This blog is going to look at Tableau server and Tableau cloud. This blog will look at the difference and the pros and cons of each.
What is the difference between Server and Cloud?
Tableau Server is the web-based sharing and collaboration platform that would be hosted and maintained within a company’s firewall. It can be deployed on-premise or in the cloud with Linux or Windows operating systems. Hosting Tableau internally allows for full control over how the system is configured, secured, and optimized.
Tableau Cloud provides similar functions to Tableau Server like sharing, automation, and collaboration without any internal infrastructure, maintenance, or upkeep required.
Tableau Server also costs more then Cloud
Pros and Cons of Server
Pros
- Flexible deployment for performance tuning
- In some cases, easier integration with your on-premises sources
- Access to the Postgres repository for simple and customizable administrative views
- Multiple sites for the same licensing price- so for the information lab (TIL) as an example there is one for data school, TIL, TIL Ireland, etc.
Cons
- Infrastructure and hosting costs
- Need for back-end maintenance and upkeep
- Monitoring and system infrastructure are key to system stability
Pros and Cons of Cloud
Pros
- No internal time required for maintenance or upgrades
- Always access the most up-to-date features and functionality
- No infrastructure costs
- Fewer people to work with to scale up
- No need for back-end performance tuning
Cons
- Limited support for identity stores
- No control over upgrade schedules and any rollback required
- There's no control over performance
- No access to Postgres for custom administrative reporting
- Potential for network latency to your internal systems
However there is different use cases for when one maybe better then the other, where I have worked more with server this is where my preferences lie but are different for each person. It is better to investigate both server and cloud to see what is best for you/ company.
