Products

Problems
we solve

We can help your business

Request a Free Demo / trial

Insights

Insights | From a different perspective
2 February, 2022

Why Software is Never Free

Software is Never Free, but SaaS can save you money

No software is entirely free, no matter how small the license cost. In fact, free software products often end up costing the most in the long run. But there is an easy way to reduce your costs.

Companies and procurement always want to get the best price for anything they buy. Software is no exception. Often though, they focus on the ticket price of software, rather than the combined operational costs and effort. 

When selecting software, you need to factor in the total cost of ownership.

Calleo has been supplying customers with software for many years. During this time, we’ve helped many companies develop ROI calculations, so they can understand the budgetary impact of software purchases.

What we’ve found, time and again, is that companies underestimate the costs associated with certain tools.

While most companies are acutely aware of software prices, they’re often in the dark when it comes to operating costs.

Take open source tools as an example. While they have zero ticket prices, they generally cost more overall. 

Open source tools take more effort and time, include no professional support, and rely heavily on expensive expert resources.

Fortunately, though, modern SaaS solutions provide an easy way to reduce software overheads.

The Overheads of On-Premises Software

Of course, it’s not just open source tools that incur hidden costs. All on-premises software carries a budgetary overhead, often quite a high one.

Whenever you deploy any software on-site, you must:

  • Provision the right kit
  • Replace that kit when it reaches end of life
  • Install and configure it
  • Maintain and patch the server(s)
  • Upgrade it for major and minor releases
  • Provide security and backup
  • Build disaster recovery 
  • The list goes on…

Again, open-source tools are a good example – Zero ticket price, but high overheads. 

Once you select an open-source tool, you’ll likely need to add plug-ins, develop custom code, and integrate with other tools. Plus, there’s hosting, patching and regular upgrades. And without professional support, who do you turn to when things go wrong?

All this needs to be factored into your cost of ownership. 

How SaaS Helps Reduce the Total Cost of Ownership

Conversely, Software as a Service (SaaS) tools can initially appear more costly, but they end up saving you a lot of money in the long term.

SaaS solutions incur an ongoing cost, but you get a lot of bang for your buck. SaaS removes many of the costs associated with traditional on-premises software.

Some of the reasons why you save money with SaaS Software include:

  • You don’t need to provision kit or replace it
  • There’s no installation
  • You don’t need to deploy SaaS Software
  • There’s zero maintenance for hardware or software
  • Upgrades and patches are done for you
  • Disaster recovery is built-in
  • The list goes on…

Plus, SaaS test tools are quick to buy and get started. Your software can be made available in days, fully functional and ready-to-go.

SaaS Example – How You Can Save Time and Money With LoadRunner Cloud

Let’s take LoadRunner Cloud as an example. This is a class-leading, SaaS software performance test tool.

Traditionally, performance tests are very labour intensive and costly to run. Especially in the set-up and configuration.

Not only do performance tests require client machines, and skilled resources to create the tests, they also need substantial load generating infrastructure.

This infrastructure must be provisioned, the software installed and configured, and then someone must own and maintain it. Then of course, you must upgrade the various components whenever a new release comes out.

With LoadRunner Cloud though:

  • You access the tool via the web interface and you’re good to go
  • All the infrastructure is provided online
  • Your software is always up-to-date
  • The total cost of ownership is greatly reduced

For a great example of your potential savings, check out this JMeter v. LoadRunner Cloud Comparison

Software is Never Free, But SaaS Can Reduce Your Costs

On-premises software carries substantial and unavoidable overheads, but SaaS can reduce the total cost of ownership.

SaaS is becoming the dominant software licensing option for most companies.

It’s a modern solution that saves time and effort. These days, most software is available via SaaS. Providing companies with a solution with:

  • Rapid and simple deployment
  • Known costs no hidden costs
  • No long term commitment
  • Revenue costs (Opex) cost rather than Capital Cost (CapEx)
  • No in-house IT resource requirements

Not only that, but the SaaS typically works cheaper over 3 years than equivalent on-premises solutions. Tools like LoadRunner Cloud will save you time and money, even when compared to free open-source software.

