Fax technology has evolved from the primitive fax machine to sophisticated online, hybrid, or on-premise fax solutions. Of course, as business needs vary from industry to industry, it goes without saying that one size does not fit all when it comes to fax deployment in business environments. Different models offer various advantages, and the right choice will lead to cost savings, increased efficiency, and improved communication workflows.
This guide walks through the different types of fax models, who they’re most suited for, the benefits you can expect from them, and key considerations for deployment.
Factors for Deployment
Choosing the most suitable fax deployment model depends on several factors unique to your organization:
- Business IT Standards: Ensure the chosen solution aligns with your existing IT standards and practices.
- Urgency of Your Project: Consider the timeline you have for deployment.
- Compliance & Regulatory Standards: Ensure your solution meets all industry-specific compliance requirements.
- Data Security & Sovereignty: Evaluate how each model handles data security and sovereignty.
- Rules Regarding Capital and Operating Expenses: Consider cost implications for both capital and operating expenses.
- Fax Volumes: Assess the volume of faxes your business handles to choose the most efficient solution.
Some organizations prefer to split up applications and keep some on the cloud and some on-premises, while others may want to keep fax limited to one type of infrastructure.
On-Premises Fax Solutions
On-premises fax solutions require varying levels of IT management depending on the solution and amount of faxing needed. Businesses must invest in server management, software, and telephony infrastructure. Advanced on-premises solutions support configurations for high availability, including virtualization and redundancy.
You might benefit from on-premises fax if:
- You need high availability—uptime needs to be configured and managed by your IT department.
- You want more control over servers and need a high level of customization for your solution.
- You need seamless integration with multifunction printers (MFPs) and software applications.
Cloud Fax Solutions
Cloud fax solutions are growing in popularity due to their modern technology, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness. In fact, faxing from desktops, email, and the web holds the largest market share in the cloud fax market.
Cloud deployment offers a comprehensive service that eliminates the need for fax software, hardware, or on-site telephony. With this setup, faxes can quickly be sent and received through email, while IT staff can efficiently manage users, configurations, and fax numbers. Moreover, integration with multifunction printers (MFPs) and other applications can be facilitated through web service APIs or SMTP, streamlining the process further.
You might benefit from cloud fax if:
- You don’t have the capacity or resources to manage fax operations and infrastructure on your own.
- You need a cost-effective, subscription-based solution.
- You don’t want to purchase hardware or software or worry about server maintenance.
Hybrid Fax Solutions
Hybrid deployments blend cloud and on-premise infrastructure to offer a flexible solution. In this setup, some software is maintained on-site, while other components are delivered as cloud-based SaaS. Meanwhile, the cloud service typically manages the connection to the telephone network.
Integration with multifunction printers (MFPs) and other applications mirrors the process used in on-premises solutions, so if you are transitioning from on-premise, hybrid may be the best option.
You might benefit from hybrid fax if:
- You need a simplified fax environment.
- You have a telephone network to leverage.
- You don’t have the IT staff resources to dedicate.
- You have complex security needs.
- Your integrations are complex.
- Your business needs flexibility and scalability.
Managed/Hosted Fax Solutions
Managed solutions move dedicated servers on-premises from a service provider to a data center. These solutions offer the same software and feature sets as on-premise fax software but eliminate the need to connect the fax server to the telephone network. This simplifies deployment and leverages the advantages of cloud faxing.
You might benefit from hosted or managed fax if:
- You don’t have the resources to manage IT infrastructure.
- You want to isolate your data as opposed to using the cloud, which is shared data storage.
Key Considerations for Choosing Your Fax Deployment Model
Systems Integration
All deployment models provide application integration with SMTP, allowing you to send faxes via email. However, if your business requires more or deeper integrations, the solutions may vary by deployment model.
System Uptime SLA
Your IT department must handle the necessary configurations to achieve high levels of uptime for on-premises fax operations. For managed and cloud-based SaaS solutions, the vendor oversees and delivers reliable service uptime.
Data Transparency & Sovereignty/Ownership
Data sovereignty mandates that enterprise data adhere to the regulatory standards of its respective country. On-premise solutions provide complete control over server locations and the storage of fax data. In contrast, when working with fax service providers, you are limited to selecting from the vendor’s available data storage locations.
Server Hardware & Software
On-premise servers require configuration, installation, and management by the owner, which involves hardware such as telephony equipment or fax machines. Similarly, hybrid solutions demand comparable hardware support. In contrast, cloud and managed solutions remove the necessity for extensive hardware and data servers, relying only on small software components to facilitate integrations.
Timeline
Some deployments take longer than others. Cloud solutions are typically the quickest to deploy, while on-premises solutions require significant configuration and customization, making them take the longest.
Overall Flexibility
The level of customization depends on the deployment option. On-premise deployment is the most highly customizable, while cloud and managed services offer fewer options.
Faxination Offers a Fax Deployment Solution Suited to Your Needs
Faxination by Fenestrae offers a range of fax deployment models tailored to meet your specific requirements. Whether you need an on-premise, cloud, hybrid, or managed solution, Faxination provides excellent support, expertise, and customer service to ensure seamless integration and operation.
Contact Fenestrae for a Faxination Demo
Ready to transform your fax deployment? Contact Fenestrae today for a Faxination demo and discover the best solution for your business needs.
