In our previous article about cloud and the use of instances to improve quality assurance speed and capability, we examined how cloud delivers measurable cost savings and improved flexibility. In this post we are looking at how migration of your solution managers, development, quality assurance and test instances to the cloud will free compute and storage capacity for your on-prem hardware so you can maximise your return on investment. In addition to the cost benefits of this level of migration, there’s the scalability and flexibility that the cloud adds to the pot. Cloud is scalable and it is flexible plus it hands you tons of agility when it comes to managing compute and cost.
And, in the era of increased regulatory control, this move gives you the compute you need to satisfy regulatory requirements when it comes to those systems and data that have to run on-premise.
By leveraging cloud, you can free capacity for your production instances on premise by removing some of the non-production workloads.
On-premise to the cloud
The cloud frees up compute and storage capacity through the use of SAP, virtual hosts and intelligent distribution of resources. Most on-premise data centres have large capacity servers so one physical host can be divided into a number of smaller, virtual hosts. SAP is often installed on the smaller virtual hosts as it has a lower total cost of ownership, manages resources more effectively, and allows for rapid provisioning and deployment. Using SAP, compute resources such as CPU and RAM are then divided up from a central pool of resources on the main server. These resources are then distributed among the virtual machines.
By removing some of the non-production workloads, the organisation is freeing up those resources which than then be allocated to production workloads. It shifts the dynamic and allows for the organisation to gain richer control over resource and workload management which, in turns, reduces the cost to business and of doing business.
The biggest challenge is to develop a clear roadmap that establishes exactly how the data is to be moved into the cloud so the move is fast and efficient with minimal business impact.
Why bother with the hassle?
The move requires that the business develop a clear roadmap, have a solid strategy, and be aware of the shift in process and management going forward. It also expects you to have a plan for how you’re going to move that data into the cloud – fast. So why bother?
Because the scalability, flexibility, agility and cost savings are very good reasons for the investment of time and money. They are also the ticks in the boxes of sustainability, growth and market agility.
That said, the move has to be done properly to ensure it gets these results. There is a risk of oversimplifying the move to the cloud which can result in expensive mistakes. Mistakes that are often seen in the news or ranted about in boardrooms. Mistakes that can be avoided. Fortunately, burning your fingers on a cloud move isn’t mandatory. If you work with the right partner, the move can be seamless and deliver to expectations. ETZ Global specialises in providing companies with solid roadmaps, expertise and support throughout any cloud implementation. Our skills have been used by leading global organisations to help them migrate to the cloud, cut costs and improve efficiencies. We also have experience with SAP, AWS and Azure. And we know that migrating to the cloud just isn’t that simple. Brilliant yes, but simple? No.