Differences administering Confluence Data Center and Cloud
This page outlines the differences you can expect as a Confluence Data Center or Server administrator when moving to Confluence Cloud. Some of the capabilities listed below apply to more than one product.
We’ve organized this list by how different the experience is:
Available in Cloud (with a specific plan or subscription)
If you want to explore how Cloud is different for your users, check out:
1. Works differently in Cloud
Administrator global permissions
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
In Confluence Data Center and Server, there were two levels of global administrator permissions, ‘Confluence administrator’, and ‘System administrator’. In Cloud, you assign roles to people and groups. Roles include User, Product admin (which is equivalent to the ‘Confluence administrator’ global permission), and Organization admin, which is similar to the ‘System administrator’ global permission but has rights to manage user directories, security settings, billing details, and other configurations for all the products in your organization, not just Confluence. Also, in Confluence Cloud, administrators can’t manage spaces in which they’re not space admins.
How it works in Cloud
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin
Confluence
App rendering and data management
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
In Confluence Server and Data Center, apps were installed in your instance. In Cloud there are two types of apps. Connect apps are hosted on the App vendor/partner’s server, and so may load and render data more slowly than you’re used to. Forge apps are hosted by Atlassian, so don’t have this limitation.
How it works in Cloud
Security requirements for Marketplace apps
Who it affects
Product admin
Confluence
Attachment storage
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
The maximum file size for attached files defaults to 100 MB. This limit can be configured for Legacy editor pages, but not for the default editor. Storage limits may apply, depending on your plan.
How it works in Cloud
Configure attachment size (legacy editor only)
Confluence Cloud plan inclusions
Suggestion CONFCLOUD-72157: Configure attachment size in editor
Who it affects
Organization admin
Confluence
Audit logs
Works differently in Cloud, and may require an additional subscription.
What’s different
An audit log is available with all paid Confluence plans, and is similar to the audit log provided with Confluence Server. However, the Cloud audit log doesn’t provide the ability to configure granular coverage areas and levels as in Confluence Data Center. An additional audit log for user management and organization-level events is available with an Enterprise plan or Atlassian Guard Standard subscription.
How it works in Cloud
Monitor and audit activity in your organization
Who it affects
Organization admin
Confluence
Backups
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
In Cloud, automated Amazon Relational Database Service backups are created for disaster recovery purposes. Site backups must be manually created, if you require them.
How it works in Cloud
Track storage and move data across apps
Back up Jira by exporting data
Back up Confluence by exporting data
Suggestion CLOUD-6498: Automatic backup generation
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin
Confluence, Jira, Jira Service Management
Base URL
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
We provide you with a secure, authenticated domain name. Your Cloud site will be accessible at example.atlassian.net, where example is a unique identifier that you specify when signing up. If you’re on a paid plan, you can change this identifier, but you can’t change the atlassian.net domain.
How it works in Cloud
Suggestion CLOUD-6999: Use a custom domain
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin
Confluence, Jira, Jira Service Management
Install apps
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
Some apps are only available for Server or Data Center, or only for Cloud. You can only install apps from the Atlassian Marketplace. You can’t install an app by uploading a file. This includes apps you’ve built yourself or those designed for Server or Data Center. If you want to develop your own app, you can use the Forge or Connect platforms to build the app. You can list the app publicly, so others can use it, or use a secret token to list it privately.
How it works in Cloud
Who it affects
Organization admin
Confluence, Jira, Jira Service Management
Layouts and CSS
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
Confluence Cloud has it’s own theme, that can’t be customized, in order to receive automatic updates. You can install theme apps from The Marketplace that allow you to significantly change the appearance of your site, or even develop your own theme app.
How it works in Cloud
Look and feel settings in Confluence Cloud
Suggestion CONFCLOUD-36137: Allow custom CSS in Cloud
Who it affects
Organization admin
Confluence
Mobile apps and app management
Works differently in Cloud, and may require an additional subscription.
What’s different
You can’t use a server app to connect to a Cloud product. Users will need to install the Cloud-specific mobile app. The functionality available in the app will be similar to the Server and Data Center apps. Mobile App Management (MAM) and Mobile Device Management (MDM) integrations are available but may require an Enterprise plan or Atlassian Guard Standard subscription.
How it works in Cloud
Get the Confluence Cloud mobile apps
Get the Jira Cloud mobile apps
Mobile App Management for Atlassian mobile apps
Mobile Device Management (MDM) for Atlassian mobile apps
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin, Users
Confluence, Jira, Jira Service Management
Outgoing mail server
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
In Confluence Data Center and Server, you connected your own mail server. Your Cloud application includes an internal SMTP server configured to send notifications. The internal SMTP server is not configurable.
How it works in Cloud
N/A
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin
Confluence
People directory
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
The people directory lists all the people in your organization, and allows people to be grouped into teams for the purpose of sharing or mentioning people. In Confluence Server and Data Center it was common to customize the theme in order to hide the people directory. You can’t customize the theme in Confluence Cloud, but you can use the Guest functionality, which hides the people directory from external collaborators.
How it works in Cloud
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin
Confluence
Public access
Works differently in Cloud.
What’s different
In Confluence Data Center and Server, you could grant global and space permissions to anonymous users (anyone on the internet). In Confluence Cloud, anonymous access works the same way, but users can also create public links, which allow them to share individual Confluence content items with people outside of Confluence without giving them access to Confluence. By default in Cloud, public links are allowed to be created in all spaces but you can choose to stop allowing public links in Confluence settings, or use a data security policy to block public links for certain content.
