Migrating VMs from on-premises to Azure

With pandemic, rapid digital transformation and booming work from home culture, businesses are migrating to cloud. Irrespective of business type and organization size it is trending globally. Now, the dilemma before organizations is which cloud service to opt. Whether the chosen platform will be successfully adopted by organization, will it fulfil all organizational needs or how will it affect internal and external factors. Most of the organization look up to Microsoft Azure as it offers an array of services on a single platform such as IaaS, PaaS and SaaS. Here in this article, we will discuss all the know-hows of migrating Virtual machines from on-premises physical hardware environment to cloud based Microsoft Azure. There is a precise planning involved in the migration process which is described briefly below: 

1. Assess: 

The first and foremost step is to assess the on premises applications status, which is concluded in three important sub-steps, i.e. discover, map and evaluate. Using migration assessment tools information regarding the servers and applications is gathered, then it systematically mapped and evaluated.  

2. Migrate: 

The second step has four sub-steps, which are rehost, refactors, rearchitect & rebuild. In this step the applications are firstly moved to Azure, then their design and architecture is changed to make it suitable for the cloud and lastly it is reconstructed using cloud based Azure services. 

3. Optimize: 

The next step is to optimize the resources invested in the cloud service. Using Azure cost management cloud expenditure is calculated, maximum utilization of Azure services is made in order to reduce the existing workload. 

4. Secure and Manage: 

The last step is to manage and safeguard the organizational data. Using Azure Security services, data is covered with additional protection in order to keep it away from potential threats while ensuring compliance. Azure monitor regularly checks the health of the data plus offers precise insights and analysis to track it.  

Benefits of migrating VMs from on-premises to Azure 

• Security: Resolving complex security threats and issues involves wastage of time and money. Azure offers advanced data protection services which wipes out the possibility of data breach.  
• Cost-efficient: Azure saves the hardware and server maintenance cost and allows organization to utilize their funds on other significant areas. 
• Mobile: Azure offers access to business information anywhere anytime to the service users. It allows organization members to work from remote locations. 

• Redundancy: Azure is cost-effective, saves lot of organizational funds and avoids wastage of resources. It allows company to run in critical situations. 
• Compatible: Azure is a flexible platform that works across various operating systems and applications. Thus, it is the most compatible cloud platform for digital transformation. 

Microsoft Azure has the maximum data centers across the globe, which makes it the leading cloud service provider. Major multinational companies have opted for it for smooth business functions. It requires least manpower to operate and is easy to understand. Be it a small organization or a global enterprise it satisfies all their requirements in utmost manner.