This chapter gives a general overview of cloud migration strategy, setting up the more specific lift-and-shift chapter that follows. AZ-900 tests this under objective 1.1.
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A simple way to picture Cloud Migration Strategies Overview
Moving to a new house isn't just picking up boxes and driving — it typically involves planning what to bring, deciding what to replace, and sequencing the move to minimize disruption. Migrating workloads to the cloud follows a similar pattern: rather than moving everything at once without a plan, organizations typically assess what they have, decide on an approach for each workload, and migrate in a planned, sequenced way.
What cloud migration involves
Cloud migration is the process of moving an organization's applications, data, and infrastructure from on-premises (or another environment) into the cloud. It typically involves assessing existing workloads, deciding on an appropriate migration approach for each, and executing that migration in a planned way rather than all at once without preparation.
Common migration approaches
Different workloads often call for different approaches — some might be moved with minimal changes (covered in the lift-and-shift chapter), while others might be redesigned to take fuller advantage of cloud-native capabilities. The right approach depends on the specific workload's requirements, age, and business priority.
Why a planned approach matters
Migrating without proper assessment and planning risks moving workloads in ways that don't take advantage of cloud benefits, or that introduce unexpected issues. A more deliberate approach — assessing what exists, planning the sequence, and choosing an appropriate strategy per workload — generally leads to better outcomes.
Migration is often incremental
Organizations rarely migrate everything simultaneously — a phased, incremental approach lets teams learn from earlier migrations and adjust their approach for later ones, rather than committing to one massive, all-at-once migration effort.
Assess existing workloads
Before migrating, an organization typically assesses its existing applications and infrastructure to understand what exists and what migration approach might fit each one.
Choose an approach per workload
Different workloads may call for different migration approaches, rather than a single one-size-fits-all method for everything.
Plan the sequence
Migrations are typically planned and sequenced, rather than attempting to move everything simultaneously without preparation.
Execute and learn incrementally
A phased approach lets an organization learn from earlier migrations and refine its approach for subsequent ones.
An organization migrating to Azure starts with a less critical, simpler application as an initial migration, learning from that experience before tackling more complex, business-critical applications later in a more informed, planned sequence.
Objective 1.1 expects a general, conceptual understanding of cloud migration as a planned process, setting up the more specific lift-and-shift-versus-refactor distinction in the next chapter.
A common wrong answer is assuming migration is a single, uniform action applied identically to every workload — different workloads often call for different approaches.
Stable terms: cloud migration. Memory trick: migration is generally planned and phased — assess, choose an approach per workload, then execute incrementally, not one massive uniform move.
Cloud migration is the process of moving applications, data, and infrastructure from on-premises (or elsewhere) into the cloud.
Different workloads often call for different migration approaches, rather than one uniform method.
A planned, assessed approach generally leads to better migration outcomes than moving everything without preparation.
Migration is often incremental, letting organizations learn from earlier migrations and adjust for later ones.
Mistake
Cloud migration means moving everything the exact same way at once.
Correct
Different workloads often call for different migration approaches, and migrations are typically planned and executed incrementally rather than all at once identically.
It's the process of moving an organization's applications, data, and infrastructure into the cloud, typically involving assessing existing workloads, choosing an appropriate approach for each, and executing the migration in a planned, often phased way.
No — different workloads often call for different migration approaches based on their specific requirements, age, and business priority, rather than a single uniform method applied to everything.
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