Compare To Self-Hosting

Overview

Self-hosting allows customers to deploy vendor software in their own infrastructure, giving them full control over data and security. However, self-hosting often places a significant burden on the customer to manage deployments, updates, observability, and support. Tensor9’s Any-Prem approach provides the flexibility of self-hosting without the operational overhead, making it easy for vendors to deliver their software while allowing customers to maintain data sovereignty.

TL;DR

Self-hosting requires customers to run and manage the entire software stack, often leading to poor user experience and maintenance burdens. Tensor9 keeps the simplicity of SaaS while allowing customers to host the product within their environment, with secure support and easy updates.

Differences Between Self-Hosting and Tensor9

Category	Self-Hosting	Tensor9
Deployment Model	Customers manually deploy and configure software.	Vendor-delivered, pre-configured deployments that work seamlessly in customer environments.
Data Control	Full data control, but customers must manage their own security configurations.	Full data control with vendor-managed updates and observability that respects customer-defined policies.
Managed Services Compatibility	Customers must manually swap out cloud services for self-hosted alternatives.	Automatically replaces cloud-managed services (e.g., S3 → MinIO, DynamoDB → ScyllaDB) without vendor-side rework.
Form Factor Flexibility	Requires significant engineering effort to support multiple form factors.	Supports different customer environments (cloud, on-prem, air-gapped) without vendor-side engineering changes.
Software Updates	Customers must download and apply updates manually.	Vendors deliver updates that customers can review, approve, and apply seamlessly.
Observability	Customers must set up and maintain their own monitoring and logging.	Secure telemetry and logs are provided via digital twins, with customer-controlled visibility.
Air-Gapped Environments	Supported but requires significant effort for offline updates.	Fully supported with secure, audit-logged offline updates and vendor troubleshooting workflows.
Support Model	Limited to customer-led support or vendor involvement via external remote access tools.	Secure vendor support via customer-controlled, audit-logged remote access for debugging and maintenance.
Operational Complexity	High operational burden, requiring customer expertise for deployments, scaling, and maintenance.	Low operational burden with automated service orchestration and managed service replacements.

Why Choose Tensor9 Over Self-Hosting?

Reduced Operational Burden: Self-hosting requires customers to handle deployment, monitoring, and maintenance. Tensor9 automates these processes, reducing the need for dedicated DevOps expertise.
Automatic Managed Service Replacement: Self-hosting requires manually replacing cloud-managed services with alternatives like Redis or MinIO. Tensor9 handles these replacements automatically, making deployments seamless.
Consistent Multi-Form-Factor Support: Self-hosting across multiple environments often results in inconsistent configurations. Tensor9 standardizes deployments across on-prem, BYOC, and air-gapped environments.
Simplified Observability: Self-hosting requires customers to configure complex monitoring stacks. Tensor9 provides secure observability with built-in telemetry through digital twins.
Enhanced Support Experience: Self-hosted software often leads to slow issue resolution due to limited vendor access. Tensor9 enables secure, audit-logged vendor support, speeding up issue resolution while maintaining security.

Summary

Tensor9 preserves the flexibility of self-hosting while removing the operational complexity. By automating managed service replacements and enabling secure, multi-form-factor deployments, Tensor9 empowers vendors to deliver their software without requiring customers to take on the full burden of hosting and maintaining their own infrastructure.