I'm currently managing the IT setup for a small speech and language therapy clinic with around 15 employees. They mainly use laptops to access materials stored in the cloud and work with basic software, primarily OpenOffice and PDF readers. The clinic's infrastructure includes a self-hosted Nextcloud server on Proxmox with Ubuntu and a local network drive that syncs with the cloud via a script. I believe the current setup is overly complex for their needs and requires a lot of maintenance. I'm looking for suggestions on alternative cloud solutions that might involve some licensing costs but reduce administrative overhead. Also, the local network drive isn't strictly necessary since it was added due to instability with Nextcloud. Any recommendations or insights would be really appreciated!
4 Answers
If it were me, I'd recommend switching to Microsoft 365 Business Standard. It covers all bases, including email, OneDrive for file storage, and SharePoint for collaboration—all synced from local computers to the cloud. It costs around $13 per user per month, which could simplify things significantly by replacing the existing servers and software. If you want more control, the Business Premium option gives you additional management tools and security features for about $22 per user per month. It’s an investment that can make IT management a lot easier down the line!
You might want to weigh how accustomed the staff is to Nextcloud and their general tech skills. If they rely heavily on consistent internet access, a full switch to cloud-based software could be problematic. Also, consider what their budget allows for this IT setup. Nextcloud is pretty stable when properly configured, so enhancing your current system could be worthwhile before making any major changes.
Have you considered just moving your Nextcloud to a hosted provider? That might significantly reduce administrative overhead and improve stability without fully migrating to Microsoft products. If you're worried about stability, a separate backup solution for Nextcloud could help too. With 15 users already using open-source software, it might be a hassle to switch to a Microsoft ecosystem. Plus, converting files could break layouts and other issues. Staying with what you have and optimizing it could be a better path.
You have a point about the complexity. I think opting for Microsoft 365 Business Premium is a good solution, but you should also think about hiring a managed service provider (MSP) to take care of the setup and security. This way, you can focus on running the clinic instead of worrying about IT issues. Just remember that having a direct sync could lead to potential data loss if local files get corrupted. A backup with immutable storage is essential!
Just a heads-up, there's a lot of administration involved with SharePoint that might not be worth it. Local file sync can be tricky, and you might want to consider other solutions like Azure Files for a smoother operation.