What is Cloud Migration? Migrating from Network Install to Cloud

Cloud migration is one of the most important and relevant applications required for better data management. Essentially the process comprises moving the data, applications and various business elements into the cloud computing environment. There are various methods and ways to transfer onto the ‘Cloud’. One of the most preferred methods is to transfer the required applications and data from the local on-premise data centre to the public cloud. Likewise, cloud migration can also entail moving data and applications from one cloud provider to another, also known as cloud-to-cloud migration. There also exists another type of cloud migration known as reverse cloud migration or Cloud Repatriation or also Cloud Exit. In this case, the application or data is moved off from the cloud and transferred back to a local data centre. So, when Migrating from network install to the cloud, what are the steps and the benefits involved? Let us take a look:

The Benefits of Cloud Migration

Let us first take a look at some of the main advantages of cloud Migration and why you should opt for it where relevant:

• To start with, the reasons are very much in sync with those related to the main application of the ‘Cloud’ itself. 
• The other reason is to be able to host applications and data in the most effective IT environment possible. 
• To be able to migrate the on-premise applications and data from the local data centre to public cloud infrastructure. 
• To be able to enjoy the benefits of better elasticity, self-service provisioning, redundancy and a flexible pay-per-use model.

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The Different Types of Cloud Migration Strategies

There are various strategies and well-sought procedures involved when it comes to Cloud Migration. This is because the entire process comprises a complex combination of management and technology challenges along with staff and resource realignment. There exist various choices in the kind of migration that needs to be performed. There is also the consideration of the type of data that has to be moved. Here are some of the reasons you need to check on before you decide on Cloud Migration:

• The Assess: This is the on-premises infrastructure and application fleet. 
• Map application, data dependencies, network, and topology
• Also, the applications selected by you should be suitable for cloud migration, and also assess the cloud service options to map the selected applications up to the optimal choices of LaaS, PaaS, and Saas. 
• To be able to develop the migration plan and to process the flow to the account for various important details like data replication, connections to dependent apps, and account logins. 
• To be able to create an appropriate Cloud hosting environment for an Iaas or PaaS legacy migration. 
• To replicate the application images and other dependencies
• To stage and test the applications within a pilot environment. Here one needs to consider Migrating beta users to simulate real-world conditions. 
• You should also check the final pilot environment for regulatory and security compliance before cutting is completed. 
• Finally, the hardened security and optimizing the performance as and when necessary.

The reasons for cloud migration vary in the case of every company. Here one has to consider the various reasons to shift the workload to the Cloud, as the aims of every organization are different from the other. Here, foremost, one has to identify the application or the workload that needs to be migrated. The next step involves the amount of data that needs to be moved. Also, the speed required for the work to be done is another major reason along with the ‘manner’ in which you want the migration to occur. 

For this, it is important to take an inventory of the data and the applications, and also look for the dependencies. Along with this one also has to check out how these will be replicated in the cloud and possibly re-architected to accommodate the various cloud service options. It is also important to ensure that not every application can leave the enterprise data centre. Some of the prime features that need to stay back are the business-critical applications, those having high throughput, those that require low latency or also have strict geographic stewardship requirements like that of GDPR. 

Finally, one needs to consider their budget also. It is important to analyze if you need to transfer the workload, as in case an organization might have steep investments in hardware infrastructure and software licensing. After the Cloud Migration, it is required by the IT staff to focus on data performance, stability and usage’ Hence you need to be sure about the budget for the tools that are in support of these functions

The Cloud Migration Tools

Today a current lot of enterprises comprise more than one cloud scenario to choose from:

• The Public Cloud: this allows the users to access compute resources using the internet or other dedicated connections. 
• The Private Cloud: This helps keep the data within the data centre and only utilises the proprietary architecture. 
• The Hybrid Cloud: This model is a mix of both the public and private cloud models and is used to transfer the data between the two.
• The Multi-Cloud: This is where businesses utilize IaaS options from more than a single cloud provider. 

So, there you have it people, these are the various aspects and types of Cloud Migration tools you can consider. One has to consider the performance once the migration takes place. Also, you need to make sure that adequate bandwidth for optimal application performance is considered. Lastly, one also has to determine the dependencies of the application can also complicate the process of migration. 

