Microsoft Azure is a popular cloud computing platform run by Microsoft, offering access, management, and development through global data centres. Azure allows you to support applications across multiple clouds, with customisable approaches. And as a public cloud platform, this includes services such as a service (PaaS), infrastructure as a service (IaaS), and managed database service capabilities. It works across web, mobile, cloud, and AI based services. Unlike other cloud-based services, Microsoft specifically designed Azure to help organisations manage applications and services across multiple channels.
Moving from on-premise to cloud
Microsoft’s disaster recovery system is fully able to ensure that your business can continue working during failures and outages. Azure offers Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS), which will give you greater security than an on-premises data centre and does so at a lower maintenance cost overall, compared to running an efficient on-premises infrastructure. Moving from on-premises servers to cloud platforms will involve replicating copies of your existing data, migrating your operations to Azure, and decommissioning your on-premises resources. It’s a big decision to make and not one that should be taken lightly. However, the benefits are worth the commitment needed.
Azure migration plan
1. Inventory
Your first step will be examining which parts of your current system are to be migrated. By engaging in a thorough inventory of your servers and services, you will have a better understanding of how your operations work and how to migrate them. This will put you in the best position when developing your Azure migration strategy. Collaborating with your organisation’s various internal teams will ensure you get different perspectives on your computing capabilities and requirements.
2. Evaluation
Once you fully understand your organisation’s needs you can consider how best to migrate your systems to Azure. Luckily, Microsoft can help you with this, using their Virtual Machine Readiness Assessment tool. This supplies a checklist for moving your services to the cloud. Combined with Microsoft Assessment and Planning (MAP) toolkit, you can curate a transfer that considers your current infrastructure and capability, combined you are your performance requirements. It will also include your maintenance needs.
3. Customisation
Next, you will plan the best way to move your servers over, most likely splitting them between Microsoft Azure, which would benefit websites due to the speed of their data centres, Office 365, which would benefit productivity and communication workloads due to its collaborative interface, and a cloud-based operating system network, which is important for systems that require cloud computing or a virtualisation environment.
4. Migration
In this stage, you might start by transferring smaller systems to Azure. By delaying the transfer of your organisation’s more critical computing infrastructure, it will allow you to learn how to make use of the new tools at your disposal, while not risking jeopardising your core workloads with a system you are still adjusting to. We recommend considering best practices and allowing for margins of error during the learning stages of the azure cloud migration process.
Cloud Migration as a service
As a leading vendor of Azure migration services, Venom IT can help you undergo a full upgrade of your computing infrastructure and help you transfer your systems. We will help you to coordinate, deliver, and improve your organisation’s targets. We come highly recommended by our clients for whom we supply a bespoke and professional service, tailored to their needs and capabilities. We’ll help prepare your business to take full advantage of its innovation and maximise your return on investment, migrating on-premises applications, data, and infrastructure to a first-rate cloud-based network without disrupting your business.
Venom IT are a trusted and award-winning IT Support partner. Get in touch with our expert team today if you’re looking for new or alternative managed IT solutions.