How it works in Cloud
Share content externally with public links
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin, Space admin
Confluence
View restricted pages
Works differently in Cloud, and may require an additional subscription.
What’s different
In Confluence Data Center and Server, members of the confluence-administrators super group could view pages and spaces that were restricted. With Confluence Cloud Premium and Enterprise plans, you can use an admin key to bypass the restrictions. The author will be notified, and the action logged in the audit log.
How it works in Cloud
Bypass page restrictions with admin key
Who it affects
Product admin
Confluence
2. Available in Cloud, with specific subscription or plan
The following features are available in Cloud but may require an additional subscription or specific plan.
External user directories
Available in Cloud, but may require an additional subscription.
What’s different
You can't use another Cloud or Server / Data Center instance for user management. There are a wide range of options for managing your users, including provisioning users from an identity provider or LDAP directory, or connecting with a service like Google Workspace. User provisioning and some Google Workspace features require an Enterprise plan or Atlassian Guard Standard subscription.
How it works in Cloud
Who it affects
Organization admin
Bitbucket, Confluence, Jira, Jira Service Management
Single sign-on
Available in Cloud, but may require an additional subscription.
What’s different
Single sign-on is available but requires an Enterprise plan or Atlassian Guard Standard. The process of connecting your Identity Provider (IdP) will be similar to the process you followed in Data Center.
How it works in Cloud
Configure single sign-on for your organization
Configure SAML single sign-on with an identity provider
Who it affects
Organization admin
Bitbucket, Confluence, Jira, Jira Service Management
Team Calendars
Available in Cloud, on selected plans.
What’s different
Team Calendars was available as a paid app for Confluence Server, and bundled with Confluence Data Center. In Cloud, Team Calendars is included with Confluence Premium and Enterprise plans. Calendar data is not included when you migrate your Confluence content. You will need to export any calendars you want to keep to .ics format and re-import them.
How it works in Cloud
Use Team Calendars for Confluence (Premium feature)
Suggestion MIG-124: Migrate calendar data
Who it affects
Organization admin
Confluence
3. Not available in Cloud
Bulk edit space permissions
Not available in Cloud.
What’s different
In Confluence Data Center, administrators could use the Inspect Permissions feature to change space permissions in bulk. In Confluence Cloud, you can’t change space permissions for multiple spaces in bulk. If you have a Premium or Enterprise plan, administrators can copy permissions from one space to another space.
How it works in Cloud
Suggestion CONFCLOUD-1053: Bulk edit space permissions
Who it affects
Product admin, Space admin
Confluence
Create pages by importing files from disk
Not available in Cloud.
What’s different
In Confluence Data Center and Server, space administrators could create pages from text files stored in the home directory. As you don’t have access to the server in Confluence Cloud, this option is not available. You can still create a page by importing a Word document through the browser.
How it works in Cloud
Who it affects
Product admin, Space admin
Confluence
User macros
Not available in Cloud.
What’s different
You can’t create user macros in Confluence Cloud. This is because user macros allow HTML and JavaScript to run, which can affect performance and security. A number of custom macros are available on the Marketplace. If you want to develop your own macros, you can use the Forge or Connect platforms to build an app, then list it on the Marketplace. You can list the app publicly, so others can use it, or use a secret token to list it privately.
How it works in Cloud
Creating a dynamic content macro
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin
Confluence
External Jira Gadgets
Not available in Cloud.
What’s different
In Confluence Data Center and Server, administrators could register external gadgets to display data from Jira. Although you can connect Atlassian products using Application Links, external gadgets are not available in Confluence Cloud.
How it works in Cloud
N/A
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin
Confluence
Retention rules
Not available in Cloud
What’s different
In Confluence Server and Data Center, you can set retention rules for page history, historical attachment versions, and items in the trash. This option is not available in Confluence Cloud.
How it works in Cloud
Suggestion CONFCLOUD-27701: Limit number of page versions
Who it affects
Product admin
Confluence
4. Not necessary in Cloud
These features and capabilities aren’t available in Cloud because they’re not required. This is generally due to the way we manage infrastructure and things like upgrades for you.
Content index administration
Not necessary in Cloud.
What’s different
Indexing works differently in Cloud, and there should be no need to administer your index manually. If you do notice a problem with search results, Atlassian Support can investigate, and if necessary, reindex your site.
How it works in Cloud
N/A
Who it affects
Organization admin, Product admin
Confluence
Custom database configuration
Not necessary in Cloud.
What’s different
There should be no need to configure or interact directly with your database in Cloud. If a problem does require this, Atlassian Support can investigate, and take any necessary action.
How it works in Cloud
N/A
Who it affects
Organization admin
Confluence
Read-only mode
Not necessary in Cloud.
What’s different
Read-only mode allowed you to make your Confluence Data Center site read-only, for troubleshooting or when preparing for an upgrade or other maintenance. In Cloud, we perform all required maintenance and upgrades for you during scheduled maintenance windows.
How it works in Cloud
Manage product changes from an Atlassian organization
Who it affects
Organization admin
Confluence
Upgrades
Not necessary in Cloud.
What’s different
We perform all required maintenance and upgrades for you during scheduled maintenance windows. If you have a Premium or Enterprise plan you can choose the release track that best suits your needs, and create a sandbox instance that gets changes before your production instance.
How it works in Cloud
Manage Atlassian product sandboxes
Who it affects
Organization admin
Confluence, Jira, Jira Service Management
Need help choosing?
Still deciding whether cloud or Data Center is right for your organization? Head to our comparison page to explore the benefits of each.
Learn more about the differences between Confluence Cloud and Data Center
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