You need to review what ‘is being moved’ when the application is considered. In the case of local applications, there are still a lot of features that go unused. This can be rather wasteful to consider the migration for, in support of the not-so-important ‘items and articles’. Also, the case of slate data is yet another consideration one has to take care of. Most experts advise against movement of the historical data to the cloud, as it typically incurs costs for retrieval

Once you are considering the application, it is important to reconsider its strategic architecture to set up what could be a longer life. Here are a couple of platforms that support the Hybrid and the multi-cloud environments including:

• A container-based PaaS, such as Cloud Foundry or Red Hat OpenShift.
• Google Cloud Anthos;
• AWS Outposts;
• Microsoft Azure Stack;
• VMware Cloud on AWS;

The Process of Cloud Migration

Here the factors like the type of migration that needs to be performed and the specific resources required to move are followed. The basic steps for cloud migration include the following:

• evaluation of security requirements and performance
• The cloud provider selection
• calculation of costs
• any reorganization stated necessary.

Also, certain common obstacles can occur during the process:

• Interoperability
• Portability of data and application
• Data integrity and security
• Business continuity.

One should be aware that if the appropriate steps are not taken, then there is a chance of degradation of workload performance and this can lead to enhanced IT costs, hence negating some of the prime benefits of cloud computing. 

According to the details of migration, an organization selects to move an application directly from the local servers to the new or required hosting environment in the cloud without modifications. This is also known as the Lift-and-Shift model. It is more of a one-to-one move which is done primarily as a short-time solution to save the infrastructure costs.

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There are other cases when one might need to change the application code or architecture. The process is oftentimes known as refactoring an application or re-architecting it. The process is done in advance of cloud migration or retroactively once it is clear that the various shifts and lifts have reduced the performance of the application. 

In the case of IT management, it is important to consider if refactoring an application can make any financial sense. Here you need to calculate the cost, performance and also security when the ROI is being analyzed. There are times when the application will need a minimum amount of refactoring whether the transformation is either comprehensive or minimal. 

The use of the public internet is one such way of public internet or a private/dedicated network connection is one of the best ways to migrate data and apps to the cloud. If you opt for this method, you need to calculate and offer the required bandwidth. It is unrealistic to sideline the internet connection. Hence it is advised to plan accordingly to avoid any lengthy downtime that occurs during the process of cloud migration. 

The offline transfer is another great option that allows the organization to upload the local data into the appliance and then manually ship that appliance over to the public cloud provider, which uploads the data to the cloud provider, which later uploads the data over to the cloud. 

There are certain cases when it might be more sensible to simply use a truck to transfer large amounts of data. You will be surprised to know that tech giants like Microsoft, Google, IBM and AWS have their very own offline data shipping services. However, you need to know that physical shipment will not eliminate the need for additional syncing, but it can surely cut down the time spent moving the data.

The Cloud Migrating Testing

There are certain special considerations that one might need to take care of the new security realities during the process of cloud migration. The process of migrating data and apps through the network helps open up vectors to the different types of attacks, stealing credentials and also VM snapshots, installing malware, or thrashing persistent denial-of-service attacks that promotes repeated migrations and also eats-into the system’s resources. 

The prime aspect of consideration for this process is that it should understand the cloud provider’s shared responsibility model. This essentially outlines those areas for which both you and the provider are responsible. Generally for the users, this means that everything above the underlying infrastructure which includes data, access, and governance falls under the category. It is also important to establish certain rules, and structures, out and about governance that allows access to management and monitoring.

The Change of IT Staff Roles

Once the process of cloud migration has been completed, the staff will need to shift their focus over to data performance, stability and usage. There might also occur some reduction in the case of the overall hardware support. Nevertheless, the cloud workloads need to be managed, hence you need to consider having your team go for some reputed cloud management training classes.

The Challenges of the Cloud Migration

While we take into consideration the process of cloud migration, one cannot be sure that it will not accompany any challenges. Also, it is not possible to completely rid of all the challenges and risks that accompany the process. There are times when the IT personnel discovers that the application in consideration does not work as well as it did in the Cloud as it did on-premise. Here, one will need to determine the main reasons for the cloud migration failure. This could include poor latency, concerns regarding security and other compliance challenges. There are times when the process of cloud migration costs more than what was anticipated or when it does not work as well as it was originally perceived to. 

