For years, the two deployment variants on-premise and cloud balanced each other out. This year, however, we are seeing a definitive shift to the M-Files cloud, where the entire environment is hosted in the cloud. In 2019, 70 per cent of M-Files installations will now take place in a cloud environment, compared to 30 per cent on-premise. A development with a number of obvious causes.

Causes of shift to the cloud

Many organisations held back or are holding back their move to the cloud for a long time due to some obvious reasons. Thanks to M-Files' software combined with GeONE's future-proof approach, there has now been a turnaround occurred. Below are the four main reasons for this turnaround:

• Complete document management functionality in the cloud

Many software solutions offer a cloud variant. However, this solution is often a stripped-down version of the on-premise variant, missing important document management functionalities. M-Files is the first and only DMS solution to bring the complete solution with all document management functionalities to the cloud. Including electronic signature, workflows, annotations and all other functionalities of M-Files.

• Cloud-ready approach

When organisations choose (or already own) an on-premise solution (or already own it) then the environment is not easy to transfer to the cloud. Thanks to GeONE's unique cloud-ready approach, this has this has come to an end. With the cloud-ready approach, an organisation initially chooses initially opts for an on-premise M-Files environment, but GeONE designs this environment so that it can easily be converted to the cloud (setup, licensing model, etc.). In recent years, the vast majority opted for this cloud-ready variant and now more and more organisations are finding their moment to easily switch to the cloud. Something that with 'bare' on-premise environment is not so easy.

• Dutch Microsoft Azure cloud

For many organisations, the location of their data and information poses a problem. A cloud environment in the US or the UK does not offer the same protection and assurances as those in Europe. Because M-Files uses the Microsoft Azure cloud in Amsterdam, this is an additional reason to switch to the cloud.

• Full Windows, Office 365 and Outlook integration

Many cloud environments are characterised by their closed nature in relation to other applications an organisation already has in use. M-Files Online is the opposite of this. The familiar open architecture of M-Files is completely present in the cloud environment. This means full integration with Windows and Office 365, but also with Microsoft Outlook, for example, as well as with existing ERP and CRM systems.