North America
Asia/Pacific
Europe
Back to Blog
Subscribe to our newsletter
don't miss out the updates
from asteris
Sign up to our newsletter to stay in the loop.
[contact-form-7 id="8373" title="Contact page Newsletter"]
Published On October 2, 2025
Reading Time: 2 minutesDiscover Hybrid PACS
Cloud vs On-Premise PACS for Veterinary Clinics: Which Is Right for You?
Cloud PACS veterinary: costs, security, performance, and when hybrid wins.
For most clinics, cloud PACS delivers faster deployment, easier collaboration, elastic storage, automatic updates, and fewer IT headaches. On-premise PACS can still fit if you require guaranteed offline performance, already own robust infrastructure, and have in-house IT…but expect higher ownership overhead. The best of both worlds? Hybrid PACS, like Keystone Omni – which combines local control with cloud accessibility for unmatched flexibility and security.
What Is a PACS in Veterinary Medicine?
How PACS Fits Into Everyday Veterinary Workflows
A PACS (Picture Archiving and Communication System) stores, retrieves, and shares diagnostic images (radiography, ultrasound, CT, MRI). You can deploy it three ways:
- On-premise PACS: lives on servers in your clinic.
- Cloud PACS: lives in secure cloud infrastructure, accessible on any device with internet.
- Hybrid PACS: like Keystone Omni, which offers local control for speed + cloud redundancy for access, collaboration, and resilience.
Want a veterinary-built option? Explore Asteris Keystone PACS
Cloud PACS: Flexibility & Future-Proofing
Benefits of Cloud PACS for Growing Practices
Why clinics choose cloud
- Access anywhere: Review images at the clinic, at home, or on the road.
- Elastic storage: Add capacity instantly—no hardware purchases.
- Automatic updates & security: Vendor-managed patches, backups, and encryption.
- Teleradiology-ready: Share studies with specialists in a click.
- Lower barrier to entry: Predictable subscription vs. big CapEx.
On-Premise PACS: Control with Caveats
Drawbacks of On-Premise PACS for Veterinary Teams
When on-prem makes sense
- Local control and strong offline operation.
- Higher upfront cost for servers, storage, and setup.
- Maintenance burden: You handle patches, backups, and hardware refresh.
- Scaling friction: Growth often requires new hardware/VPN complexity.
Good fit if you have reliable in-house IT, predictable volumes, and strict offline needs.
Hybrid PACS: Best of Both Worlds
Why Hybrid PACS Is the Best of Both Worlds
Keystone Omni offers a hybrid architecture that combines local speed and offline reliability with cloud resilience, collaboration, and security. This model provides the strongest form of protection because data is stored both on-site and in the cloud. Even if internet drops, you keep working locally, and once reconnected, everything syncs seamlessly. For many clinics, hybrid is the ideal blend of performance, security, and convenience.
Decision Guide: Which One Fits Your Clinic?
Choosing Cloud, On-Premise, or Hybrid: Key Questions to Ask
- Small animal GP with limited IT: Choose cloud PACS for fast deployment and easy collaboration. Start with Keystone Omni.
- Specialty/referral hospital with in-house IT: Consider hybrid: local archive for speed + cloud for sharing/DR. Book a demo to design it.
Book a Demo of Keystone Omni Now
Submit images directly through Asteris Keystone or via our free and simple Asteris Keystone Community application.
Subscribe to our newsletter
dont miss out the updates from asteris
Sign up to our newsletter to stay in the loop.
Blog
the latest Updates from Asteris
If you like this post you might like this
Subscribe to our newsletter
don't miss out the updates
from asteris
Sign up to our newsletter to stay in the loop.