Likewise, there is yet another aspect to consider. Not all applications are suitable for the Cloud or Cloud Migration. Hence, the managers should take a closer look into the on-premise applications as and when they are trying to make their initial choices. Having a Solid Cloud exit plan in place is yet another major aspect of the process that is often overlooked. This comprises the aspect where the apps and data move out of the cloud and are returned to their original premises or a private cloud. For this, the cloud manager should bear in mind where the data will travel off to, how to manage the technical transition and how to take charge of any businesses or legal problems that might arise as a result. 

For this it is advised to ‘test out’ the app both before and after the repatriation, and also during the initial migration. In case certain alterations have been done to accommodate certain cloud benefits like’ horizontal scaling, in this case, the benefits will be lost when the app comes back to the premises. However, there are various cloud migrations that when failed, can be reversed, but only temporarily. Hence, they can be reassessed and also re-architected instead of the lift and shift rehosting. This is then sent back into the cloud with a better chance of success. Hence you need to consider the changes that you have made before you moved the application to the cloud. Likewise, moving the app back to the original platform might also be a good option. 

Also one needs to pay attention to the staff training because the management of the apps in the cloud is nothing like working with the local data centres and routine virtualized resources and hence requires a different set of IT and management skills. Hence, you can see that staff training is an important aspect where you need to consider the employee skill sets and ensure that each member is well-trained to manage issues, errors and problems accordingly. In case you cannot acquire a well-trained staff, you can always get professional help as well.

The Cloud Migration Trends

Certain factors influence the organization’s decision to consider the prospect of Cloud Migration and or if a certain aspect of the workload needs to be shifted to the Cloud. Generally speaking, the decision to Cloud migration plays a central role majorly in digital transformation initiatives. In this case, big data analytics is one of the most important lucrative reasons for cloud platforms. These offer scale and computing resources that are tough to attain by most on-premise systems. As most organizations expand their use of cloud-native technologies they require more standard-driven processes instead of relying on assumptions and a small core of developers and architects. 

The Pandemic has been one of the most important reasons for most businesses to consider the process of speeding up their plans to shift to the Cloud. This is also the call of the day as the ‘remote-working’ aspects are trending in the current scenarios of the work culture. Also, a better experience in digital life is another major factor that attracts workers and consumers. 

The other major trend comprises the financial ‘OPs’ (FinOps) that need a better understanding of the application of cloud migration, the cloud cost, and also to accept sustainability initiatives and other social issues that are popular with both the employees and consumers.

Cloud Migration: the Considerations Before You Start

Here are some major guidelines before you consider Cloud Migration:

• The Organizational Buy-ins: It is recommended that all the main stakeholders are onboard and also know their prime functions, this includes from technical practitioners to the end users. 
• Define Cloud Roles and Ownership: One has to ensure the various roles that each person is to follow when considering the cloud workload. You need to consider if it is a shared environment or how the identity is confirmed, the access granted or limited. Hence the proper documentation of setups and processes is also considered. 
• Selecting the Right Cloud Service: Cloud service providers have various options available from their list of features. One has to be clear of the workload you need the feature for, and the added risk of the service included, as these can grow to become interdependent and tough to manage. 
• The Security Risk: There is a huge possibility of Internet troublemakers infiltrating your domain with the implementation of cloud services. Also here can be the case of misconfigurations, something that is most common when it comes to the Cloud services. 
• The Cloud Costs: While the pay-as-you-go model may seem attractive for most organizations with large infrastructure investments, it is far more complex than that. It is important to consider the service selections and the usage as it can come as a major surprise at the end of the month when you receive ‘strange large bills’ that don’t make sense. The Long-term Cloud Road Map: one needs to identify the criteria that need to be followed starting from the project timelines, to various deployment options like the hybrid setup. This is because as and when the cloud migration is successful the company might want to replicate the success model for other workloads.

Also Read : Migrate Sage 50 Desktop to Sage 50c

Conclusion

So, there you have it folks, this is all that there is to Migrating from network install to cloud. This is a vital step for most organizations in recent times. However, as it can be rather a tricky process, you can always reach out to us or drop a mail at [email protected] or join our LIVE session at www.accountigadvice.co where our team of experts will be more than happy to help you out.

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