In the last several years, more and more companies are opting for cloud computing services instead of maintaining internal servers. Using cloud technology to store business data provides enormous scalability. With it, you achieve unsurpassable cost-effectiveness, which easily beats traditional solutions.
Unfortunately, migrating your operations to the cloud is much more complex than some people think. The entire process requires thorough planning and a long-term strategy. Otherwise, the lack of optimization might affect your ability to meet corporate objectives, leading to frustration for everyone involved.
The good news is that modern cloud services are tailored to each client’s needs. This is especially true if you hire an IT services provider to handle your migration. A good provider can handle the entire strategic process, ensuring you have more time to focus on things that move the needle for your business.
Benefits of Cloud Migration
Cloud migration is a process that allows you to transfer data and apps from your internal servers to a new, cloud-based infrastructure. While placing your data on the cloud does come with certain risks, such as dependability on an external provider and its technology, it provides even more significant benefits:
- Scaling
Data storage scalability is always an issue for businesses regardless of the industry. As your business grows, you also need to increase your hardware spending just to meet the storage requirements.
When you pay for external cloud storage, you don’t have to worry about this issue. Providers tackle the problem for your business, offering unlimited physical storage that lets you scale operations unhindered.
- Security
When using internal infrastructure, you also have to consider potential breaches. Way back when, businesses had to spend tens of thousands of dollars just to pay off IT teams and cybersecurity apps.
Nowadays, this is a thing of the past, as modern cloud providers offer unparalleled data protection in lieu of the current laws and industry standards. They have their own team of experts and periodically update software, so you don’t have to worry about a thing.
- Cost-Effective
Instead of having to build an entire infrastructure for your business, you can simply pay according to data usage. This makes external cloud storage perfect for scaling, as you don’t have to incur additional costs when building your servers.
- Fast Adoption
Cloud storage makes it easier to introduce new technologies and apps into your workflow. The entire process is relatively automated, and the best thing yet is that you don’t have to worry about compatibility.
Challenges of Cloud Migration
Despite the fact that cloud migration provides many advantages, transferring your entire tech stack online is rather complicated. Here are a few potential issues that will likely cause you headaches along the way:
- Data Connectivity and Transfer
As you might presume, transferring large quantities of a company’s data is usually excruciating. Not only does the process take a lot of time, but it also requires know-how and tact. Among others, the person in charge needs to ensure that the connection is secure, reliable, and has appropriate bandwidth.
- Backward Compatibility
Big companies need to consider backward compatibility when they move their software to the cloud. If you’re using older or custom-made, proprietary programs, there’s a chance they won’t work properly with a new tech and setup. If this is the case, your IT experts will have to introduce certain modifications to the code so that it works as intended.
- Interoperability
Nowadays, many apps rely on convoluted dependencies and the base systems, databases, and infrastructure. Unless you establish the apps’ requirements in advance, there’s a good chance your software won’t work as intended once you transfer it to the cloud.
The Role of External IT Providers
The good news is that MSPs (Managed Service Providers) can help with most of these issues. In fact, there are specialized companies whose main focus is to help transfer company information to new systems. Here are a few things MSPs can assist you with:
- Planning and Strategizing
As mentioned, planning and strategizing are especially time-consuming during cloud migration. So much so that most businesses don’t know how to start the process.
When you hire an MSP, your partnership starts with a mandatory meeting during which you share your long-term objectives. Then, the migration experts develop a strategy that will safely transfer data and ensure you can keep on growing as if nothing has happened.
- Infrastructure Assessment
One of the first things MSPs do is assess your current infrastructure to determine whether it’s suitable for the new cloud platform. They create a strategic workflow that highlights different milestones and deadliness. A provider will also assess app dependencies and potential bottlenecks that could grind the process to a halt.
- Advisory Role
If this is your first time transferring company data to the cloud, which is usually the case for most brands, you probably don’t know what you’re looking for. With so many cloud platforms at your disposal, it is hard to select one that you’ll use for years to come.
MSP can find an optimal provider according to your business needs. They will assess various factors, including security, scalability, and costs, to find a cloud service that will make the most sense.
- Optimizing Apps
Before transferring certain apps, MSP will assess their dependencies with the legacy system. If some of the vital programs are unsuitable for the new platform, they will change the design, code, and architecture and perform other optimization tasks that will allow for smooth migration.
Last Thoughts
Even the biggest naysayers have to admit cloud solutions are the way to go. Spending money on external storage is generally a much cheaper option for your business, allowing you to cut costs on internal IT teams and hardware.
While relying on other companies to safeguard your sensitive data comes with certain issues, such as potential privacy infringement, the financial incentives more than makeup for it. Still, we would always recommend hiring an MSP to handle the process, as things can get dicey along the way.
