In this blog post we will outline the 5 Key Steps enterprises and cloud service providers should cover when moving multiple servers to the cloud.

Enterprises of all sizes virtualize to consolidate and reduce costs. Virtualization and cloud computing increase efficiency and flexibility in providing data and applications to users, yet managing performance of applications and transactions in the cloud is neither simple nor easy. So what practical steps should you take if you are considering outsourcing parts of your IT infrastructure from in-house physical servers to a remote, cloud environment? Here are a few things to consider.

Have a Plan
When moving data to a new location, enterprises should always have a plan. One way to do that is to simplify everything.

“When you look at most internal environments, you find there is a lot of complexity that will prevent you moving to the cloud or will make your life much more difficult,” said eBay Cloud Architect Jean-Christophe Martin at a recent Cloud Expo in London.

Simplification is the most important issue when moving to the cloud. Organizations should split the process into 3 areas to make it easier: process, technological and organizational simplification.

Analyze Your Current System
It’s important for enterprises to look at the end-to-end lifecycle of servers and applications to see what you can automate and what are the impediments to automation. For example, some firewalls cannot be automated because a vendor may not provide any way to amend the configuration of the firewall to do it. In a case like that you need to change firewall vendor.

Don’t forget that network optimization and moving to the cloud will almost always involve increasing bandwidth and introducing Quality of Service, which will necessitate an increase in a business’ spend on connectivity. Overall, the importance of the network to the outsourced cloud means the cloud service provider can help keep costs down and can offer added value to a project.

Look at the Future
It’s important to remember that the benefits of the cloud are not limited to cost reduction alone. There may also be an opportunity to improve your business’ continuity strategy and disaster recovery plan. Consider all areas of your organizations IT strategy not only for today, but future technology and business requirements.

Plan for Failure
Applications have the potential for failure and you must plan accordingly. One way of doing that is to partition by function. By splitting the functions up you have more of a chance to recover in case a failure should happen. Also make sure backup and recovery systems and processes are in place.

Security
To meet security requirements you must look at the requirements for each physical environment and define them logically. For each you should have detailed Security requirements and a documented Security Policy. Whether in the cloud or not, organizations need to have complete control over their infrastructure.

RiverMeadow develops industry leading cloud migration SaaS that enables Carriers and Service Providers to deliver the incredible benefits of cloud computing to Enterprise and SMB customers with minimal cost and complexity. The RiverMeadow Cloud Migration SaaS automates the migration of physical, virtual and cloud based servers into and between public, private and hybrid cloud environments. To learn more about RiverMeadow’s SaaS contact us at support@rivermeadow.com.

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