Cloud Migration Checklist: How To Migrate To The Cloud Easily

Moving​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ data and applications to the cloud is a very efficient method for companies to update their technologies, cut down IT expenses, and expand their businesses quickly. But a cloud migration that delivers great results needs a clear plan and a systematic way of handling the transition. If the move is to be done from local hardware to the cloud or simply changing cloud providers, a planned migration will be beneficial in terms of time, money, ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌and effort.
 

Start the Migration with Assessment and Planning

Before you actually start the migration process, understand your current setup and why you want to move to the cloud in the first place. This phase lays the foundation for success.
 

Assess Your Current Infrastructure

Take an inventory of all of your applications, data, and servers. Determine what is currently running on your systems and how the various elements are integrated. Some applications may be cloud-ready, but others could require an upgrade or reconfiguration.
 

Define Your Goals And Success Metrics

Ask yourself what you want to achieve with the migration. Cost savings? Scalability? Better performance? Faster deployment? Establish clear and specific, measurable objectives: reduce infrastructure costs by 20%, improve load time by 30%, and so on.
 

Choose The Right Cloud Provider

Each cloud provider has its unique pricing, services, and strengths. For instance, AWS gives vast scalability, Azure integrates smoothly with Microsoft tools, and Google Cloud is known for AI and analytics. Choose one that best aligns with your business goals and budget.
 

Establish Your Migration Team

Migration to the cloud is an effort of teamwork. Assemble a team comprising IT experts, security experts, and cloud consultants. If your organization lacks in-house expertise, consider partnering with a trusted cloud services provider like Cubet to guide the process.
 

Planning a Strategy and Pre-Migration Steps

After you have assessed your current setup, the next step involves planning how to transition each application or workload to the cloud.
 

Choose A Migration Strategy

Not every application requires the same cloud migration method. You can use several strategies:

• Rehosting (Lift and Shift): Moving applications as-is to the cloud.
• Replatforming Lift and Optimize: Small changes can be made before migration.
• Refactor: Rewrite parts of the application to make it fully cloud-native.
• Rebuild: Developing new applications that are cloud-ready from the ground up.
• Determine the best option based on complexity, cost, and long-term needs.
   

Plan Your Data Migration

Identify which data you’ll move, how it’s stored, and how critical it is. Clean up outdated files and duplicates to make the transfer faster and more efficient. Depending on the volume of data, you can choose between online, offline, or hybrid migration methods.
 

Prioritize Applications

Start with less critical applications to minimize risk. When those go smoothly, you can proceed with the mission-critical systems. Such a gradual migration presents you with stability and helps your team become experienced.
 

Address Security And Compliance Early

Security must be integrated into the very beginning of a migration plan. Understand the regulations for your industry, such as GDPR or HIPAA, and implement encryption, access controls, and compliance tools to secure sensitive data in transit.
 

Get Ready For Disaster Recovery

Cloud migration should never compromise your data. Back up the data and make a clear plan for disaster recovery in case something goes awry during the transition.
 

Train Your Staff

A successful migration also depends on people. Training of IT and operations teams is needed to handle cloud systems, new workflows, and monitoring tools.
 

Run the Migration

Now that you have a plan, it’s time to put it into action.
 

Deploy The Foundation

Set up the base of your cloud environment: networking, storage, identity management, and security configurations.
 

Migrate Data And Applications

Migrate your data and applications in phases. First, do a pilot migration to catch early problems. Once successful, proceed with other workloads in order of priority.
 

Test Everything

Testing is crucial. Run performance tests, functionality tests, and security tests, which help ensure migrated systems work as expected. Check data integrity, app responsiveness, and overall stability.

This will help in catching issues early and ensure a smooth final cutover later.
 

Optimization Post-Migration

It doesn't stop there once your systems are running in the cloud. Post-migration optimization makes sure you're getting the best performance, security, and value from your new environment.
 

Final Cutover

After you have ensured that everything is working in your new cloud setup, update the DNS and network configurations to route traffic directly to your cloud environment.
 

Monitor And Optimize

Regularly monitor system performance, uptime, and costs. Most organizations find that after migration, they overpay for the resources they don't use. Employ monitoring tools in the cloud to right-size your resources and reduce unnecessary spending.
 

Review And Document

Lastly, assess how the migration went in comparison to your original goals. Document lessons learned, challenges, and best practices for future reference.
 

Understanding Different Migration Types

These are the two basic migration scenarios that businesses usually encounter:

On-Premises To Cloud Migration

This is the most common type, wherein all your applications, databases, and workloads are moved from physical servers to the cloud. In many cases, this transition requires elaborate assessment, even of servers, networks, and security, before the move.
 

Cloud-To-Cloud Migration

You'll be switching from one cloud provider to another, such as going from AWS to Azure. This usually occurs because of reasons like cost efficiency, better performance, or more suitable services.

It may sound simpler, but even cloud-to-cloud migration requires planning, compatibility checks, and careful data transfer to avoid disruptions.
 

Major Steps of Testing and Validation

One of the most overlooked yet important parts of cloud migration is testing. Testing helps ensure that a system will perform well before going live.

Here's what you should focus on:

• Functional Testing: Verify the functionality of every application and service in this new environment.
• Performance Testing: Load and stress tests for observing the behavior of a system under different conditions.
• Security Testing: Perform the vulnerability scan and confirm whether encryption and access control systems are in place.
• User Acceptance Testing: Let end-users test the system and confirm that it meets their expectations.

Testing provides you with confidence that your systems are ready for production and that no critical functionality is lost during migration.
 

Continuous Monitoring and Maintenance

Continuous monitoring after migration ensures that your cloud environment is both secure and efficient.

Keep count of:

• Application performance and uptime
• Cloud resource utilization and costs
• Data security and compliance checks
• Backup and recovery plans

Optimization of the cloud is an ongoing process. Periodically review your cloud setup and adjust it as your business grows.
 

Common Challenges to Watch For

Even with the best plan, a few challenges may arise to confront cloud migration. The most common ones include:

• Underestimating migration complexity
• Poorly defined goals or KPIs
• Data Loss During Transfer
• Security vulnerabilities from misconfiguration
• Uncontrolled costs after migration

Addressing these proactively through a strong checklist and an experienced cloud team can prevent costly mistakes.
 

Simplifying Cloud Migration with Cubet 

There doesn't need to be complexity with cloud migration, provided that you have a structured approach with the proper expertise. Following a checklist to assess, plan, migrate, test, and optimize will smoothly and confidently lead you to your path to the cloud. At Cubet, we make this transition easier for organizations of all sizes.

 As a full-service digital solutions and consulting company, Cubet focuses on cloud migration, software development, and advanced cognitive solutions. Our experts work in close collaboration with clients to design strategies that reduce risks and improve performance, while ensuring long-term success in the cloud.