Perforce P4 (formerly Helix Core) is a version control solution designed to scale. It can handle large assets, an incredible volume of files, and support distributed teams and concurrent workflows. These are both issues where Git falls short, even with Git LFS. But once you’ve selected Perforce P4 as your version control system, the next key decision is how to manage your Perforce hosting.
Traditionally, many organizations have opted for self-hosted, on-premises environments to host Perforce. However, Perforce hosting on the cloud is more aligned with flexible, distributed work setups.
We’ll weigh the pros and cons of each Perforce hosting solution, comparing the most popular on-premise and cloud-native architectures.
Table of Contents
Hosting Perforce On-Premises
An on-premises setup is the way to go for organizations wishing to deploy Perforce P4 (previously Helix Core) on their managed servers. On-prem is also the default method for hosting Perforce. There is extensive documentation to host Perforce Helix Core on Linux, Windows, and macOS, which is still available and valuable. For Linux users, the installation involves downloading and verifying the Perforce public key, adding the Perforce repository, and configuring the service.
Pros of having an on-premises server
- Assume complete control over the underlying hardware backing the Perforce P4 (Helix Core) deployment.
- An on-premises server is the most commonly used deployment of P4. It’s well-documented, well-supported, and fine-tuned to work out of the box.
- On-premises solutions make it easy for on-site technicians to quickly diagnose problems with the installation, including issues caused by hardware malfunctions or failures.
- Using cloud infrastructure is like “renting” infrastructure. An on-premises servers allows customers to recoup infrastructure spending by reselling their infrastructure in the future.
Cons of on-premises solutions
- The end user assumes responsibility for administering the underlying hardware and its cybersecurity.
- The network supporting the deployment depends on the networking capabilities available to the company site.
- There is a sizable upfront time and cost associated with purchasing and installing the on-premises server to support this configuration. You’ll need to designate someone or hire a Perforce administrator (and for large deployments, possibly more than one) to handle configuration and ongoing management. This can become costly and may deter companies looking to avoid significant upfront capital expenditure (capex) and get set up quickly.
- Ensuring proper disaster recovery and backup for an on-premises Perforce hosting solution is critical. Most organizations will require additional investment in backup infrastructure and streamlined maintenance practices for disaster recovery.
Key takeaway
With an on premises solution, organizations have complete ownership and control over their server infrastructure. However, an on premises server entails substantial initial expenses, plus ongoing costs related to infrastructure upgrades and administration.
Unsure if on-prem Perforce hosting is a good fit? Read up more on our article on on-prem vs cloud hosting.
Self-Managed Private Cloud
A private cloud server is another popular deployment option for Perforce hosting. Under the Private Cloud method, companies deploy Helix Core on AWS or onto another major cloud infrastructure provider. This option appeals to users who want direct control over the administration and customization of their cloud environments.
However, managing a private cloud requires in-house experience and personnel to maintain the Perforce hosting cloud infrastructure. Typically, this involves having a DevOps professional on hand to assist with provisioning and maintaining the environment.
Pros of hosting Perforce on a private cloud
- A more hands-on cloud deployment solution for those with some in-house expertise to leverage.
- Users can manage their underlying infrastructure without the upfront cost and hassle of setting up an on premises solution.
- Many of the benefits of Perforce hosting on-prem are retained while keeping all the advantages of cloud computing. When it comes to self-hosting Perforce, a private cloud-hosted environment combines the best of both worlds.
Cons of self-managed Perforce hosting
- Private cloud management requires some in-house support for routine and ongoing maintenance. The workload increases substantially as teams grow or become more dispersed.
- A DevOps professional with direct experience in maintaining a Perforce (P4) server is required. There aren’t many professionals with the specific knowledge necessary to maintain the unique cloud instance for a Perforce hosting environment.
Key takeaway
On a self-managed private cloud, organizations can quickly launch a Perforce instance with the help of an in-house DevOps engineer. However, professionals with expertise in running Perforce in a cloud environment come at a cost, as such specialized knowledge is essential for optimizing and maintaining the system in a cloud setup.
Hosting Perforce on Assembla
Assembla is a merged source code and project management platform. We have been an official hosting provider of Perforce in the cloud since 2012. Our Perforce hosting service is a flexible, cloud-based solution that is available in two formats: multi-tenant (formerly known as Perforce Helix Core Cloud) and managed single-tenant (formerly Perforce Cloud Enterprise), tailored to fit your team’s specific needs.
On Assembla, you can purchase P4 licenses as an add-on to a suite of other built-in tools. These include a robust project management and ticketing system, Git and SVN repository hosting, collaboration tools for merge requests and code reviews, message boards, security scanning, a Wiki tool for knowledge sharing, granular user management, integration with CI/CD tools that automatically trigger builds based on commits—and other essentials for proficient product release management.
Assembla Helix Core Add-on – Multi-Tenant Perforce Hosting
Turnkey Perforce hosting solution that requires zero infrastructure maintenance.
- Up to 100 users and 250GB of storage.
