Elements of Successful Cloud Migration

Cloud migration implies when a company moves some or all of its data center capabilities onto the cloud, usually to run on the cloud-based infrastructure provided by a service provider such as AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure. Since more and more companies have already transitioned to the cloud, the migration is increasingly taking place within the cloud, as companies migrate between different cloud providers (known as cloud-to-cloud migration). 

 

Around the 1990s, cloud storage and cloud computing came of age and started gaining popularity. Cloud storage is essentially the storage of data on an off-site location that can be accessed easily from any other location. With the advent of cloud storage, cloud applications and services began to gain popularity due to their useability. In 1997 Professor Ramnath Chellappa of Emory University, Atlanta, USA, defined cloud computing as a new “computing paradigm”, where the boundaries of computing will be determined by economic rationale, rather than the technical limits alone.

Cloud migration is the process of moving data from an on-site server location(s) to an off-site location(s), off-site servers, which can be accessed from any other location. An organization moves all its data and components to servers run by third-party companies at one or more than one sites. The process of migration starts with defining, evaluating, the purpose, the business & the result after migration. Evaluation of cost and needs is necessary. The environment and applications need to be assessed. 

There is a need to evaluate whether the movement is to a single cloud or multiple clouds. Different processes and protocols have to be followed for such movements including onsite to cloud migration or cloud to cloud migration. It’s equally important to finding the right partner vendor as it is to choose the right architecture for the movement. The process also involves understanding and defining future needs and provisioning for them. It involves understanding future progress in portability standards, cloud & business evolution. Cloud-based application development is based on the process and strategy for cloud migration.

Though for companies who are making the initial foray into the cloud, there are a few critical yet important considerations to be aware of as listed below.

It also must include the following, 

Software as a Service: Software as a Service or SaaS and can be used for providing email tools, auditing features etc, service sign-up, file sharing and collaboration as well as managing documents. It can be used for sharing calendars and organizing customer relationship management systems (CRMS) i.e. databases for clients and customers. 

Platform as a Service: Platform as a Service or PaaS offers the rent-based infrastructure to develop apps, It can comprise building tools, middleware, operating systems, and database running infrastructure.

 

Infrastructure as a Service: Infrastructure as a Service or IaaS service providers helps in managing business infrastructure like servers, network, storage, etc through a public or private cloud. It also provides other services like log access, tracking, detailed invoicing, clustering, back and recovery etc. 

Scalability - Cloud storage and computing can be scaled up to support more users and larger workloads. This is possible in cloud storage as organizations don't have to set up more physical servers on-site or increase other related hardware infrastructure along with software licenses. 

Cost economics - maintenance, and up-gradation related to cloud software and hardware is borne by the providers of cloud services. This allows companies to focus more on their products, software, etc to give better services and features to their clients. It helps cost based on pay per use, i.e. payment is done only as per the usage of space and services.

Security - cloud environments usually work on industry-standard security and provide a secure workspace or environment as per government regulations. Protection of data is done using standard security solutions, tools, policies and best practices.

 

Accelerated adoption of new technologies, and faster turnaround time in response to business opportunities. 

Migration to cloud computing or migrating from one cloud service to another can be complex, not a normal transfer of data & therefore can be risky. Many organizations face challenges as they transition and migrate to cloud services. Any business that migrates to the cloud is vulnerable to security risks. To ensure that the apps run smoothly, and without mistakes, the reliability of the cloud partner or vendor is extremely important. Performance is essential to client experience and satisfaction. Vendor infrastructure plays a critical role in performance, security and reliability. Scalability is another area that is essential when businesses move to the cloud. Many businesses use a hybrid cloud architecture which can be scaled up or down as needed.  

Strategy devised plays a very important role in the migration process. Companies must spend time and attention to create a workflow or strategy for migration. It requires thorough planning and implementation for cloud adoption. Each database and application will have different parameters and requirements. These need to be considered thoroughly before migration. There should be a clear process flow and the result and output must be thought of and planned. Usually, 7 common migration strategies are used for moving data and applications to the cloud. These are known as 7R’s - refactor, re-platform, repurchase, rehost, relocate, retain and retire. As scale and workloads increase, if any vendor is not able to help with this process, the companies can face tremendous challenges and are likely to face cost and implementation issues.

Data security and compliance play the most important role in cloud migration and delivery of secure and compliant services by vendors and the organization.

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