SoftArc Engineering’s Hybrid Cloud Migration Strategy

1. Simple cloud bursting – SoftArc can deploy part of its IT resources to a remote facility owned by a service provider based in a given region. It lowers the risk of migration and thus is a convenient solution (Memon, 2015).

                                         

                                                                             Fig: Cloud bursting

2. Auto-scaling hybrid design – An agile structure that has a dynamic network tier design. Because of this design, application resources can be varied based on the needs of the user. This horizontal adjustment enhances flexibility and mobility of the applications (NGINX, 2015).

                       

                                                                             Fig: Auto-scale hybrid design

Benefits	Issues
Minimal migration risks	Security concerns
Cost efficiency	Data compatibility issues
Increased flexibility and mobility	Increased network considerations

Benefits	Issues
Highly scalable	Compatibility issues
Minimal expansion costs	High implementation costs
Adaptive to users needs	Extended requirements including specialised experts.

(Right scale, 2017)

Risk	Control
Security – Cloud computing is still in its infancy stages of development which predisposes it to many security threats. Moreover, it’s difficult for IT personnel to maintain the security of multiple platforms that require different access and management control	Preparation is the key to solving security problems, SoftArc should implement a strategic plan for meeting the needs of both platforms. Moreover, this plan should include the best practices of security control.
Compatibility issues – Cloud resources such as those of PaaS lack renowned standards of implementation which outline the multiple protocols used with them	Establish a common standard of operation with the service provider. Moreover, the organization can implement open standards that are more compatible with other IT resources
Integration problems – If SoftArc IT resources are extensive it will be difficult to isolate and move them into a new environment. Moreover, the collaboration between cloud and in-house facilities may fail.	Implement low risk architectures such as cloud bursting where resources are slowly shifted to the new platform (Hewlett Packard, 2016).
Loss of control – A new environment presents new challenges such as tagging and tracking resources e.g. data.	Establish a resource management system that tracks all the resources owned by the organisation.

(Shacklett, 2016)

1.    Resource allocation method – Isolation helps mitigate security attacks and facilitates the containment of vulnerabilities. SoftArc should categorise the resources owned and migrate the least sensitive resources but house the rest under its roof for extended security measures.
2.    Deploy alternative solutions – While being facilitated by the service provider the organisation can establish several resource centre in case one of the hybrid sections is affected.
3.    Layout the basic security measures – Connections to the remote facilities should be done using virtual private networks (VPN) to maintain the authenticity and integrity of the data transmitted. Furthermore, other security control such as firewalls and IPsec should be implemented (Keating, 2017).
4.    Link in-house resource to the cloud infrastructure – having established the security layout, connect the resources together to form the hybrid system.

In most organisations, BCP outlines the recovery procedures used to assist an organisation to recover from a disaster (Shinder, 2007). The following are the items proposed to SoftArc for its hybrid cloud requirements:

1.    The potential threat – Preparation facilitates recovery efforts moreover, it encourages resilience as the staff personnel is usually acquainted with the problems through the testing drills conducted.
2.    The chain of command – Disaster such as data centre fires can lead to panic which can disorient the mitigation procedures. Establishing the chain of command in this situation should never be part of the problem.
3.    Disaster recovery team – Assign recovery roles based on the expertise of the employees.
4.    Backup options – These will include data centres, power options and other IT resource recovery procedures.
5.    Emergency contact details – contacts for independent teams/organizations that specialises in disaster control e.g. a fire station
6.    Alternative workplace area – In case the in-house facility is affected there should be an alternative environment to conduct business (AWS, 2016)

A lot is at stake based on the outlined migration procedure, to ensure the services provided are up to the requirements, and the resources are accounted for, the following items must be outlined:

1.    Billing and account methods – SoftArc needs to establish a plan to regulate the cost of its leased resources. The service provider will offer a ‘pay per you use’ resource that must be optimally used.
2.    Access and security management – an access control requirement that outlines the authentication and authorization procedures to the resources owned by the organisation particularly those at the remote location (remote management).
3.    Resource management – Tagging requirements where all the resources are tracked using the most convenient facilities.
4.    System resilience – can the established IT facilities withstand faults and disasters? This requirement may call for recovery procedures such as backup options among other considerations.
5.    Monitoring management – Collaboration of the resources available through real-time assessments and evaluations.
6.    System configuration – the actual methods including operational protocols for linking the two IT infrastructures (AWS, 2016).

1.    Actual steps:
2.    Screening – assessing the feasibility of the migration including the service model adopted. This assessment should be based on both business and technical requirements.
3.    Pilot test – migrate a few functionalities to the cloud platform, for instance, SoftArc can move its SharePoint instances without the data involved.
4.    Data migration – having achieved optimal operation during the testing phase, conduct the actual data migration.
5.    Application migration – Transfer all the applications and software packages meant for the cloud.
6.    Optimise the resources – this includes sensitising the staff with the online resources through training. Moreover, enact redundancy procedures (ATADATA, 2016).
7.    Issues occurring at each stage
8.    Complexity issues during the assessment and pilot stage – it’s highly likely that not all applications owned by the organisation will be suitable for the cloud. Getting a solution that works for both environments will serve as a major implementation issue (Zivic, 2012).
9.    Compatibility issues during the pilot test – PaaS is one of the suggested models, its deployment lacks consistent implementation standards which will affect the pilot test and the final implementation method.
10.    Integration problems – during migration, the in-house facilities will have to contend with the network infrastructure used by the cloud resources. This outcome may lead to problems if different network structures are used (Borovac, 2016).

References:

Amazon web service. (2016). Operational Checklists for AWS. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://d0.awsstatic.com/whitepapers/aws-operational-checklists.pdf

ATADATA. (2016). The five phases of migrating to Google Cloud Platform. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://atadata.com/blog/server-migration/the-five-phases-of-migrating-to-google-cloud-platform

Borovac. M. (2016). Overcoming 5 Key Challenges of Cloud Migration with a Streaming-based Approach. Velostrata. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://velostrata.com/blog/overcoming-5-key-challenges-of-cloud-migration-with-a-streaming-based-approach/

Hewlett Packard. (2016). Embrace risk: secure your hybrid cloud. Protected to innovate with the right mix. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://h20195.www2.hpe.com/v2/getpdf.aspx/4AA6-4577ENW.pdf?ver=1.0

Keating. C. (2016). 4 Steps to Securing Your Hybrid Cloud Solution & Business Cloud Storage. Zadara storage. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://www.zadarastorage.com/blog/tech-corner/4-steps-securing-your-hybrid-cloud-solution/

NGINX. (2015). 3 Cloud Architectures with NGINX Plus. Blog tech. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://www.nginx.com/blog/cloud-architectures/

Pulse secure. (2017). 17 Hybrid Cloud Security Threats and How to Fix Them. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://www.pulsesecure.net/lp/hybrid-cloud-security-threats

Right scale. (2017). Cloud Computing System Architecture Diagrams. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://docs.rightscale.com/cm/designers_guide/cm-cloud-computing-system-architecture-diagrams.html

Shacklett. M. (2016). 10 hybrid cloud risk areas that the enterprise must manage. Tech republic. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10-things/10-hybrid-cloud-risk-areas-that-the-enterprise-must-manage/

Shinder. D. (2007). 10 things you should cover in your business continuity plan. Tech republic. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10-things/10-things-you-should-cover-in-your-business-continuity-plan/

Zivic. K. (2012). 3 Steps to Migrating Applications to the Cloud. Forsythe focus. Retrieved 18 May, 2017, from: https://focus.forsythe.com/articles/79/3-Steps-to-Migrating-Applications-to-the-Cloud