- Free Git and SVN repositories.
- Includes a robust project management and ticketing system.
- Includes a Wiki tool for knowledge sharing.
- Secure multi-tenant cloud hosting.
- EU, APAC data residency.
Pros
- Easy setup – be up and running in the cloud in minutes.
- Affordable and predictable bills.
- Easy-to-navigate UI interface.
- Access to Assembla’s Code Scanning tool, which analyzes the codebase for vulnerabilities and scans each commit instantly.
- Access to Assembla’s Project Management tool, which seamlessly integrates software versioning with task management and issue tracking.
- Integration with Travis CI’s CI/CD Tool: esers can sign into Travis CI with Assembla credentials and seamlessly run Perforce Helix Core builds in a cloud environment.
Cons
- Resources backed by shared cloud instances can suffer from throttling and slowdowns, such as when multiple customers simultaneously access the resource, creating a bandwidth problem.
- Limitations on the number of users, storage capacity, and hosting locations.
- Customers cannot customize their infrastructure.
Key takeaway
Assembla’s Helix Core Add-on is the fastest way to move P4 workloads into the cloud and provides many additional collaboration features. The multi-tenant Perforce hosting solution is affordable and practical, albeit not highly customizable.
Assembla Managed Perforce Hosting
Assembla’s managed Perforce hosting is a customizable, fully-managed version designed to host Perforce in the cloud.
- Unlimited users.
- Unlimited storage.
- Possible managed migration.
- Parallel sync, and other Perforce optimization strategies are available.
- Custom triggers, configurations, and scripts.
- Deploy around the world: custom geographic deployment and replication.
- Bespoke support: up to 24×5 Perforce expert support with a dedicated manager.
- The most secure single-tenant, private cloud hosting.
Pros of Assembla’s Managed Perforce Hosting
- It’s the most customizable plan for Perforce hosting – it’s as customizable as on-premises installations.
- Customers only need to pay one bill, covering all associated costs with Perforce hosting, including infrastructure and P4 licenses.
- Various infrastructure configurations are available, including cold storage and replicas. Assembla’s DevOps team consults on server networks before deployment.
- Enterprise-grade support is available 24×5, backed by SLAs, with a customer success manager that will become your go-to person.
- Assembla’s DevOps engineers manage infrastructure and have extensive, specific experience deploying and optimizing environments for Perforce P4 (Helix Core).
Cons of Assembla’s Managed Hosting
- Assembla’s managed Perforce hosting offers the highest level of customization, and thus comes at the highest price point. For customers who don’t need all the advanced features, this might not be the right fit.
- Setup times vary depending on migration requirements, so users won’t be up and running as quickly as they would with Assembla’s Helix Core turnkey solution.
Key takeaway
This is the only option that enables users to fully offload all management of Perforce P4 (including infrastructure) while retaining the ample customization, performance, and security offered by a private cloud setup. Therefore, despite the costs, companies still save by not having to hire a dedicated engineer or Perforce expert.
Perforce’s P4 Remote Administration
Perforce used to offer two cloud deployment options: P4 (Helix) Remote Administration (HRA) and Perforce Enhanced Studio Pack (ESP). These were ideal solutions for teams who wanted to retain some control over their cloud infrastructure while benefiting from tools that simplify management. However, as of 2025, ESP seems to have been discontinued.
Still, P4 Remote Administration offers a balance between autonomy and ease of use, making cloud-based Perforce hosting more accessible to teams without the need for extensive internal expertise.
Perforce (Helix) Remote Administration Tools
In this model, Perforce hosting experts handle the deployment and management of P4 (Helix Core) and P4 Code Review (formerly Helix Swarm) in the cloud. This option offers active management, with Perforce’s team focusing on cost-effective scaling and minimizing downtime, so it’s for those companies without a full-time P4 admin.
Key features include ongoing infrastructure maintenance, daily monitoring of checkpoints and backups, and automatic upgrades and patch installations. The HRA model involves a close collaboration between clients and Perforce to optimize success. After an initial consultation, Perforce provides recommendations for the best cloud infrastructure setup.
The customer then purchases the recommended cloud infrastructure and works alongside Perforce experts to configure and launch their P4 instance.
Pros
- Service level agreements (SLAs) give managers confidence that Perforce experts will secure their cloud environment promptly.
- HRA offers remote P4 and P4 Code Review management, alleviating most of the management burden for companies looking for a cloud-based Perforce hosting solution.
- For organizations aiming to develop greater in-house technical expertise, collaborating with Perforce hosting experts can be a valuable learning experience. This makes a future transition to a more self-managed approach easier and more straightforward.
Cons
- Customers must still administer and pay for their cloud infrastructure.
- While the HRA team manages most aspects of the infrastructure, some application settings (such as adding users or creating depots) still need to be handled by the customer, requiring knowledge of Perforce Helix Core.
