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Cloud or a machine in the office? What each option means for a law firm
Published 7 September 202625 Rabiʻ I 1448 AH4 min read
In short
The difference is not in the screens but in who owns the running of it. Cloud spares you the machine and the backups in exchange for a permanent subscription, data on the provider's servers, and a complete stop when the internet goes down. A system on a machine in the office gives you control of the version, the data and the cost in exchange for a machine you buy and backups that must be tested. The right decision is the one where you know the answer to four questions: where the data is, who updates the system, what happens in an outage, and how you leave.
Four questions that settle the choice
- 01
Where does the data live, and who can reach it?
Cloud: on the provider's servers, possibly outside Saudi Arabia, reachable by its staff under its policies. In the office: in the office, reachable by whoever you give access to. Get the answer in the contract, not the presentation.
- 02
Who decides when the system changes?
A cloud provider updates everyone at once, possibly on the morning of a hearing. On a machine in the office you choose the version and the time, and roll back if something breaks.
- 03
What happens when the internet goes down, or the provider does?
Cloud stops entirely with the internet, and permanently if the provider closes. A machine in the office keeps working internally, and keeps running even if whoever sold it disappears.
- 04
How do you leave with everything?
A database and files in a readable format, in one day, without fees. If the answer is “in coordination with technical support”, you do not own your data.
A frank comparison
| Item | Cloud | A machine in the office |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | A monthly subscription per user, accumulating and never ending | A licence and a machine once, then maintenance |
| Getting started | Hours | A day of installation on the machine |
| Updates | Decided by the provider for everyone | Decided by you from the operations panel, with rollback |
| Access from outside the office | Direct, from anywhere | Through a secure tunnel set up once per employee |
| Internet outage | A complete stop | Work inside the office continues |
| Backups | The provider's responsibility; ask about restores | Your responsibility, managed from the panel and to be tested |
| The provider shutting down | Depends on the exit terms | The system keeps running with you as it is |
| Hardware | None | One machine in the office, and a small UPS |
What running in the office actually requires
Running in-house is not free of effort, and it is better to know its price before choosing it:
- One dedicated machine, the size of a small desktop, always on and used for nothing else.
- A small uninterruptible power supply, so the machine does not stop abruptly in a power cut.
- A backup every night on the machine, a second copy outside the office, and a restore tried at least once.
- One person in the office responsible for the operations panel: applies the update at a quiet time, and checks that the nightly backup happened.
- An arrangement for access from outside the office: a secure tunnel installed on staff devices, not an open port on the internet.
When cloud fits better
- Nobody in the office can be responsible for a machine, even for ten minutes a week.
- The team is spread across cities and most work happens outside the office.
- The firm is very small, with no large scanned archive to process.
- The export and exit terms are clear and in writing, and the two-year price is known.
When a machine in the office fits better
- A large scanned archive needing text extraction, better done on your own machine than on shared servers.
- The firm wants to decide for itself when the system changes, and to roll back an update that hurts the work.
- The five-year cost matters more than an easy start.
- There is someone who can own the running of it, or a provider who does so remotely under a clear contract.
Common questions
- Can we move from cloud to the office later, or the other way?
- The data is ultimately a database and files. If the provider allows a full export in a readable format, the move is possible in either direction. Ask about it before signing, not when you want to leave.
- How much does the machine cost?
- A machine with mid-range desktop specifications serves a firm of dozens of users. Ask for the required specification in writing and count it once in the two-year cost.
- Who does the installation?
- The system's provider, in one visit or remotely. The firm supplies a ready machine and an internet connection; the rest is on the provider.
- What if the machine fails?
- The last backup is restored onto a new machine. That is why the nightly backup must exist outside the machine itself, and why the restore must have been tried once before you need it.
How QanoonTech runs
QanoonTech is installed on a machine in the office, and every firm has its own copy. The operations panel lists the available versions, applies the one you choose after taking a backup, and rolls it back if needed. Backups run every night and are restored from the same panel, with an optional offsite copy to the firm's own Google Drive. Nothing in the system is published on the internet; an employee outside the office connects through a secure tunnel on their device. The licence is verified locally, so the system never stops because a distant server did not answer.
Labour claim — end-of-service entitlements
مطالبة عمالية — مستحقات نهاية الخدمة
Client: شركة نماء للتقنية · Labour
Progress
Change status- Notice
- Settlement
- 3First instance
- 4Appeal
- 5Supreme court
- 6Enforcement
- 7Closure
Next hearing
All hearings ←- 27/03/1448 هـ — 2026/09/09إيداع مذكرة الرد — مطالبة عماليةDeadline
- 10/04/1448 هـ — 2026/09/21اجتماع مع شركة نماء للتقنيةMeeting
Open tasks
All tasks ←Case facts
Edit- Court
- المحكمة العمالية بالرياض — الدائرة الثالثة
- Judge
- د. فهد العتيبي
- Filed
- Monday 7 Muharram 1448 AH — 22 June 2026
- Claim value
- 185,000.00 SAR
- Opposing party
- عبدالله بن سعد الحربي
- Opposing counsel
- مكتب المشاري للمحاماة
Description
دعوى مقامة ضد الموكلة من موظف سابق يطالب بمستحقات نهاية الخدمة وبدل الإجازات عن أربع سنوات خدمة. الموكلة تدفع بأن المستحقات سُدّدت بالكامل عند إنهاء العقد.
Notes
تم إيداع مذكرة الرد عبر ناجز. الجلسة القادمة 15 سبتمبر — يحضرها فهد.
سارة العمري · الخميس 21 ربيع الأول 1448 هـ — 3 سبتمبر 2026 11:45 ص
استلمنا كشف الرواتب من العميل لكامل مدة الخدمة. يلزم مطابقته مع سجل التأمينات قبل الجلسة.
فهد الحربي · الخميس 14 ربيع الأول 1448 هـ — 27 أغسطس 2026 03:10 م
Client
View client ←شركة نماء للتقنية
Company
0112345678
legal@namaa-demo.sa
Team
Assignسارة العمري
Primary lawyer
فهد الحربي
Assisting
Linked cases
Link a caseNo linked cases
Opened by Sarah Al-Amri on Monday 29 Dhu al-Hijjah 1447 AH — 15 June 2026 · Last changed Wednesday 21 Rabi' al-Awwal 1448 AH — 3 September 2026 11:45 AM
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