Reduce Your Costs and Effort – Get SaaS Tools Today

Stephen Davis
by Stephen Davis

Stephen Davis is the founder of Calleo Software, a OpenText (formerly Micro Focus) Gold Partner. His passion is to help test professionals improve the efficiency and effectiveness of software testing.

To view Stephen's LinkedIn profile and connect 

Stephen Davis LinkedIn profile

2nd February 2022
The evolution of test management tools

Test Management Tools: Past, Present, and Future

Understanding where things have come from can often help inform where they are going. The story of test management tools goes back at least three decades and this insight offers a precis of their past, present, and future…

5 automation trends

Software Test Automation: 5 Important Trends for 2024

Software test automation has evolved massively over the last few years; gone are the days of flaky tools, gargantuan setup effort, and scripts that require constant human intervention. The integration of cutting-edge technologies and methodologies has redefined the role of test automation within the software development lifecycle.

Automate Everything With One Tool

Software Testing Simplified: Automate Everything With One Tool

With so many software test automation tools to choose from, companies often cherry-pick a suite of low-cost options to test their full landscape. Unfortunately this is highly problematic, adding unnecessary complexity, increasing costs and undoing any of the purported benefits.

UFT One Automation Heavy Lifting

Test Automation: 6 Reasons UFT One is The Only Tool You Need

In the fast-paced world of software development, functional testing is critical to ensure your solutions perform as expected. Unlike manual testing, which is time-consuming and prone to human error, test automation streamlines the testing process, offering a faster, more accurate, cost-effective solution. There is an array of automation tools available, but OpenText UFT One is the standout choice, offering a complete solution for all your needs.

cut testing costs

Cut Software Testing Costs With These Essential Tactics

Balancing rigorous testing with cost-effectiveness is a challenge. You can test too much, take too much time, and spend too much money on testing. Luckily, there are proven ways to refine your testing practices, increase efficiency, and cut your software testing costs.

performance testing is like herding cats

Herding Cats: Performance Testing Strategies for 2024

Performance testing is more challenging than ever. Technology is more complex, customer expectations are higher, and an increasing number of people and departments need to be involved to make performance testing effective. This article shines a light on strategies to help you execute successful performance test cycles in 2024.

skimping on performance test tools

Why Skimping on Performance Tools Is a False Economy

Performance tool cost is likely to be less than 10% of the performance testing budget, yet many still think that slashing this figure saves money. Common sense tells us that if you do not spend on quality tools, you will spend more on people. In this insight, I look at why investment in professional performance test tools is so important.

The Human Cost of Software Failure

Horizon: The Human Cost of Software  Failure

The Post Office Horizon scandal destroyed lives and livelihoods and is rooted in defective software. This insight looks at the scandal from a testing perspective and serves as a cautionary tale for all involved in deploying large-scale IT systems.

LoadRunner Cloud Migration

Remote Testing with LoadRunner Might Be Breaching Your Contract

Did you know that most LoadRunner Professional licenses are only valid for a specific location? This means that (unless you’ve bought the country or worldwide usage add-on) working from home, other offices or geographic locations is prohibited and doing so could incur financial penalties.

Insights

Search

Related Articles

InsightsTrending

To get other software testing insights, like this, direct to you inbox join the Calleo mailing list.

You can, of course, unsubscribe 

at any time!

By signing up you consent to receiving regular emails from Calleo with updates, tips and ideas on software testing along with the occasional promotion for software testing products. You can, of course, unsubscribe at any time. Click here for the privacy policy.

Sign up to receive the latest, Software Testing Insights, news and to join the Calleo mailing list.

You can, of course, unsubscribe at any time!

By signing up you consent to receiving regular emails from Calleo with updates, tips and ideas on software testing along with the occasional promotion for software testing products. You can, of course, unsubscribe at any time. Click here for the privacy policy.