Five Essential Steps for Successfully Migrating to a Cloud Environment
Migrating to a cloud environment may not be rocket science, but you have to follow some essential steps if you want it to go smoothly. Here are five critical steps for a successful migration to the cloud.
Management buy-in
This is the first and most important step. Many technical innovations fall flat because the top management is not comfortable with the new order of things. Change is perceived as dangerous and many established concepts take time to dislodge. Experience has shown that if a technological change is brought about by technical staff without the consent of top management, it is likely to fail. More because change requires investment, and not just monetary investment. If people are not enthusiastic about a particular project, the response will be lukewarm at best. This situation is a perfect recipe for failure.
Getting everyone on board, including top management, is essential. Migrating to the cloud is no exception.
Planning
This next step is almost equally important. You must understand the reasons why you are migrating to a cloud environment. Is it scalability you are looking for? Or cost cutting? Whatever the reason, you must plan thoroughly before actually implementing a project. Planning must consist of the resources required in terms of manpower and funds. If disruption in operations is projected, it must be clearly pointed out at this stage. Nothing should be left to chance.
Starting small
I would ideally begin with a pilot project. You must make sure that the operating environment is exactly the same as that of the production stage. By taking up a pilot project you will come to know the practical issues which had not been catered to. No amount of planning can obviate the glitches and problems encountered during the actual implementation. Simulating your production processes in a live situation is important.
Testing
By testing, I mean putting your system through the paces. There are lots os testing softwares available on the market. These provide extensive queries and requests which load the system to a maximum. Of course you can devise your own testing software as well, if that’s within your means.
Creating an effective disaster recovery and backup strategy
The beauty of technology lies in its uncertainty. Just when you think that your systems and processes are perfect and foolproof, the world comes crashing down on you. Experienced technical staff know this. At the same time you cannot stand by and wait for disaster to strike. The first question I ask is whether a company has a disaster recovery strategy in place or not. The best way to ensure safety is to backup your data. There are several ways to do this depending on the criticality of data.
The second question which inevitably follows is how fast you can get back into operation, in the event of a disaster. Time is everything in production. Getting back on your feet after a fall, must not take too much time. If you can get your disaster recovery process in place, you have won the game.
Conclusion
All the five steps I have mentioned earlier may not seem to be much, but they form the core of any successful migration to cloud environment. You must get things right in the first instance and your journey to the cloud will be uneventful and even enjoyable.
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About the Guest Author:
Sankarambadi Srinivasan, ‘Srini’, is a maverick writer, technopreneur, geek and online marketing enthusiast rolled into one. He began his career as a Naval weapon specialist. Later, he sold his maiden venture and became head of an offshore Database administration company in Mumbai. He moved on as Chief Technology Officer of one of the largest online entities, where he led consolidation of 300 online servers and introduced several Web 2.0 initiatives. He holds a Master’s degree in Electronics and Telecommunication.
