"Secure" can be defined in many ways depending on context so I'm not going to argue here with you because I don't know the circumstances. Usually properly TLS-secured connections are secure enough. But YMMV. Anyway, I don't understand where you're going with this SHC/HF question. How would you want to run your modular input (as I understand - against your local database server) from the Cloud environment? It seems you have some strange and a bit tight requirements which needs some engineering not on a "general architecture" level but rather with regard to your particular situation. Anyway, from the technical point of view you could run your inputs on a SH but it's not a supported and advised architecture. And it will not solve your "clustering" needs. The input would run completely independently of the SH clustering mechanics so if you defined it on one of the SHC members, it would run only there. If you defined it on more than one SH, it would run simultaneously on all of them. The search scheduler has nothing to do with inputs. You could try to install dbconnect on the searchheads and run a scheduled search calling dbquery and ending with collect but that's so wrong on so many levels... ... View more