best practices of cloud migration
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What Is Cloud Migration? Understanding The Strategies, Best Practices, and Challenges (Part 1)

IT Experts reveal the strategies, best practices, and challenges for cloud migration

As a business grows and expands, it needs to cater to an ever-increasing workload. To manage this load in a sustainable manner, the right cloud migration strategy has to be adopted. This article provides a comprehensive guide to cloud migration, strategies, best practices, benefits, challenges, and more.

Introduction To Cloud Migration

  • Cloud migration is an IT-based process that involves moving an organization’s critical services, software, and content, like information and applications from on-premises hardware to the cloud infrastructure.

The cloud service permits customers to oversee digital operations of their business distantly, without the security hazards and cost of keeping up with on-premise equipment.

Cloud Service Models

  • Understanding cloud service models is important to wrap your mind around the services that the cloud offers.

Here are three types of cloud service models.

SaaS

  • SaaS or Software as a Service is not something that is installed on the local computer instead it is software that is provided over the internet. It eliminates the need for updates and patches.

PaaS

  • Platform as a Service provides a building ground to developers where they can create, deploy and enhance applications without having to fret over storage, infrastructure. or operating system issues.

IaaS

  • Infrastructure as a Service allows you to move your enterprise’s infrastructure to the cloud. The cloud provider takes responsibility for managing and maintaining this infrastructure so that you don’t have to worry about maintenance.

Best Cloud Migration Practices

Here are general guidelines to cloud migration practices that can improve chances for success.

Get Organizational Buy-In

  • When all shareholders are on board and are well-aware of their responsibilities, the transition becomes trouble-free and seamless.

Outline Roles And Responsibilities

Through a series of documentation and processes determine:

  • How the identity is confirmed and access is granted.
  • People responsible for the management of various aspects of the cloud workload.

Choose The Right Cloud Service

  • There are is a wide variety of services offered by the cloud. Pick the services that are ideal for managing your workload.

Recognize The Security Risks

  • Cloud environments are also susceptible to intrusions and internet attacks. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the security risks to prevent misconfigurations.

Pay Attention To The Costs

  • It is advisable to be more careful about the services you select and their usage to avoid unnecessary expenses.

Cloud Migration Process

  • The process of cloud migration varies depending on the type of migration an enterprise wants and the specific resources that need to be moved to the cloud.

Here are some of the common elements of a cloud migration strategy:

  • Assessment of the working and security essentials
  • Determination of a cloud provider
  • Estimation of the costs
  • Any necessary rearrangements

Anticipate and prepare for common challenges that can crop up during this process including:

  • Inter-operational issues
  • Problems regarding data and application movability
  • Data security and safety
  • Progression of the business

Strategies Of Cloud Migration

A well-thought strategy inclusive of complex mergers of administrative and technology challenges is required for moving workloads to the cloud. Here are three basic strategies for cloud migration.

Rehosting

  • This is the most widely used cloud migration strategy and is also referred to as a lift and shift strategy. Businesses simply migrate their applications, APIs, software, tools, and operating systems from their existing cloud host to their desired cloud host.

Replatforming

  • cloud migration challengesIn this strategy, the businesses invest time and resources to upgrade their current hardware, applications, operating systems, APIs, and IT architecture. While the upgrade is in process, the business migrates everything from the old cloud hosting to the newer one.

Refactoring

  • This strategy is used by businesses to improve their product and services based on their long-term goals. It involves a complete overhauling and re-engineering of application logic often from scratch.

Other strategies include:

  • Repurchasing
  • Retiring
  • Retaining

If you want to migrate your business to the cloud or need help with cloud budgeting and related services, contact us at 973-638-2722. Our experts at Outsource My IT can help you get started. We are located in New Jersey.