10 Mistakes to Avoid When Migrating to the Cloud
Cloud computing is an amazing facet of technology that is greatly relevant to modern companies but several errors can arise when companies are over-eager to join. This article will cover 10 of those errors.
1. Insufficient Knowledge
The biggest mistake that organizations make with cloud migration services is not understanding the limits and possibilities. Migration’s first step should be knowing your goal and how the cloud can enable it. Without that foundation, you doom your business to costly errors.
Many companies pursue migration because they fear being lapped by competitors and this short-sightedness can be damning. When planning a cloud migration, do your research; know what your competitors are doing and decide whether or not the cloud works for you.
2. Negligent Planning
Another mistake is failing to coordinate and plan the migration. Migration is a big step for any company, meaning that a strategy is required. Many organizations think that they can just uproot everything to the cloud without changing anything; this rarely succeeds and tends to just contribute to a string of chaos in the near future.
To plan out your cloud migration, understand what needs to be migrated and what can stay on-site. Analyze how you plan to migrate and how your apps and infrastructure need to adapt. Lastly, confirm a strong plan to back up and recover your data before migrating.
3. Flawed Accounting
Cloud migration should cut costs for a business and its IT budget but some businesses fail to comprehend how. Many organizations misjudge the costs incurred with migration, often overspending. Not all cloud providers are the same; some have multiple varied price structures and features.
4. Flawed Risk Assessment
Any time data is moved off-site carries extra risk. Analyze what sensitive data is to be migrated and be sure to establish safeguards for that data. Understand how access to your cloud storage will be managed and monitored. Much like when initially moving data, you should already have a solid recovery plan ready in case of a disaster.
5. One-And-Done Migration
Plenty of organizations want to migrate everything in one go and this practically guarantees ruin. When you take a complex and time-intensive process like cloud migration, every additional dataset will only amplify the chances that something will go wrong or that downtime will increase.
The smart solution is to go step-by-step, beginning with non-vital apps and data. Once you see how the more mundane aspects handle migration, you can set and adjust expectations before migrating vital datasets.
Also Read: Cloud Computing Trends In 2022
6. Inadequate Testing
Every application and infrastructure set should be fully tested before and after migration to ensure that no errors arise. Many organizations assume that their current tests are sufficient when the truth is that migration demands new tests and modification of prior ones. Further, some organizations forget to test their backup and recovery plans, often leading to disaster and failures.
7. Inadequate Training
When moving to cloud providers and apps, it is vital to properly train staff. Most organizations erroneously assume that staff can figure things out on the fly when the reality is that it only raises stress and the risk of further errors. In short, staff should always undergo proper training on applications and systems before fully implementing those programs.
8. Flawed Monitoring
A cloud environment requires constant attention to ensure functionality. Many organizations assume that their current monitoring equipment will work when the truth is that others scripts and processes need to be created or modified to account for all of the migration-based changes. It bears repeating that proper monitoring extends to backups and disaster recovery.
9. Lacking an Exit Plan
If migration encounters a problem, such as data becoming deleted mid-migration, a rollback plan must exist so that operations can return as swiftly as possible. While a rollback plan may not always be needed, it is better to have and not need than need and not have.
10. Failure to Keep Documentation Current
Documentation, like network diagrams and app inventory, needs updating post-migration Current documentation makes troubleshooting problems considerably easier. Note that documentation extends to your cloud provider’s service agreement, as well as contact details and support agreements
Conclusion
While cloud computing is the future, moving to it can be challenging or confusing. Be sure to be mindful of these many mistakes surrounding migration and your transition should go well.
