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Challenges Implementing Enterprise Cloud Printing

Posted by Devin Anderson

Cloud computing is quickly being adopted around the world by organizations both large and small. It’s not hard to see why. Whether they deal with collaborative editing or cloud printing, cloud-based solutions have the ability to bring additional convenience, scalability and flexibility to almost any environment. And they’re geared toward a workforce that is becoming increasingly mobile. But that’s not to say that all cloud solutions are easy to implement.

Consider enterprise cloud printing solutions. We know right from the start what benefits they might bring: easier expansion, more centralized management, the possibility of tighter mobile integration and off-network printing. Yet, as many organizations have come to understand, they face key challenges when implementing enterprise cloud printing that aren’t always obvious from the outset. Here are some of them:

Your legacy printing backbone: Your organization has spent hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars investing in its print infrastructure over years or even decades. And now it might get tossed aside for a cloud-based print server because cloud printing is suddenly all the rage? No wonder so many organizations balk at the idea! Ideally, you’ll want to identify enterprise cloud printing solutions that enhance your existing print backbone instead of forcing you to replace all or large parts of it.

Security: Almost everything that makes enterprise cloud printing solutions attractive also makes them vulnerable. If your end users can easily access your cloud printing solution from anywhere, chances are that it’s easier for hackers too. The extra vigilance involved in locking down your cloud-based print server and maintaining a secure print environment is another challenge that might deter some organizations from experiencing the benefits of cloud printing.

Cross-platform compatibility: One of the most alluring features of cloud-based solutions is their platform agnosticism—well, most of the time. Cloud printing is a slightly different animal because you’re dealing with many more variables, such as diverse print hardware, different versions of drivers for different operating systems, and so on. This means that organizations sometimes have to choose cloud print for Windows, Mac, or Linux instead of a blanket cloud printing solution.

Cost: Enterprise cloud printing solutions might introduce additional functionality into your print environment, but they’re not always cost effective. By way of example, let’s refer back to the point above: If you were to implement a solution that enabled only cloud print for Windows, you might also need to find a complementary solution for your Mac, iOS, Linux or Android users. Or you’d be locked in, which would mean replacing those devices that were incompatible with your OS-specific cloud printing solution. That, of course, would drive up the cost of software or hardware—or probably both.

Plus it’s secure. PrinterLogic provides you with fine-grained control over who can print what and where, and its acclaimed centralized management means you can administer these settings from anywhere in the organization with a few intuitive clicks. And instead of simply migrating to a glorified cloud-based print server, you can use PrinterLogic’s print management solution to eliminate all your print servers completely, saving you time, money and stress. It’s a comprehensive, rapid-deployment enterprise cloud printing solution that sidesteps all of the usual challenges.