VMware solutions have dominated the business landscape for several years as the trusted virtualization platform that powers all its mission-critical workloads on-premises. The IT teams have grown familiar and got used to the nuances of vSphere, vSAN, and NSX, and at the same time, made major investments in building robust VMware infrastructures.
But the pace of innovation doesn’t slow down there; it has accelerated by leaps and bounds, and it is time to embrace the boundlessness of possibilities with the cloud. Azure is a compelling pick for businesses that want to leverage enormous scalability, agile flexibility, and optimal cost-effectiveness. This blog is your gateway to understanding VMware migration to Azure, why you should go ahead with it, how to migrate, and more. Let us explore.
What is VMware migration to Azure?
As the phrase says, VMware migration to Azure is the process of migrating VMware virtual machines (VMs) on-premises to the Microsoft Azure cloud platform. By moving the virtual machines, organizations can harness Azure’s cloud capabilities without rebuilding the VMs from scratch. The typical goals of VMware migration to Azure are enhanced performance, cost efficiency, and flexibility.
Azure’s intrinsic characteristics are advantageous for enterprises as they can leverage its scalable infrastructure, decrease their data footprint, and optimize their IT resource management. Migration to Azure also helps with several critical scenarios, such as application modernization, disaster recovery, and data center exit strategies.
Why are businesses considering migrating from VMware to the cloud?
VMware has been a popular platform that enables businesses to run multiple VMs on a single physical server, with each VM acting as a separate computer with its operating system and apps (all being managed from a central server). Even though VMware solutions provide a suite of robust features, progressing to Azure can enhance your IT infrastructure remarkably.
Migrating to Azure brings about a myriad of benefits. You can find notable enhancements in the overall efficiency of your IT infrastructure.
- Scalability: Azure enables unparalleled scalability, empowering organizations to adjust resources in response to fluctuations and guaranteeing consistent optimal performance.
- Cost-effectiveness: The pay-as-you-go pricing model in Azure makes it an excellent cost-effective platform, as enterprises can refine their IT expenditures and distribute resources optimally.
- Microsoft ecosystem: With Azure, you also get access to Microsoft’s extensive ecosystem and seamless integration with it. You can enjoy smooth compatibility with prominent enterprise solutions and seamless interoperability. You can boost productivity and streamline workflows all across.
- Security and compliance: The robust and comprehensive security features that Microsoft Azure offers are well-renowned. It provides security features like threat protection, identity management, and encryption to safeguard data and applications. Azure also makes sure of compliance as it abides by an expansive set of international and industry-specific compliance standards.
- Global network: With Azure’s extensive global network, enterprises get high availability and low-latency to data and applications. Azure data centers are there in more regions than any other cloud provider. That enables businesses to deploy applications closer to their users, resulting in better performance and user experience.
The recent acquisition of VMware by Broadcom has changed VMware’s perpetual license model to a subscription-based model- resulting in increased expenses for several organizations. This shift, along with changed billing practices and restricted direct purchase options for small businesses, has left enterprises scrambling for other solutions that are financially appealing.
Coupled with the demand for advanced flexibility and dynamic scalability, the demand for VMware migration has skyrocketed. Not only does the Azure cloud platform enable swift adaptation of IT resources without hefty additional costs, but the flexibility it offers is also a critical advantage over rigid systems.
How to Migrate VMware to Azure?
There are several ways of migrating VMware workloads to Azure. Let us find out.
Agentless migration of VMware VMs to Azure
Migrating VMware VMs to Azure using an agentless method is a straightforward migration approach that minimizes disruption. The method leverages Azure Migrate, a central hub that performs all the actions of assessing, replicating, and migrating VMs to Azure. Using this method of agentless migration, you do not have to install anything on the VMs, thus making the process simpler and decreasing the risk of compatibility issues.
Involving continuous replication of VMs to Azure, this approach guarantees the transition to be seamless, with the data getting simultaneously synchronized. Once the migration is completed, you can test the VMs in Azure without altering the production environment.
