On-premises refers to IT infrastructure hardware and software applications that are hosted on-site. This contrasts with IT assets that are hosted by a public cloud platform or remote data center. Businesses have more control of on-premises IT assets by maintaining the performance, security and upkeep, as well as the physical location.
Many legacy and traditional data center resources are on-premises. There has been a shift to migrate IT assets to the cloud in recent years or creating hybrid environments that use a mix of cloud and on-premises solutions.