Optimal Approaches for Transitioning to Azure Cloud

Ryan Williamson
3 min readApr 16, 2024

In the modern business world, the pursuit of better efficiency, scalability, and adaptability is also incessant and understandable. But what can help companies achieve their goals, you ask? While plenty of solutions are available in the market, cloud computing appears to have established itself as a pivotal solution for achieving these objectives. Among the reasons behind its popularity in this context is the fact that it offers a versatile and economical approach to IT infrastructure management. Among the top contenders in the cloud service market, Microsoft Azure distinguishes itself thanks to its rich array of services and seamless integrations with other Microsoft offerings. So, when you choose to transition your business to Azure, you are making a decidedly strategic move, albeit one laden with complexities. I mean that the migration process involves crucial considerations, such as fastidious planning and assessment.

Seems like a mouthful, does it not? It does, indeed, but it is not as intricate as one may be inclined to believe. Nonetheless, I have compiled a list of best practices for Azure cloud that you should keep in mind when making the transition.

What Comprises Azure Cloud Migration?

Azure cloud migration is the method by which one moves a company’s digital resources and assets to Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing platform. The moved resources, such as information and applications, are moved from their current hosting environment, which often is the company’s own on-premises servers. This implies that you move your IT framework to the cloud, where it will be hosted and overseen by Microsoft.

Best Practices of Azure Cloud Migration You Ought to Remember

  1. Inventory all digital assets: This is a best practice and the first step in the migration process. In this initial pivotal phase, companies must inventory all their digital assets. This step makes it necessary to ensure a thorough understanding of every element that is slated for migration. The asset list typically encompasses apps, databases, servers, storage systems, and network configurations. To cut a long story short, this step involves compiling an exhaustive list of all components within your current IT infrastructure.
  2. Evaluate workloads and dependencies: It is imperative to recognize that not all apps and data hold the same importance for an organization. So, through in-depth assessment, delve into each workload’s complexities, such as its resource demands, processing requirements, and interdependencies with other systems. Such an analysis will help you identify the right migration approach tailored to each workload, whether it involves a straightforward lift-and-shift method or necessitates more intricate restructuring.
  3. Estimate monthly workload costs: Azure also brings with it a variety of pricing structures and services, thus necessitating an upfront estimation of costs to ensure that you can budget prudently. Using available tools to analyze workload patterns would be a good idea. This enables the projection of potential Azure expenditures and costs associated with resource usage. This foresight, in turn, empowers companies to optimize their migration strategies to ensure sync with cost-effective measures.
  4. Migrate workloads and optimize: When you set out to execute the migration, you transition your workloads to Azure using tailored tools and methodologies. Yet, the fact remains that the migration extends beyond a singular event. Hence, post-migration, it is of crucial importance to optimize workloads for the cloud environment. This optimization typically encompasses resource scaling, using managed services, or restructuring apps to capitalize on native cloud functionalities.

Well, folks, if you still need help, it is always a good idea to engage the services of an Azure cloud consulting company.

--

--

Ryan Williamson

A professional and security-oriented programmer having more than 6 years of experience in designing, implementing, testing and supporting mobile apps developed.