While cloud migration is a hot topic for any business that wants to expand its resources to hit its goals faster, moving your organization’s data from your on-premises servers or databases to the cloud can seem like uncharted territory.
With 94% of enterprises using cloud technologies, you can feel left out of the loop if you still depend on onsite physical infrastructure to handle your data processing, storage and other needs. Some of the significant motivations for azure migration include the following:
These are key business drivers in moving from on-premises to the cloud, but there is more about understanding how Azure migration benefits your organization’s IT infrastructure.
Microsoft Azure migration involves moving your organization’s digital assets, IT resources, web applications and other business elements to the Azure cloud environment. Migrating to the cloud covers Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS) provisions.
With cloud services, you can implement more efficient ways to run your operations, from ensuring minimal network downtime to troubleshooting client issues and proactively solving problems before they arise.
Azure SQL server migration tools like the Strategic Migration Assessment and Readiness Tool and Azure Site Recovery Deployment Planner can determine and enable you with insights into which parts of your workload can improve when you move them to the cloud.
The most crucial starting point when considering your business's cloud migration process is the migration model. Migration to Azure can be classified into the IaaS and PaaS model types, each with two variations.
The first variation of the IaaS model is called Rehost, also known as Lift and Shift, because it involves your existing setup on an IaaS without making changes. Contrary to Rehost, Revise plugs your current code into the new cloud environment by extending or modifying the existing one to fit. The Lift and Shift is the fastest Azure migration model.
The PaaS model’s Refactor variation implements existing code to run on top of the cloud. Its Rebuild variation favors re-architecting on top of the cloud and eliminates the current code. Companies with most of their workload online and involving software development can get the best value from the Rebuild variation. Azure’s PaaS services offer serverless architecture capabilities that enable you to focus on innovation while Azure handles infrastructure maintenance.
Choosing an Azure migration strategy depends on your business’s type and goals. You can be flexible in selecting what migration strategy to implement by using a mix of the IaaS and PaaS models or replacing an on-premise service with a cloud alternative. Your business’s requirements are the major determinants of your choice.
Azure offers a plethora of services that handle different workloads on a larger scale. From running business app services on SQL server on-premises to setting user access and privileges to keep your infrastructure and internal data safe, Azure helps you handle more tasks with enhanced overview and convenient management. Some Azure cloud solutions capabilities and their functions include:
Azure Active Directory brings security to the forefront by showing that ease should not be sacrificed for safety. Its single-on feature enables authorized personnel to access your organization's data regardless of location. In addition, you can add extra layers of login authorization to reduce the chances of compromised passwords with multifactor authentication and make conditional policies to make access to sensitive data more secure.
You can easily manage and keep tabs on multiple users accessing data on your Azure cloud. Azure Active Directory enables you to manage user identities from a single control center and govern access so the right personnel can connect to the right data when needed.
Azure Active Directory has four pricing options, depending on the enterprise’s scale of security and governance requirements. The first pricing option is free to understand other options and discover if you need to upgrade to use features like threat protection.
Azure Files involves mounting fully managed file shares on the public cloud that you can access via the SMB and NFS protocols. With both file-sharing protocols, you can mount your file shares using cloud or on-premises Windows, Linux, macOS and other operating system deployments.
The highly durable and distributed file system sports serverless file shares with no hidden IaaS azure virtual machines or NAS filers and gives a seamless hybrid cloud experience. Another exciting feature is Azure File Sync which enables you to cache and synchronize Azure Files shares on Windows servers for local access without sacrificing on-premises performance.
You can customize your shares to fit your performance needs and budget using different tiers. Azure File VMS also supports multiple protocols so you can quickly store and access your data from various sources. This flexibility allows you to migrate your existing servers without experiencing downtime, so you do not have to worry about server failure.
Enterprise Result Planning (ERP) is software that enables organizations to automate, modernize and manage core business operations, like accounting and procurement, to maximize performance. With ERP environments, you can monitor and coordinate your organization's data flow between your process from overhead and integral points of view.
ERP environments support AI to provide you with critical insights that improve your data-driven decision-making process. With these insights, you can also identify ways to enhance your business's operational performance. The synergy between operations and data gives you more visibility and reduces the decision-making time to drive more value faster.
When your enterprise outgrows the fundamental processes, ERP environments help you integrate flexibility into your operations to increase your output and expand better. With Dynamics on Azure, ERP implementations Deacom, SysPro or Sage can run in the IAAS. This allows you to implement smarter decisions faster, grow your business operations according to your demands and optimize performance and cost management.
With Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD), the newest version of Remote Desktop Services or Microsoft Terminal Services, you can create access to your business’s applications and data from anywhere, regardless of the device. This cloud-based desktop virtualization service lets you conveniently connect to remote desktops from any device.
AVD’s benefits include reducing your monthly operating IT expenses by helping you provide remote access to your applications and data without having to invest in on-premises hardware or other onsite infrastructure. AVD as a PaaS allows you to quickly scale user access with little downtime and high availability for maximum connectivity. As an excellent alternative for Remote Desktop Protocol, AVD supports multi-session hosts, enabling you to support several users in one instance. What’s more, you can customize the user experience and tailor the service to your business’s requirements.
Suppose you want to expand or test out new technologies. In that case, on-premises infrastructure can limit your options with its capital costs, lack of flexibility and considerable obstructions to getting the right resources. Azure cloud provides services from IaaS to SaaS that your business can leverage for digital transformation and to optimize for industry trends.
The Azure cloud offers a pay-as-you-go payment structure, so your business only pays for the resources you use so you can have more cost savings. This payment model enables you to adjust your budget according to your IT requirements and avoid hidden costs from infrastructure downtime or security breach — typical elements in an on-premises structure.
Deloitte reported that small and medium businesses using cloud services grew 26% faster and delivered 21% higher gross profits. On-premises infrastructure requires you to spend capital on buying a data center when you might not use them to their total capacity.
If your business needs more resources with an on-premises environment, that translates to buying more servers. These expenses can lead to redundancy when the demand for resources drops, and you have servers that you do not need but still spend maintenance costs on.
Azure cloud service provider helps you scale your IT resources up or down to match your business demands, so you spend an adequate amount to handle peak seasons and adjust your Azure resources when they end.
With IaaS, you do not have to worry about the cost of maintaining a local server, including its installation and updates, or managing a dedicated IT staff that ensures the server is in good working condition. Cloud services enable you to run your application workloads efficiently as you focus on the core aspects of your business and delegate the others to experts.
Azure cloud provides features that help you configure, plan and install virtual machines with a few button clicks. Besides setting them up in no time, you can also ensure servers are created in locations that offer peak performance for you and your clients.
Migrating to the cloud gives you an environment that optimizes performance by streamlining processes like data migration or disaster recovery and employing tools like machine learning to enhance efficiency.
Azure migration does not have to be a hassle, and with the proper support, you can implement cloud services into your business to enhance your operations and drive growth. At ne Digital, we are dedicated to helping clients overcome complexity and transform their existing IT infrastructures or adapt to new digital ecosystems that serve them better.
With over 180 projects executed or managed across industries including healthcare, real estate, logistics and hospitality, we have built our clients’ trust by going beyond being an IT consulting business to being an IT services advisory powerhouse. Contact us today to learn more about our Azure migration services and about how we can help you build the Azure cloud migration strategy tailored to build a cloud infrastructure that fits your business’s demands.