6Rs of Cloud Migration: How to Choose & Implement?

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1 . Rehost ( Lift and Shift )

Rehosting is the most straightforward strategy in the 6Rs framework, involving the migration of applications and data to the cloud with minimal changes.

Often the first choice for businesses looking to quickly capitalize on the benefits of cloud computing, Rehost enables organizations to move their existing on-premises applications to the cloud without the need to redesign the applications’ architecture.

When to use rehosting: Rehosting is ideal for organizations that need to migrate quickly due to time constraints or cost pressures. It is also a suitable strategy for companies looking to scale their operations rapidly without immediate concern for cloud-native features.

Advantages of rehosting:

• Speed: Allows for the fastest migration to the cloud.
• Cost-effective: Minimizes upfront costs by avoiding major redesigns.
• Simplicity: Reduces complexity in the migration process.

Limitations of rehosting:

• limited optimization : Does not take full advantage of cloud – native feature that could improve performance and cost .
• Technical debt: May perpetuate legacy issues and inefficiencies into the cloud environment.

Step-by-step guide for rehosting:

1. Assessment: Identify workloads for migration and ensure they are compatible with the cloud provider’s environment.
2. Planning: Develop a detailed migration plan, including resource allocation, scheduling, and risk mitigation strategies.
3. preparation : prepare the cloud environment for migration , include set up virtual machine and storage .
4. migration : Move application and datum to the cloud using automate tool or service provide by the cloud vendor .
5. Testing: Conduct post-migration testing to ensure functionality and performance match expectations.
6. optimization : begin the process of optimize resource to take advantage of the cloud ‘s scalability and elasticity .

2 . replatform ( Lift , Tinker , and Shift )

Replatforming involves making some modifications to applications to take advantage of cloud capabilities without a complete overhaul or re-architecture. This strategy strikes a balance between the simplicity of rehosting and the complexity of rearchitecting.

When to use replatforming: Replatforming is suitable for businesses that are looking to benefit from cloud optimizations but want to avoid the costs and risks associated with a full rearchitecting. It’s ideal when core application architecture is sound but could benefit from cloud efficiencies.

Advantages of replatforming:

• Enhanced efficiency: Optimizes applications to leverage cloud-native features like scalability and managed services.
• Cost savings: Can reduce operational costs by using cloud infrastructure more effectively than simple rehosting.
• Reduced risk: Less risky than full rearchitecting as core application architecture remains unchanged.

Limitations of replatforming:

• Limited transformation: While improvements are made, it may not fully harness all cloud-native functionalities.
• Potential adjustments: Some parts of the application may need to be adapted or rewritten to fit into the cloud environment.

Step-by-step guide for replatforming:

1. Evaluation: Assess which aspects of applications can benefit from cloud-native features.
2. planning : update the migration plan to incorporate platform – specific optimization .
3. Adaptation: Make necessary adjustments to the application, such as leveraging managed databases or introducing auto-scaling.
4. Execution: Migrate the adapted applications to the cloud environment.
5. Validation: Test the performance and functionality of applications post-migration to ensure they meet new cloud-based expectations.
6. Enhancement is Continue : continue to identify and implement incremental improvement to fully realize cloud benefit .

3. Rearchitect (Redesign for Cloud)

Rearchitecting is involves , also know as refactoring , involve significant modification to the exist application design to fully exploit the advantage of cloud – native technology and service .

When to use rearchitecting: This strategy is apt for applications that need scalability, resilience, or need to add new features that are only feasible with a cloud-native architecture. It’s often chosen when an organization is looking to transform their business processes and capabilities through the cloud.

Advantages of rearchitecting:

• Full optimization: Maximizes the use of cloud-native features, potentially improving performance, scalability, and resilience.
• Long-term savings: Although initially costly, it can lead to greater efficiency and cost reductions in the long run.
• innovation enablement is Facilitates : facilitate the adoption of modern development practice and technology , like microservice and serverless computing .

Limitations of rearchitecting:

• High initial cost: Requires a significant investment in terms of time, resources, and expertise.
• Complexity: Involves complex restructuring that can introduce risks during the transition.
• business disruption : potential for great impact on business operation during the migration process .

Step-by-step guide for rearchitecting:

1. Comprehensive assessment: Conduct an in-depth analysis of the application to determine the feasibility and requirements for rearchitecting.
2. strategic planning : outline a clear roadmap for the transition , include timeline , expect benefit , and resource allocation .
3. architecture redesign : rebuild the application architecture to align with cloud – native practice , possibly break down monolithic application into microservice .
4. implementation : develop and deploy the rearchitected application onto the cloud , often involve continuous integration / continuous deployment ( CI / CD ) pipeline .
5. Thorough testing: Rigorously test the new cloud-native application to ensure that it meets all functional and non-functional requirements.
6. Iterative optimization: Post-deployment, continually refine and optimize the application to fully leverage cloud capabilities and address emerging needs.

