Migrating applications can be approached in various ways, and when considering a move to the cloud, you’ll discover what AWS terms “The 7 R’s.”
Developing a cloud migration strategy that identifies the most suitable pattern(s) for your workloads is crucial for streamlining your transition to the cloud and achieving your business goals.
Here, we delve into each of the seven migration patterns, frequently adopted by AWS customers.
- Rehost (Lift-and-Shift): In scenarios demanding swift migration and scalability, such as data center lease termination, the rehosting approach, or “lift-and-shift,” is prevalent. Automation tools like AWS Application Migration Service simplify the rehosting process, ensuring a smooth transition.
- Re-platform (Lift-Tinker-and-Shift): Re-platforming involves making cloud optimizations without altering the application’s core architecture. For instance, transitioning to fully managed services like Amazon MQ or Amazon FSx for Windows File Server enables seamless migration without the need for application rewrites or third-party software licenses.
- Refactor: Refactoring entails modifying the application’s architecture and development, often leveraging cloud-native features like building a data lake. This approach is driven by a strong business need for enhanced features, scalability, or performance, even though it may be a relatively more expensive solution.
- Relocate: Relocating involves moving vSphere-based applications to AWS without altering the applications themselves. VMware Cloud on AWS facilitates the swift relocation of virtualized applications, maintaining consistent operations with VMware Cloud Foundation-based environments.
- Repurchase (Drop and Shop): Repurchasing involves moving to a new version of software or purchasing an entirely new solution, often to gain flexibility in software licensing. For example, Amazon Connect can replace existing contact center applications.
- Retain: The “do nothing, for now” approach is retaining certain IT portfolio portions that may not be ready for migration or are best kept on-premises. AWS Outposts offers a consistent hybrid cloud solution for workloads that remain on-premises, providing a unified development and deployment experience.
- Retire: Decommissioning or archiving unused portions of your IT portfolio is the retire strategy. Identifying and turning off obsolete applications during the Assess phase strengthens your business case and allows resources to be directed toward more widely used assets.
In essence, choosing the right migration pattern from “The 7 R’s” is pivotal to a successful migration journey to AWS, ensuring alignment with your organization’s specific needs and objectives.