How does the software provider actually deploy updates?

Because when your software is running the day-to-day operations of your rental business, an update is not just a technical event. It can affect real customers, real deliveries, real equipment, and real revenue.

Not all SaaS platforms update the same way

Many multi-tenant SaaS platforms operate on a shared environment, with large groups of customers using the same version of the software.

As Chris Clarke, Chief Technology Officer at MCS Rental Software, explains:

“Most multi-tenanted SaaS products will push updates at their own cadence across the whole user base at the same time. Some will phase it across the system, so groups of users get the update, but it’s still large groups.”

That can be efficient, but it also means any issue introduced by an update can affect a large number of customers at once.

Chris puts it simply:

“It’s not just one customer hitting the bug. Your whole user base hits the bug at the same time.”

For rental companies, that matters. A software issue is not isolated to IT. It can affect reservations, contracts, equipment availability, invoicing, dispatching, and customer service.

MCS takes a different approach

MCS operates as a single-tenant SaaS solution.

In simple terms, each customer has their own dedicated version of the software running in their own environment.

Chris explains:

“MCS is a single-tenant SaaS solution, meaning each customer has their own version of the software running. Database servers are isolated from the others.”

That separation helps avoid what is sometimes called the “noisy neighbour” problem.

“If one customer hammers the system on a traditional SaaS platform, others can feel that load. We don’t have that, because each customer is isolated.”

You can learn more about how MCS approaches hosting and infrastructure through our cloud rental software solutions.

You choose when you are ready to update

One of the biggest advantages of the MCS approach is control.

Customers are not forced to upgrade the moment a new version becomes available.

Chris says:

“Customers only upgrade when they are happy. As MCS runs a rental company’s entire operation end to end, they can’t afford for the solution to go down. So upgrades can be planned and tested.”

That matters because rental businesses do not operate on a software company’s calendar.

If you are in your busiest season, managing a major project, or simply need more time to prepare your team, you can choose an upgrade date that makes sense for your operation.

That flexibility is part of a broader approach to building software around the way rental businesses actually work. Read more about why rental companies choose MCS.

Test before you go live

Before an update is moved into a live environment, MCS customers can test it in a separate database.

Chris explains how that works:

“The test database can be refreshed from live. Automated reporting and invoice emailing gets turned off or routed to a test email address, so you avoid accidentally sending data from the test area.”

That gives teams the opportunity to test their normal workflows, check processes, review integrations, and make sure everything is working as expected before the update reaches the live business.

“The users can test the software there first before going live.”

Testing is especially important when your rental platform connects with other business-critical systems. Explore our partners and integrations to see how MCS connects with tools across your operation.

Why this matters for a rental business

For a software provider, an update may be a product release.

For a rental company, it can affect the entire operation.

Chris explains:

“If your SaaS provider pushes out an update in the middle of your busy season and it causes your team issues, it materially affects your business. If you choose your own upgrade dates, you can avoid critical times.”

That can mean fewer unexpected disruptions around customers, deliveries, contracts, equipment, and invoicing.

As rental businesses become more connected, changes to one system can also have implications across the wider technology stack. Read more about why rental software integrations matter.

A more controlled way to manage change

MCS’s deployment model also makes it possible to deal with issues in a more contained way.

Chris says:

“One customer can upgrade and find an issue, and we can help just that client and fix it in a patch, rather than having hundreds of clients affected at once.”

This approach can also make software development more manageable as the customer base grows.

“Multi-tenant SaaS deployments get far more challenging as you get more users because the risks of breaking something become higher. Our approach scales well.”

That means MCS can continue developing and releasing improvements without requiring every customer to adopt them at exactly the same moment.

Software should work around your business

The best rental software should help your operation run more smoothly.

That includes how updates are introduced.

At MCS, customers have more control over when they upgrade, the ability to test changes before they go live, and an isolated environment designed around their business.

Because when your software sits at the centre of your operation, stability matters.

Your software should work around your business — not the other way around.

If you’re comparing rental management systems, deployment method is only one of the questions worth asking. Explore our rental software guides for more things to consider before choosing a platform.

You might also like…