Agent-based Migration of VMware VMs to Azure
This process of migrating VMware vSphere VMs to Azure using an agent-based migration approach includes installing agents on the VMs that expedite the migration process. The result is more granular control over the migration and enablement of advanced features, such as multi-tier application support and application consistency snapshots.
Even though this approach is more complicated because of installing agents, it is advantageous as it administers a high degree of customization. This makes it the right choice when it comes to catering to complex migration scenarios. Enterprises can have a detailed monitoring and reporting of the process and get a comprehensive view of the entire migration process. They get empowered to make informed decisions in this aspect.
Migrating VMware VMs to Azure with Azure PowerShell (Agentless)
Azure PowerShell provides a script-based, agentless approach, when migrating VMware VMs to Azure using PowerShell. Its scripts expedite the entire migration process by automating the processes of assessment, replication and cutover phases. For enterprises who are seeking specific automation needs or looking to integrate migration steps into the prevailing deployment processes, this approach is the ideal one.
With PowerShell, businesses can tailor their migration workflows, integrate unique requirements, and guarantee that the migration aligns with their operational practices. With a tailored approach, this method delivers a high level of control, allowing efficient and customized migrations.
Migrating VMware VMs using Azure VMware Solution (AVS)
Azure VMware Solution provides the same architecture in Azure as it is in VMware VMs. Thus using this solution for migration, you can run your VMware workloads natively on Azure without rearchitecting your applications. It provides the same VMware tech stack- vSphere, vSAN, and NSX, on Azure. Typically steps include lifting and shifting on-premises environments to AVS with minimal changes. Azure VMware Solution also incorporates with Azure services, providing enhanced scalability and disaster recovery options.
A quick guide on VMware Migration to Azure
Opting for a migration tool such as Azure Migrate makes the process of VMware VMs migration to Azure a streamlined one with minimal downtime and data loss. You can closely monitor the progress and statuses of each VM and ensure a smooth transition to Azure. The critical steps in migration are discovery, assessments, and right-sizing of on-prem resources for infrastructure, data, and applications. Overall, the transition includes the following steps.
- Setting up Azure Migrate: You can set it up with a few simple steps in the Azure Portal. You can next create an Azure Migrate Project.
- Assessment: Next, you can add assessment tools and assess the server.
- Discovery: Next is installing Azure Migrate application from the portal in your VMware environment. This app will discover your VMs, scan your VMware to gather information about your VMs, and check the assessment reports to see if the VMs are ready for migration. You will also get recommendations for the best Azure options.
- Selecting the apt Migration Strategy: Choosing the right migration strategy is the next crucial step. You should choose the one that best meets your requirements. For simple migrations where minimal changes are required, ‘lift and shift’ approach is the best. For optimizing applications or taking advantage of Azure’s PaaS offering, ‘rehosting and refactoring’ approach is better.
- Perform the Migration: After selecting the right strategy, you can execute the migration process. Using Azure Migrate, you can replicate your VMs from the VMware environment to Azure. The process also involves executing cutover, syncing final data, and transitioning to the new Azure environment.
- Validate and test: Throughout the migration process, it is imperative to perform thorough validation and testing of the migrated VMs to ensure they work as expected in the Azure environment. Only with rigorous testing can enterprises detect and resolve potential issues (if any) before they impact the production environments. This step is imperative to ensure a seamless transition to Azure.
- Post-migration activities: Once the enterprise is done with the migration, they can then focus on optimizing their VMs in the Azure environment. Extensive post-migration activities involve continuous management and monitoring, making the best of Azure’s management tools and services to further simplify operations and maximize efficiency. Azure Monitor is one such tool that you can leverage to monitor performance and health post-migration.
A reliable and robust technology partner can be the game-changer
At Saxon AI, we understand the complexities and challenges businesses face when they have to undertake migration to Azure. Being a Microsoft Gold Partner, we also have rich and extensive expertise in Microsoft and Azure solutions. If you are planning to migrate your VMware VMs to Azure, having a reliable tech partner such as Saxon AI can help you steer away from the complexities and have a successful migration. Our dedicated team of Azure experts will ensure a seamless transition to Azure.
