Self-hosted vs cloud trading software: what's the difference?

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What self-hosting gives youWhat it asks of youWhich suits youWhere Ascent Trading Systems fits

Trading software comes in two broad kinds. Cloud platforms run on the provider's servers and you use them through a website or app. Self-hosted software runs on a computer you control: your own PC or a server you rent.

What self-hosting gives you

• Your keys stay with you. Your broker keys, trades and logs live on your machine, not in a provider's database.
• You can see how it works. When the source code is included, you can read exactly what the software does before trusting it with a paper account, let alone a real one.
• No dependence on a provider's servers. If a cloud platform changes its rules, raises its price or shuts down, its users have to move. Self-hosted software you've installed keeps running.
• Cost. Many self-hosted tools are a one-time purchase. Cloud platforms usually charge monthly.

What it asks of you

• A computer that stays on. A strategy can't trade while your PC sleeps. Many people use a small cloud server instead; some providers offer free tiers that are enough for this kind of software.
• Some upkeep. You install updates, keep an eye on disk space and restart it if the computer restarts. Good software makes this simple, but it's still your job.
• Comfort with setup steps. An installer can do most of the work, but you'll follow instructions, create a broker account and edit a settings file.

Which suits you

If you want to understand and control every rule, keep your data private and avoid monthly fees, self-hosted software fits. If you want nothing to install and don't mind a subscription, a cloud platform is simpler.

Where Ascent Trading Systems fits

It's self-hosted: it runs on your own Windows 10/11 PC or an Ubuntu server (a step-by-step guide for a free Oracle Cloud server is included), paper-trades through your free Alpaca account by default, and comes with the full source code. It isn't a trading service or a signal provider.

General education, not investment advice. Trading involves risk of loss; backtests and paper results are hypothetical and do not predict future results.

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