software as you add more necessary elements. This service should be flexible enough to incorporate and process the growing expectations of your user base, and since IaaS is modeled after the customizable operation of a SaaS business, a host should offer a variety of options tailored to the needs of your company. This includes a scale in payment packages with different levels of features that are relevant to the solutions your company is looking for, as well as options for upgrading your current package whenever you need more processing power or additional features.

4. Security

Besides protection against cyber attacks, a host server must also control the safety of their physical building. Choose a host with a data center that isn’t located in an area with a high crime rate or risk of terrorist threat, and, as stated before, isn’t in a part of the world where natural disasters are more likely to knock out power and freeze the internet connection.

Hosts must also have protocols in place to avoid attacks such as distributed denial of service, or DDoS. This occurs when an attacker floods the internet traffic of a server to overwhelm the infrastructure and cause severe latency issues or denial-of-service. A service provider should be able to identify the warning signs before an attack like this becomes too ingrained, such as suspicious traffic volume from a single IP address or behavioral profile, or unexpected spikes in traffic that deviate from normal patterns. Since they are monitoring all activity surrounding your software and the user behavior tied to it, hosts are much more aware of when any deviations from normal circumstances are occurring.

5. Analytical Support

An ideal host collects and reports on the data they collect from your software and how it’s used. They then share these metrics with you so you can better measure your customers’ behavior and incorporate it into your business strategies. Hosts can analyze activity such as how a product is used, the volume of traffic and where this traffic is directed, the global location of your users, popular log-in times, and the length of time users stay logged in.

Access to this kind of data is an invaluable asset to any company. It can show where their investments are paying off, what features to promote, which users garner the most use out of their product, and what kind of revenue trends to expect.

6. Experience

Make sure the IaaS of your choice has worked with or is currently hosting other SaaS companies. You need to be sure that they can handle the large amount of data you need to be processed, and not just copy how other companies are handling their processing power. The needs of each SaaS company vary greatly, and your host should understand this. 

They should also have the experience necessary to fix any issues immediately. This means having access to skilled manpower from engineers qualified to handle the maintenance and upgrades of the infrastructure you’re paying for.

Best SaaS Hosting Services

With a variety of IaaS companies to choose from, it may feel overwhelming to know where to start. This list identifies some of the bigger names in software hosting, a few of their key features, and the differences in price scale.

#1 Google Cloud

  • App development support
  • Advanced analytics
  • Integrates with other apps
  • Advanced security
  • Global network
  • Modernizes legacy apps
  • Pricing plans
    • Pay-as-you-go
    •  Custom quote

#2 Amazon Web Services (AWS)

  • Global cloud infrastructure
  • Robust security system
  • App development and launch capabilities
  • App integration tools
  • Insightful data analysis
  • Data backup, recovery, and archiving 
  • Pricing plans
    • Pay-as-you-go 

#3 HubSpot

  • Team management tools
  • Integration with the vast network of HubSpot’s services
  • CMS hub
  • Tracks development progress
  • Pricing plans
    • $900/month, 14 day money back guarantee

#4 DigitalOcean

  • Intuitive user interface
  • Scalable flexibility
  • Easy access to stored data
  • Networking that is secure and customizable 
  • App development and distribution support
  • Ticket support
  • Pricing plans
    • They have a wide selection of plans for each of their many features

#5 Acquia

  • Platform for developing and hosting apps
  • Insight tools for analyzing performance and SEO
  • 24/7 customer support
  • Horizontal scalability
  • Pricing plans
    • Personal: $141/month with 25 GB of SSD storage
    • Small: $296/month with 100 GB of SSD storage
    • Enterprise: custom quote

#6 Cloudflare

  • Content delivery network
  • Integrated security
  • Global network
  • Easy-to-use dashboard
  • High-performance internet delivery
  • Large DNS network
  • Pricing plans
    • Free: for personal use and hobbyists
    • Pro: $20/month, for software protection and accelerated speed
    • Business: $200/month, for small online businesses and more advanced support
    • Enterprise: custom quote, advanced features 

#7 Wix

  • Free hosting
  • Website templates
  • Artificial Design Intelligence for a fast way to make your website live
  • App development support
  • Custom domains
  • SEO tools
  • 24/7 customer support
  • Pricing plans
    • Combo: $14/month, 3 GB storage, for personal use
    • Unlimited: $18/month, 10 GB storage, for entrepreneurs and freelancers
    • Pro: $23/month, 20 GB storage, for online branding
    • VIP: $39/month, 35 GB storage, priority support