2017 Review of Cloudnine Realtime

Acquired in early 2017 by AbacusNext, a solutions provider for legal professionals, Cloudnine Realtime offers scalable application hosting, and is suitable for accounting firms and other professional services firms of any size. Cloudnine Realtime was the winner of CPA Practice Advisor’s Reader’s Choice Award for Outsourced Technology Services in 2017.

With four versions available, firms have the option to have a single application hosted, or an unlimited number, based on their needs, and can easily scale up to the next version if needed. Cloudnine Realtime is also a licensed commercial host for all Intuit products.

Cloudnine does not specify uptime for their product, but does state that they offer disaster recovery. Cloudnine offers data centers in both San Diego, CA, and Austin, TX, with both centers SOC 2/SSAE16 Certified. The product also offers 30 day rolling backups, and archived backups are available as well.

Easily accessible from anywhere, Cloudnine Realtime is compatible with both Windows and Mac systems, and users can also access the application using an iOS or Android smartphone or tablet though Cloudnine does suggest that those accessing the system use Internet Explorer.

Cloudnine Realtime offers QuickBooks hosting in all four of its editions. Microsoft Word and Excel hosting is provided in all four editions of the application as well. Microsoft Office 365 hosting, Microsoft Exchange Services and Sage Hosting is available in the ProPlus, Premier, and Enterprise levels of Cloudnine. Both Office Tools Pro hosting and Lacerte hosting is available from Cloudnine as well. The product also offers 3^rd party application hosting for hundreds of applications, and Pro Plus, Premier and Enterprise levels of the product also offer a custom private virtual server. A Custom Hybrid Cloud, where applications are stored on both the host’s servers and firm servers to provide a backup system is available to Enterprise level customers.

Users can access their applications by logging into the cloud applications page. Icons are available for applications such as QuickBooks, Sage 50, and Microsoft Word and Excel, with other applications easily accessed through the Cloud Files icon.

The Cloudnine Portal, separate from the cloud, allows administrators to easily monitor system usage, add and remove system users, manage any outstanding support tickets, and add new applications as desired, all from a centralized dashboard.

Along with standard hosting, Cloudnine is a licensed commercial host for all Intuit software products, which allows them to provide users with all IT, maintenance and product backups that are required.

Support options available to users is based on the version purchased. While the Pro version offers only community support options, along with email support, the other three versions Cloudnine Realtime offer U.S. based telephone support 24/7. Enterprise version users receive a dedicated support team as well. Users can also submit a support ticket from the product website, or utilize the new C9 Portal, which allows users to submit a support request and track the status of the request via the portal. Cloudnine’s Online Help page offers access to the product knowledgebase as well as getting started guides, user guides, and FAQ’s, as well as a section for handling third party applications if needed.

Cloudnine Realtime is an excellent solution for businesses and accounting firms alike. The product is scalable, making it suitable for businesses that wish to have a single program hosted, to those looking for hosting for numerous applications. The Pro edition of Cloudnine is suitable for 1-2 users and can host 1-3 applications. Pro Plus is suitable for 3-25 users and can host between 3-7 applications. The Premier edition is suitable for 25-500 users that wish to have between 8-15 applications hosted, and the Enterprise edition is for 500 + users that wish to have an unlimited number of applications hosted. Cloudnine Realtime offers a 7-day free trial, with pricing options available to potential users after the trial expires.  

2017 Rating 4.75 Stars