Introduction
For the last ten years, there has been a constant urge among companies to move their applications to the cloud environment. Some of these enterprises have met with success while others have struggled in the process of on-premise to cloud migration. That said, the modernization of critical applications is extremely important before the execution of the migration strategy. Apart from this, some other things need to be considered before planning for cloud migration. In this article, we take a look at the checklist that is necessary for successful cloud migration.
Architectural role in the migration process
It is important to avail the services of a cloud migration architect before beginning the process of migration. A migration architect not only plans the various aspects of migration but also underlines any kind of modifications that may be needed before the process. After this, it becomes important to determine various priorities for the migration process and the mechanism for the switch over.
Integration level
The level of integration that is followed during the process of cloud migration is usually divided into two. The first is called shallow cloud integration while the second is called deep cloud integration. The shallow cloud integration is also known as lift and shift integration. In this type of integration, limited changes are made to the service and it is ensured that the application is run in its original format even in the new platform. The modification of the application is a critical part of deep cloud integration. Deep cloud integration is more sophisticated and involves dynamic load balancing.
Cherry-pick the cloud service provider
There are usually two options that are available for making a shift to the cloud environments. The first option is to choose a single Cloud Service Provider who is responsible for running all applications from a unified interface. The second option is to engage multiple cloud service providers. The advantage of using multiple Cloud Service Providers is the flexibility of running applications on various platforms. That said, we also get the option of executing the various functions of an application across numerous service providers.
Key performance indicators
As the base suggests, key performance indicators are used to assess the performance of an application. Key performance indicators give us an idea about the ongoing migration process and any other problems that may arise or are likely to arise in the future. The parameters across which performance is assessed include user experience, memory usage, business engagement, and infrastructure.
The process of baselining
It is the process in which we draw a comparison between the performance of applications in the pre-migration phase and the post-migration phase. The aim is to validate and assess the performance of an application after the migration process has been completed.
Prioritization of components
Migration to the cloud environs takes place component by component or all at once. It is here that we need to prioritize components before shifting them to the cloud environment. It is also necessary to establish chronological connections between different types of services. This is especially true for those services which depend upon each other. We can make use of the dependency diagram for the chronological migration of the components in a specific order. Usually, we have found that companies migrate their internal services in the beginning and then follow it up with external services.
The formula for refactoring
Refactoring is important because it enables the dynamic scaling of applications. It also allows us to locate different kinds of resources dynamically. The primary reason for carrying out refactoring is that it gives us the necessary time for reworking and modifying the applications before final migration.
The final execution
After the creation of a data migration plan, we may start with the migration of data to the cloud databases. It is at this time that the on-premise database may be discarded. Soon after, we may switch the production system to the cloud environs with all functionalities. The process of migration is not over but the continuous review and monitoring of applications are crucial for resource optimization. A secondary plan should also be in place if a contingency situation arises and a major architectural failure occurs.
Concluding remarks
Apart from the above-mentioned checklist, there are several other considerations for cloud migration. That said, the creation of a secure cloud environment while optimizing other resources is crucial for the smooth functioning of various migrated applications.
