The promise of improved agility, scalability, and cost-efficiency draws organisations of all sizes to migrate to the cloud. However, cloud migration doesn’t come without its risks. As many as 1 in 3 migrations fail to reach their targets – and we believe a core reason for this is the lack of focus on post-migration.
How so? So much of the time and effort into cloud migration strategy is in the migration, and for good reason, it is the most involved step of the journey. However, many businesses neglect the “what’s next?”. This oversight can lead to unexpected cost overruns, performance bottlenecks from poorly configured workloads, and security vulnerabilities. This ultimately harms the return on investment (ROI) of cloud migrations. This article explores the importance of post-migration planning when embarking on an Azure migration. We will cover how to identify and manage the next workload for the cloud to unlock the true potential of your cloud investment.
The Importance of Post-Migration Planning and Optimisation
A robust migration plan is key to getting the job done, but post-migration planning is equally as important. Simply put, just “lifting and shifting” workloads rarely deliver the expected benefits. Without a post-migration strategy, you risk replicating old problems or creating new cloud-specific ones.
Neglecting post-migration can lead to several issues:
- Cost Overruns: Poor post-migration planning often leads to uncontrolled cloud spending. This often occurs when a business has not considered exactly how they will use their cloud resources in practice. Often, cloud resources are over-provisioned, leading to significantly higher costs than anticipated. The problem can occur the other way too with under-sizing: where the total cost of rectifying this error exceeds the cost it would have been if cloud resources had been right-sized from the get-go.
- Performance Bottlenecks: Migrating workloads without proper optimisation can result in poor performance degradation. Issues such as improper sizing of virtual machines, inefficient database configurations, or network latency can seriously slow down your environment.
- Security Vulnerabilities: This is potentially the costliest of all the dangers. A lack of post-migration security planning can lead to key security errors being made such as misconfigurations, open ports, and other vulnerabilities that expose sensitive data to potential threats. For instance, your attack service could be unnecessarily large, leaving too many potential entry points open to attackers.
- Missed Opportunities for Innovation: Cloud providers, such as Azure, offer a wide range of cutting-edge features, and tools – and rushing into a migration may lead to you missing out on opportunities to use them. Services such as serverless computing, machine learning, and advanced analytics may pass you by. Without a post-migration strategy, you’ll miss the chance to streamline operations and build value with these tools.
Identifying the Next Workload for Cloud Deployment
Cloud experts often advise businesses to incrementally deploy their workloads to the cloud. Once you’ve successfully moved your first workload, choosing the right workload to deploy next is key to making the most out of your cloud investment.
Here’s a breakdown of how to identify the ideal candidate:
- Assess Business Needs and Priorities: Start by examining your business objectives:
- What are your current pain points? What are your desired aims? Are you looking to improve scalability, enhance security, reduce costs, or drive innovation? What is your current cloud infrastructure not providing for you?
- Aligning your next workload with a specific business need will make sure it delivers tangible benefits.
- Evaluate Workload Characteristics: Not all workloads are created equal. Consider the following characteristics:
- Scalability Requirements: Workloads that experience fluctuating demand are ideal for the cloud’s elastic scaling capabilities. Look for applications with variable usage patterns.
- Dependency on Legacy Systems: Workloads that rely heavily on legacy systems will be more difficult to migrate to the cloud. We recommend prioritising applications with fewer dependencies or those that can be easily decoupled.
- Data Sensitivity and Compliance: Workloads handling sensitive data require careful consideration of security and compliance requirements. Consider the level of security required for the workload, and familiarise yourself with Azure’s security features and compliance certifications before pulling the trigger.
- Consider Quick Wins and Low-Hanging Fruit: Starting with less complex workloads builds momentum for future migrations. Look for applications that are fairly self-contained, have clear documentation, and involve minimal disruption when migrating. These “quick wins” can help demonstrate the value of and build confidence in the cloud.
- Use a Proof of Concept (POC): Before fully migrating a workload, we recommend conducting a proof of concept. This allows you to test the migration process and identify potential issues in a controlled environment. A successful POC ensures a smoother transition to readiness.
This iterative approach to workload migration will allow for continuous learning and optimisation, ensuring that your cloud environment evolves to meet your changing needs.
Best Practices for Managing New Workloads
Once you’ve identified and migrated your next workload, effective workload management is your next challenge!
Here are some best practices to follow:
- Continuous Monitoring and Optimisation: Use monitoring tools such as Azure Monitor to track performance and resource utilisation. We recommend regularly using this data to identify areas for cost savings or resource upgrades.
- Leverage automation: Automate repetitive tasks such as patching, scaling, and backups to reduce the manual effort it takes to manage your cloud infrastructure. Azure offers various automation tools like Azure Automation and Azure DevOps for this purpose.
- Security Hardening: Implement security best practices, such as zero trust, to protect your workloads from threats. This includes correctly configuring firewalls, managing access controls, and regularly patching vulnerabilities. We recommend working with a security partner to get these configurations right from the get-go.
How We Can Help
Migrating to the cloud is only the first step. To unlock the transformative power of Azure, considering what happens nextis essential. With a bit of post-migration planning, carefully selecting subsequent workloads, and implementing best practices for ongoing management, you can avoid common pitfalls, optimise performance, and maximise your cloud ROI.Ready to maximise your Azure investment and take your cloud migration to the next level? Get in touch with us today and see how we can assist!