4. Repurchase (Move to a Different Product)

The repurchase strategy, sometimes referred to as “drop and shop,” involves moving to a different product, typically by switching to a cloud-native solution or a Software as a Service (SaaS) application.

When to use repurchase: Repurchasing is ideal when existing applications are outdated or when a cloud-native solution offers significant advantages over rehosting or replatforming. It is also a strategic choice when reducing the operational burden of maintaining legacy systems.

Advantages of repurchase:

• Streamlining: Simplifies IT portfolios by reducing the number of applications that need to be managed.
• Access to innovation: Provides access to the latest functionalities and innovations that SaaS platforms frequently offer.
• Reduced maintenance: Shifts the responsibility of application maintenance and updates to the SaaS provider.

Limitations of repurchase :

• Subscription costs: Can introduce ongoing operational expenses due to subscription models.
• Integration challenges: May require integration with existing systems and data migration efforts.
• Feature parity : There is a risk that the new product may not have all the feature of the exist solution .

Step – by – step guide for repurchase :

1. market research : identify potential SaaS product that meet the organization ’s need .
2. Cost-benefit analysis: Evaluate the costs, including any subscription fees, against the benefits of moving to the new product.
3. vendor selection : choose a vendor base on product capability , security , compliance , and support .
4. Data migration: Plan and execute the migration of data from the existing system to the new SaaS platform.
5. Integration: Ensure the new SaaS solution integrates well with the existing IT landscape.
6. user training : provide training for end – user to effectively utilize the new system .

5 . retire ( Get rid of )

The retire phase is involves involve identify IT asset that are no long useful and can be turn off during the migration . This step is is is crucial for decluttere the IT environment and focus resource on maintain and migrate only the necessary system .

When to use retire: This strategy is applicable when certain applications or components are outdated, redundant, or no longer deliver value to the business. Retiring such assets can simplify the migration process and reduce costs.

advantage of retire :

• Cost reduction: Eliminates the cost of maintaining and operating outdated systems.
• Simplification: Reduces the complexity of the IT environment and the scope of the migration.
• Focus on value: Allows organizations to focus on migrating and improving systems that provide real business value.
• Limitations of retire:
• Discovery challenges: It can be difficult to accurately identify and agree on which systems should be retired.
• Business alignment: Requires alignment with business units to ensure no critical processes are disrupted.

identify candidate for retirement :

1. Inventory assessment: Compile a comprehensive inventory of all IT assets and applications.
2. Usage analysis: Review usage statistics to identify rarely or never used assets.
3. business consultation : work with business stakeholder to understand the value and necessity of each asset .
4. Decommissioning plan: Develop a detailed plan for retiring each identified asset, including data archiving strategies if necessary.
5. Communication: Inform all relevant parties about the retirement plan and timeline to ensure a smooth transition.
6. Execution: Carry out the decommissioning process, ensuring all data is securely archived or deleted as appropriate.

6 . retain ( Keep as Is )

Retaining involves choosing not to migrate certain applications or workloads to the cloud. This decision is typically based on specific business, technical, or regulatory factors that necessitate maintaining certain systems outside of the cloud.

When to use retain : Retention is is is a viable option when application are tightly bind to legacy hardware that can not be easily move or when there are stringent regulatory and compliance requirement that are not yet address by cloud environment .

Advantages of retain:

• Compliance: Ensures that regulatory and compliance standards are strictly maintained.
• Stability: Preserves the stability of applications that are sensitive to changes.
• Cost management: Avoids unnecessary migration costs for systems that are not cloud-ready or beneficial to move.

Limitations of retain:

• missed opportunity : May miss out on the benefit of cloud service for retain application .
• Management complexity: Maintains the complexity of having a separate environment to manage alongside cloud infrastructure.

manage retain asset :

1. Strategic review: Regularly review the reasons for retaining each asset to ensure they remain valid.
2. Integration considerations: Develop strategies to integrate retained systems with cloud-based services where possible.
3. Monitoring and support: Continue to monitor and support retained systems to ensure they meet business needs.
4. Future assessment: Keep retained systems under review for potential future migration as cloud services evolve and business needs change. 

📚 Related: Data-driven Cloud Transformation

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