If your team is printing every day, the way you manage printers matters more than you think. That’s where cloud print management comes in. Many Charlotte-area businesses are asking whether it’s time to move away from traditional on-premise print servers and into the cloud, and Carolina Business Technologies, Inc. has this conversation with customers all the time.
In this article, we’ll break down the real-world differences between cloud and on-prem print management so you can decide what fits your budget, security needs, and IT resources.
What Is Cloud Print Management vs On-Prem?
Before we compare, let’s define the two models in plain language.
On-premise print management
This is the “old school” approach. Your print servers live in your office or data center. Your IT team manages:
Print servers and drivers
Printer queues
Updates, patching, and backups
On-prem solutions give you full control over the hardware and data in your own environment, which some organizations still prefer for strict security or compliance reasons.
Cloud print management
With cloud print management, the print infrastructure moves to a secure cloud platform instead of your own servers. Print queues, policies, and reporting are all managed from a browser-based dashboard. That means:
No physical print servers to buy or maintain
Centralized management, even across multiple locations
Easier support for remote and hybrid workers
Carolina Business Technologies, Inc. works with both approaches, but the right choice depends on how your office prints today and where you’re headed.
Cost Comparison: Servers vs Subscriptions
On-Prem Costs
On-prem print management usually means:
Upfront hardware costs for servers
Operating system and print management software licenses
Ongoing maintenance, electricity, cooling, and backup infrastructure
IT staff time to manage drivers, queues, and updates
Costs can jump quickly when you have multiple locations and each site needs its own server or complex VPN setup.
Cloud Costs
Cloud print management is typically subscription-based:
Lower upfront capital expense (no new servers)
Predictable monthly or annual fees
Easy to scale up or down as you add or remove printers and users
For many small and mid-sized businesses, that shift from “buy more hardware” to “pay for what you actually use” can be a big win.
Bottom line:
If you’ve already invested heavily in servers and your print environment is stable, on-prem may still be cost-effective.
If you’re growing, opening new locations, or tired of surprise server costs, cloud often wins on total cost of ownership over time.
Security & Compliance: Is the Cloud Really Safe Enough?
Security is usually the first concern when someone hears “cloud.”
On-Prem Security
With on-prem print management:
All print jobs stay inside your network.
Your IT team controls firewalls, access rules, and physical security.
You can design very strict, custom security policies if you have the staff and budget.
Highly regulated environments (certain healthcare, finance, or government use cases) may still lean this way, especially if they already have a mature security program.
Cloud Print Security
Modern cloud print platforms aren’t just “printers connected to the internet.” They typically include:
Encrypted job transmission and storage
User authentication and pull printing (jobs only release when the user is at the device)
Fine-grained access controls and audit logs
Integration with Microsoft 365 / Azure AD or Google Workspace for identity management
For many businesses, a reputable cloud provider can actually improve security posture compared to an old, unpatched print server in a closet.
Bottom line:
Both models can be secure, but security in the cloud depends on choosing the right platform and configuring it properly. That’s where a partner like Carolina Business Technologies, Inc. helps you select and set up what fits your risk profile.
Management & IT Workload
On-Prem: Lots of Moving Parts
IT teams managing on-prem print have to:
Maintain servers and operating systems
Test and deploy new print drivers
Troubleshoot queue issues per office or per device
Patch, back up, and monitor print infrastructure
In multi-site environments, that can mean juggling multiple servers and VPN configurations.
Cloud: Centralized & Simplified
With cloud print management:
IT uses one central dashboard to manage printers and queues across all locations
Many drivers and firmware updates are simplified or automated
New printers can often be brought online with minimal manual setup
For lean IT teams, offloading that complexity can free up time for more strategic work instead of “Why won’t this user’s PC see the printer again?” tickets.
Flexibility for Remote & Hybrid Workers
The way we work has changed. Your print setup needs to keep up.
On-Prem Challenges
Traditional on-prem printing usually assumes:
Users are on the local network or VPN
Devices are domain-joined and managed
Printing is mainly from desktops, not mobile or mixed environments
That can be clunky for remote workers, sales reps, and executives who move between home, office, and client sites.
Cloud Advantages
Cloud print management is built with mobility and hybrid work in mind:
Users can print securely from laptops, Chromebooks, tablets, or phones
Printing can work over the internet, not just the office LAN
Policies follow the user, not the device or building
If your workforce is spread out or flexible, this is where the cloud often becomes a no-brainer.
Reliability & Uptime
On-Prem
If your single print server goes down, printing stops until IT fixes it. You can build redundancy, but that usually means more servers and more cost.
Cloud
Cloud platforms are typically designed with:
High availability and redundancy across data centers
Resilience to local hardware failures
Usage-based scaling as your print volume grows
For organizations where “we can’t print” is a real business problem, uptime is a major reason to consider the cloud.
When On-Prem Still Makes Sense
Cloud isn’t automatically better for everyone. On-prem print management may still be the best fit if:
You operate in a heavily regulated or air-gapped environment with no internet connectivity
You require very custom integrations or workflows your current on-prem system already supports
You’ve invested significantly in servers and licenses and are getting good value from them
You have a strong in-house IT team that prefers tight, local control over every system
In these cases, Carolina Business Technologies, Inc. can help you optimize your on-prem environment and layer in security best practices.
Is a Hybrid Approach Right for You?
Some businesses get the best of both worlds with a hybrid strategy:
Keep on-prem print servers for high-security departments or locations
Use cloud print management for branch offices, remote teams, or less sensitive workloads
This lets you migrate at your own pace, test new workflows, and avoid a “big bang” changeover. Hybrid can also be a smart step when you’re planning a broader cloud or Microsoft 365 migration.
How Carolina Business Technologies, Inc. Helps You Decide
Choosing between cloud and on-prem print management isn’t just a technology question. It’s a business question.
Carolina Business Technologies, Inc. can help you:
Audit your current print environment and costs
Identify security and compliance requirements
Compare realistic 3–5 year costs for cloud vs on-prem
Design a phased roadmap (on-prem, cloud, or hybrid) that matches your business goals
Implement and support the solution so your team can just hit “Print” and get back to work
If you’d like to explore more third-party perspectives, you can also review resources like this overview of on-premises vs. cloud print management, then bring your questions to our team.
Ready to Talk About Your Cloud Print Management Strategy?
If you’re unsure whether cloud print management, on-prem, or a hybrid model is best, you don’t have to guess.
Reach out to Carolina Business Technologies, Inc. for a straightforward, numbers-driven conversation. We’ll walk through how your team prints today, what’s frustrating your users and your IT staff, and which approach makes the most sense for your budget and security needs—so your print environment finally matches the way your business actually works.