Is cloud migration getting automated?

For a majority of companies, from small and mid-sized businesses to large enterprises, migrating data center workloads to the cloud is rapidly becoming a key priority. However, companies are struggling to perform cloud migrations in a comprehensive, seamless and timely manner.

In addition, most customers data center infrastructures are a complex set of systems with competing resource efficiencies. Often, these environments consist of physical servers with different operating systems, distinct virtualization and private cloud platforms, and myriad network and storage complexities. Moreover, manual server workload and cloud migrations are difficult without the proper tools to help facilitate deployment.

Nobody really enjoys data migration, which is why interest in automation is so high when it comes to cloud environments. However, automation is only as good as the processes and the assumptions they’re based on.

Consistent with multiple predictions about cloud migration getting easier here is an interesting case study for a financial services company in Florida.  The case study was done last year, but it demonstrates the power of automation over manual processes and early tools.

At the same time, I truly believe that no single software product or automated migration tool can execute an entire migration in all scenarios. Depending on your source and destination environment, as well as the composition of your applications and workloads, automation can help fast-track your cloud migration, but only coupled with expert professional services. This will ensure uptime requirements are met and migrated applications and workloads are extensively tested, secure and fully functional at the target environment.

Moreover, when evaluating your cloud provider choices, make sure to ask for a detailed workflow diagram or process that is followed by the cloud provider’s automated workflow system.  The cloud provider should be able to provide you a live demonstration of their cloud management platform, ordering process, and show the automated workflow as a cloud service is deployed.

Many organizations are facing the challenge of migrating their IT to the cloud. But not many know how to actually approach it. I believe this step can be performed in a gradual process that both mitigates the risk and enables you to enjoy the immediate benefits of automation and easier management of your application’s operational lifecycle even before moving to the cloud.

So, in order to make an informed choice, you first need to understand which cloud solution is right for your business, identify the cost-benefit of migrating to the cloud, and understand the approach and time lines of moving to the cloud.  And the only way to do that is a cloud assessment, remember?

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