Key takeaway
Remote administration, or HRA, frees companies from having a full-time, dedicated manager on site. Instead, Perforce experts will assist customers to unlock the highest performance and security configurations possible in the cloud. However, while Perforce’s team will perform many administrative tasks on behalf of their customer, this solution still requires the user to pay for their infrastructure and handle certain administration tasks associated with their infrastructure.
P4 Cloud (formerly Helix Core Cloud)
P4 Cloud (Helix Core Cloud) is a fully managed, ready to deploy, cloud solution for Helix Core. It’s built for teams of up to 50 users looking to shift from on-prem setups to the cloud. Easy to set up and scalable to 32TB, it lets you store and manage code without worrying about infrastructure or maintenance.
Pros
- P4 Cloud (Helix Core Cloud) allows teams to focus on development without the need to manage hardware or infrastructure.
- This Perforce hosting solution provides easy scalability options, enabling teams to scale their storage and performance needs dynamically as the team grows.
- Since it’s fully managed, teams can get up and running quickly without having to set up complex configurations.
- P4 Cloud leverages the Azure infrastructure, making it accessible across multiple geographic locations with generally low latency.
- Ideal for teams that don’t want to deal with the upfront costs of infrastructure and prefer predictable, subscription-based pricing.
Cons
- Unlike on-prem or private cloud options, teams will have limited control over the underlying infrastructure and configuration settings.
- P4 Cloud is designed for teams of up to 50 users. Larger teams need to consider other options, like self-hosted (either on-premises solutions or a managed private cloud) or Assembla.
- Although 64 GB of storage is included, additional storage incurs extra costs. Similarly, network egress overages are charged separately, and there are no proactive notifications for these overages.
- Storage cannot be decreased once increased.
- Though global availability is a benefit, you may still experience some delays when dealing with very large codebases, depending on your cloud region and connection.
Key takeaway
While it provides cost-effective scalability and global availability, it comes with limitations on customization, user count, and potential additional costs for storage and egress. It’s best suited for small to mid-sized teams that prioritize simplicity and predictability over deep customization.
TLDR; Which Perforce Hosting Solution is Right for Your Team?
When deciding on the right Perforce hosting solution for your team, start by considering the following factors: team size, the need for customization, technical expertise, and budget.
| Solution | Type | Best For | Pros | Cons | TL;DR Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| On-Premises | Local | Teams needing full control & technical resources | Total control, well-documented, no ongoing “rental” costs | High upfront cost, ongoing maintenance, must handle backups & security | Full control, but expensive and high-effort. |
| Self-Managed Private Cloud | Cloud (Private) | Teams with in-house DevOps | Combines control with cloud flexibility, no physical infra setup | Requires internal expertise, maintenance burden, hard to find Perforce cloud specialists | DIY cloud, great if you’ve got DevOps talent. |
| Assembla Multi-Tenant | Cloud (Multi-tenant) | Small to mid-sized teams needing quick setup | Fast setup, cost-effective, includes tools (Git, PM, CI/CD, wiki) | Shared resources, limited storage/users, little customization | Plug-and-play Perforce hosting. Great for quick starts and small teams. |
| Assembla Managed Hosting | Cloud (Single-tenant) | Large or highly customized environments | Full customization, all-in-one billing, expert support, infra fully managed | Most expensive option, setup time may vary depending on migration needs | All the power, none of the hassle—fully managed and customizable. |
| Helix Remote Administration (HRA) | Cloud (Managed) | Teams without full-time Perforce admins | Managed by Perforce experts, includes SLAs, good for learning and collaboration | You still pay for your cloud infra, and handle some configs like user/depot setup | Semi-managed cloud—frees you up without losing all control. |
| P4 Cloud (Helix Core Cloud) | Cloud (Managed) | Teams up to 50 users | No infra worries, scalable to 32TB, quick setup, Azure-based for global reach | Limited to 50 users, extra costs for storage/egress, minimal customization | Simple, scalable cloud for small to mid-sized teams that want to just code and go. |
- P4 on Assembla (Multi-Tenant cloud hosting) is a great choice for small to medium-sized teams needing a quick, all-in-one setup that fosters collaboration. Beyond just repositories and builds, it includes merge requests, code review workflows, and project management features, making it a powerful tool for streamlined teamwork.
- Assembla’s Perforce Managed Hosting service provides unlimited users and storage with full customization, making it suitable for larger teams or those needing a more tailored setup. This fully managed service includes advanced performance optimizations like parallel sync and replication. It’s ideal for teams that need maximum power and flexibility and are willing to invest more for those features.
- Perforce P4 (formerly Helix Core Cloud) offers a fully managed, cloud-native solution with easy scalability and no infrastructure management, supporting up to 50 users and storage scaling up to 32TB. It’s perfect for teams that don’t require complex customizations. However, it might not be the best fit for teams that exceed the user limits or need deeper infrastructure control.
- Self-Managed Private Cloud and On-Premises Perforce Hosting are best for teams that require complete control over their infrastructure. These options provide the highest level of customization but come with the trade-off of needing in-house expertise to manage the cloud environment or on-prem hardware.
