Migrating to a private cloud: 5 things to keep in mind

Migrating to a private cloud takes different forms. You could be shifting your workloads from an on-prem server or from a public cloud. You could be moving all your workloads or going for a hybrid cloud solution.

Whatever route you take, it's a big step that will take time, money and effort. There's a lot to consider – and because it impacts your whole company, it's well worth putting aside some serious thinking time.

Here, then, are five key things to keep in mind as you prepare to move to a private cloud, whether you're keeping the migration in-house or getting a cloud consultant on board.

Key considerations

1. Do you know your infrastructure?

Once upon a time, this was a relatively simple question to answer because IT systems were relatively simple. They tended to be geographically contained (an office or a small network of offices) and tended to involve a small number of devices.

Today, networks sprawl like Japanese knotweed. In the age of hybrid working, you're dealing with multiple devices in multiple locations at any one time. On top of this, you're dealing with a historic amount of data.

That's why you need to know your infrastructure inside out before turning on the green light for migration. As a basic rule of thumb, if you can't point to your software, hardware, networking, storage infrastructure and data, you're not ready to move them.

Aside from anything else, there's the question of resources. Do you have the technical capacity to transfer them to a private cloud? Does anything need modifying or replacing altogether before it's moved?

It could be that your internal team is well-equipped to answer these questions. If not, you should consider getting a third-party cloud consultant on board – an extra pair of eyes that can lift the lid on your infrastructure and tell you exactly what needs to be done.

2. Do you know your business goals?

We've said it before and we'll say it again: the cloud isn't just a technical solution. Its purpose is to help your business grow. This could be through reduced expenditure, increased data security and compliance, better scalability, improved performance or some combination of all four.

If you don't know your business goals, you won't be able to make an informed decision when choosing a private cloud solution. Again, this is something that a cloud consultant can help with.

3. Are you ready to make a plan?

Sadly, cloud migration isn't simply a case of dragging and dropping your workloads into a shiny new folder. It involves identifying which apps and services need moving – and in what order.

It also involves putting guardrails in place to ensure that disruption is kept to an absolute minimum. And looking forward, you need a disaster recovery plan and a cloud exit strategy from day one.

Do you know what needs to happen after your migration? Do members of your team need skilling up? Does your plan align with the business goals we mentioned in step two? Do you have concrete KPIs? All these questions need answering before you put the pedal to the metal.

3. Have you defined roles and responsibilities?

Because cloud migration is so much more than an exercise in drag-and-drop, it involves a lot of people within your company – people who need to know what their roles are.

To achieve this, you need a clear communication plan. This involves updating all concerned parties about the process of the migration and any problems that arise along the way.

When getting ready to move to a private cloud, you should assign roles and responsibilities. Who's going to transfer the data? Who's going to carry out a dry run? Who's responsible for problem-solving? Do new teams need to be created? Do customers and stakeholders know about any downtime on the horizon?

Keeping these things in mind minimises miscommunication and avoids frayed relationships. An informed team isn't necessarily a happy team – but it's far preferable to one that's been kept in the dark.

4. Have you classified and prioritised your workloads?

One issue with the preponderance of data in today's businesses is that it can be hard to prioritise workloads for migration. Not everything needs moving – and what does need moving shouldn't be lifted and shifted all at once.

This means you should distinguish the mission-critical, the mission-important and the mission-meh. Mission-critical data will include things like customer records and financial stats. Other types of data can wait.

Taking the time to go through your workloads with a fine-tooth comb is integral to ensuring the success of your migration to a private cloud.

5. Have you planned a dry run?

Once all of the above questions have been answered, you should test your migration in a safe, cloned environment. This gives you a chance to identify issues with compatibility, configuration and performance.

Skipping this stage increases the likelihood of things going wrong. In the context of cloud migration, this has the potential to pile work on work (and money on money).

If you're not sure how to do this, consider working with a cloud consultant. They'll use their expertise to test the migration for you and point out any room for improvement.

How we can help

Ascend Cloud Solutions was born in the cloud. Our team is made up of VMware experts who have handled over 400 migrations and counting – many of which were private cloud migrations.

Our tried and tested five-step method ensures that the migration is executed with a minimum of disruption and fully in line with your business's goals, budgets and deadlines.

So whether you want managed services or a one-off consultancy job, get in touch. We'd love to help you unlock the transformative power of the private cloud.