A free assessment tells you honestly whether your situation justifies self-hosting.
Signs you need this
- A client or partner asked where your data goes, and "a third-party platform" was not the answer they wanted.
- A vendor questionnaire or enterprise procurement review asks who controls your workflows.
- Your sector requires you to document and control where workflow data lives.
- Your workflows carry sensitive client data through platforms you do not control.
- Automation volume is high enough that per-task pricing is a material, unpredictable cost.
If none of these apply, a cloud platform is probably still the right choice, and we will say so.
Cloud automation or self-hosted?
Both are sound choices for different situations.
| Cloud (Make, Zapier) | Self-hosted | |
|---|---|---|
| Control | The provider runs the platform; you configure workflows | You control the environment and where data lives |
| Cost structure | Per-task or per-plan fees that rise with volume | Hosting plus a managed engagement; can cost as much at low volume |
| Compliance | You rely on the provider's terms and documentation | Data stays in-boundary, with controls you can document |
| Maintenance | The provider patches and operates it | Someone must patch, back up and monitor; FEDLIN does under the engagement |
| Connectors | A large library of prebuilt connectors | Same categories, fewer prebuilt connectors for niche tools |
| Best for | Most teams with no data-control requirement | Teams with a client, regulator or volume requirement |
To see the cost side on its own, try theSaaS Savings Calculator. It gives an illustrative estimate from your own inputs.
Some teams keep low-risk workflows on a cloud platform and move only the sensitive ones. We scope that split during discovery, so you pay for control only where you need it.
What is included
- Stack mapping and migration scope. Automate Shift lists your workflows and what each connects to. You know the scope before any commitment.
- Provisioned, hardened infrastructure. FEDLIN sets it up in-boundary with zero-trust access and monitoring. Your workflows run in an environment you can account for.
- Rebuilt workflows. Lead routing, follow-up, CRM sync and onboarding on the new stack. The same outcomes run on infrastructure you own.
- Ongoing operation. Monitoring, updates and reporting after launch. The environment stays current.
How it works, and who runs what
Automate Shift builds and maintains the workflows. FEDLIN provisions, hardens and monitors the infrastructure. You own the environment and approve the scope. The work followsthe Continuit Methodology.
- Scope and discovery. Automate Shift inventories your Make or Zapier workflows. You share access and name the requirement behind the move.
- Build. FEDLIN provisions and hardens while Automate Shift rebuilds workflows. You review the results.
- Review and cutover. We test, run a security review and switch over. You approve go-live.
- Managed operation. FEDLIN monitors and Automate Shift updates workflows. You report changes.
- Graduate as you grow. You expand scope or add private infrastructure.
How this connects to the rest of Continuit
This is the deepest end of Automate, built on the controls described inProtect & Optimize. If the question is about the website rather than automation, start with Modernize.
Frequently asked questions
Will self-hosted infrastructure cost more than our current platform?
It might. Server hosting plus a managed engagement can match or exceed what a small business pays on a cloud automation platform. Self-hosting is an accountability purchase for most businesses, not a cost play. At high automation volume, a fixed infrastructure cost can be the better model. We will tell you during scoping if neither applies.
Is self-hosted automation more secure than cloud automation?
Not automatically. Cloud providers invest heavily in security, and a neglected self-hosted server can be weaker. Self-hosting gives you control over where data lives and who can reach it. Its security depends on hardening and upkeep, which is why FEDLIN provisions, hardens and monitors the environment as part of the engagement.
Who handles our data, and where does it live?
With self-hosted infrastructure, your data lives in an environment you control, not on a shared SaaS platform. FEDLIN provisions and hardens it. Whether that is your own cloud account, a dedicated server or another in-boundary option is part of scoping, and depends on your compliance posture and what the accountability requirement demands.
Do we lose capability by moving off Make or Zapier?
Self-hosted workflow tooling covers the same categories: a visual flow builder, CRM and email integrations, webhook triggers, scheduled runs and conditional logic. The gap is prebuilt connectors for niche SaaS tools. Automate Shift checks this during scoping, so you know what carries over and what must be rebuilt before you commit.
What happens to our existing workflows during a migration?
Standing up a self-hosted tool such as n8n or Activepieces typically takes 15 to 30 minutes. Moving your existing workflows is the time-consuming part, because it is not a simple import and export. Automate Shift rebuilds each one on the new stack and tests it before you rely on it. How long that takes depends on how many workflows you have and how complex they are.
Can we start on a cloud platform and move later?
Yes, and for many businesses that is the right order. If nobody has asked where your automation data goes or who controls your workflows, a cloud platform is probably the right answer for now. Move when a client, a regulator or your own compliance posture requires you to account for it.
Start with the free assessment, or read the general FAQ first.
More answers are in the general FAQ.