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What Is Cloud Migration?

Moving servers, files, email or apps from hardware you own to a cloud platform.

Cloud migration is the process of moving servers, files, email or applications from on-premises hardware to a cloud platform such as Microsoft Azure, Microsoft 365 or AWS. It is rarely one project. Most businesses do it in stages, in a fairly predictable order.

The common migration types

  • Email migration. Moving mailboxes from an on-premises Exchange server or another provider into Microsoft 365. Usually the first cloud project a business does.
  • File migration. Moving shared drives to SharePoint, OneDrive or Azure Files, with permissions redesigned rather than copied.
  • Server migration. Moving application and database servers to Azure or AWS virtual machines, or replacing them with managed cloud services.
  • Desktop migration. Replacing an RDS farm or scattered remote access with Azure Virtual Desktop.
  • Backup and DR migration. Moving off-site backups and disaster recovery targets to cloud storage and replication.

The usual order

Identity and email first, because everything else depends on them. Then files and collaboration. Then backup and DR. Then servers and applications, which are the most involved. Finally, decommissioning the hardware.

Why migrations stall

Nobody owns the project. Dependencies were not mapped, so one server cannot move without three others. Permissions were copied instead of redesigned. Bandwidth at the office was never checked. The old system was never actually turned off, so the business pays for both. Dedicated project management with a discovery phase prevents most of this.

What to expect from a good migration

A discovery and assessment phase, a written plan with cutover windows and rollback steps, a pilot, waves of migration with user communication, and a post-migration optimization pass. See how an Azure migration works for the server-side detail.

Is cloud always the answer?

No. Some workloads belong on-premises for latency, hardware or licensing reasons. See on-premises vs cloud.

Mentis Group handles server implementation, SharePoint and cloud file migrations, and email migrations as IT Project Services, then supports the result through Managed Cloud Services for businesses across Dallas-Fort Worth and nationwide.

Have a question about your own environment? Schedule a consultation with Mentis Group or call (866) 901-7808.