Many enterprises find that cloud migration comes with cost roadblocks and technical barriers. Nonetheless, moving to the cloud is a mission-critical decision all the same. Because of that, enterprises must have the right strategies for dissolving those roadblocks into building blocks that enable migration success.

Enterprises Are Making the Move to The Cloud

More and more businesses are shifting their operations to the cloud. Why? Here are some top reasons why enterprises are making this big move.

• Leveraging game-changing business models
• Using high-level analytics power
• Overcoming reliability concerns that come with the on-premise infrastructure
• Experiencing top-level agility
• Simplifying IT management
• Handling complex cost structures

These factors have motivated enterprises from different industrial backdrops to shift their fully fledged application portfolios to the cloud.

Most businesses have a gamut of legacy applications that sometimes do not sit well with a cloud ecosystem. So these applications must be optimized to run effectively inside any cloud environment. Which is why, it has become all the more essential to deploy the right set of strategies, along with proven leadership. That way, enterprises can streamline the way they move their operations to the cloud and do successful migrations.

So, now, let us dive deep into understanding the cloud migration strategies that enable enterprises in accelerating their modernization journeys more confidently.

Putting Migration Initiatives From Paper To The Real World

Building A Migration Plan

Documentation is important when it comes to executing a full-cycle cloud migration plan. Gathering all the documents is the first, and the most important, step in the migration journey. The documentation must include the following points.

• Factoring in the performance capacity of the on-premise server or servers
• Understanding the operating system deployed inside out
• Listing the complete packages on the server along with their versions
• Noting down the crontab entries of the existing users (if there are any)
• Getting a handle on all the available user accounts
• Configuring all the files of crucial utilities such as httpd/NGINX configuration, MySQL, and Mongo configuration
• Enabling the modules present in the web server
• Listing different websites running on the server (If, however, the site is a static one, then it is better to get the details about its document root and the size)
• Discovering all the processes executing on the server with ports
• Preparing a single-line description of every process
• Setting the server’s firewall rules
• Finding the traffic load that the existing server, or servers, receives
• Researching about the period when the server receives low traffic and peak traffic

Based on these data points, an end-to-end migration plan has to be documented. That plan must be holistic in the sense that it will list down different changes occurring during this migration process.

Selecting The Right Server

It is essential to understand which online server will have the right capacity in terms of memory, CPU, disk, and network performance. This decision must be taken after factoring in the top/htop command present on the on-premise server. Besides factoring in the top/htop command, an enterprise’s migration leadership will have to consider other parameters such as memory usage, network in/out, and load average to name a few. With the knowledge of these factors, the migration team will accelerate cloud migration.

Finding The Best Operating System

Picking the right operating system or OS plays a big role in the success of cloud migration. For instance, if an enterprise is adept at operating different versions of the existing OS or if it is completely familiar with the overall application architecture, then it will make sense to choose the best operating system for the job. On the contrary, if the application architecture is difficult to navigate and the enterprise is new to the whole migration business, then it is recommended to move ahead with the existing OS only. That way, all the migration efforts will deliver the best results.

Leveraging Standardized Tools For DB Migrations

Find standardized and properly managed tools for making sure that the database migration is done with zero hassle. For example, AWS, or Amazon Web Services, provides a suite of powerful database migration tools such as Schema Conversion Tool and Database Migration Service to name just a few. However, other tools such as MongoDB Cloud Manager and MySQL Workbench are also helpful when it comes to performing successful database migrations.

Optimizing The Server

Servers along with utilities have to be optimized at every important step in the migration journey. Every cloud migration leadership team must remember that everything must be tuned well for making the migration a success. For instance, Linux servers can be tuned in using so many different approaches. The servers, however, have to be tuned in keeping in mind different parameters such as CPU, memory performance, I/O operations, and network throughput. When it comes to optimization, different Java processes, databases, NGINX, PHP, and Apache tuning must not be kept on the back burner. Last but not least, get ready to configure all the essential crontab entries that are coming from previous on-premise servers.

Checking Different Applications For Errors

Before the migration begins, it is a must to check all the applications and find errors. It is essential to test the application against a range of possible aspects. As an important part of testing, the enterprise should open every possible log file of the application; these log files include application server logs, web server logs, database logs, PHP logs, and syslog. For having an insight into the server, the tester should even dig around the top/htop commands of the output file belonging to an application.

Performing Load Tests

It is better to perform the load test for gathering top-level insights into the application structure’s performance. If possible, it is even better to get real-time insights into the server’s existing performance capabilities during low-traffic scenarios. It is ideal to perform load tests with tools such as a JMeter JMX for relating to the existing load. Based on the results of the tests, it is essential to keep tuning until optimal results are achieved. Also, it is important to configure a few monitoring agents such as New Relic for receiving insights into the existing application calls through which it is simpler and faster to optimize the code base at an advanced stage.

All Set To Embrace The Cloud

Most enterprises are making cloud computing and migration an essential part of their respective IT infrastructure. Even so, for embracing the cloud, some groundwork needs to be done. This prep work includes setting up the technological foundation and introducing a cultural change across the board. Once those pieces are put in place, it is easier to accelerate the modernization journey that begins with cloud migration.

When it comes to adopting cloud end to end, it comes down to Flexsin which is a proven cloud migration leader. This growth partner brings cloud computing development services and scalable cloud migration solutions. Flexsin customizes enterprise-grade cloud solutions built for different platforms such as Google Cloud, Heroku, AWS, and Azure.

With the right technology team and proven expertise, it will be easier and smoother for enterprises to make the transition to the cloud.