Legacy Data Migration

Legacy data migration is the process of transferring data from an outdated system to a modern platform. It is important for organizations to migrate their legacy data in order to remain competitive and keep up with the latest technology trends. 

Moving apps to the cloud is another form of legacy data migration that involves transferring applications from an on-premises server environment into a cloud computing environment such as Microsoft Azure or IBM Cloud. Moving apps to the cloud provides businesses with greater scalability, flexibility, cost savings, and security benefits. Legacy applications can become obsolete quickly, and migrating them to the cloud ensures that they remain up-to-date and secure. Related, legacy applications often contain large amounts of data and moving applications, and their associated data, to the cloud de-silos the dataset. 

The migration of legacy systems to cloud environments allows organizations to take advantage of new technologies such as advanced analytics, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). When companies move apps to cloud environments, they can benefit from improved scalability, flexibility, cost savings, security, and reliability. Additionally, migrating legacy systems enables businesses to access real-time analytics and insights that can help make better decisions faster. This can translate to competitive advantage.

Organizations should consider several factors when deciding whether or not they need a legacy app migration. These include assessing the current state of their system’s architecture; determining how much effort will be needed for migration; evaluating potential risks associated with migrating; understanding what resources are available for successful migration; and considering any additional costs associated with moving an application or system into the cloud. 

What Is Legacy Data Migration? 

Legacy data migration involves transferring information stored in an old system into a newer one that supports more advanced features and capabilities. This type of migration typically requires specialized tools or services, such as a cloud infrastructure-as-a-service provider. Organizations must also ensure that all relevant information is transferred correctly so as not to lose any valuable data during this process. Skytap offers organizations the ability to “lift and shift” legacy IBM Power applications to the cloud without refactoring or rewriting applications. This eliminates the business risk associated with migrating legacy applications to the cloud. 

Legacy application migrations are becoming increasingly popular among businesses looking for ways to improve efficiency while reducing costs at the same time. Migrating an existing application or system into a modern platform enables organizations to take advantage of new technologies while ensuring that their systems remain secure and reliable at all times. Organizations should carefully evaluate their needs before embarking on a legacy app migration project in order ensure success while minimizing risk throughout this process.

What Is Legacy Data?

Legacy data refers to data that is stored in outdated systems or formats. This data may have been created years ago and may no longer be compatible with the latest technology environments. In most cases, legacy data is data that has been used in the past and has since been replaced by newer technology. This newer technology may be more advanced, more efficient, or perhaps more cost-effective.

Legacy data can be found in many different places. It can be found in databases, applications, and file systems. It is important to note that legacy data does not necessarily have to be old data. It can be data that has been unused for a long time, but it does not necessarily have to be. However, just because data is no longer actively used does not mean it is no longer valuable. Legacy data can still provide insights into past operations and decisions, which can be useful in making informed decisions going forward.

In order to ensure a successful migration from legacy systems to modern databases, organizations must have a clear understanding of what is legacy data in database systems. It’s also crucial to understand how to migrate legacy data from legacy database systems without compromising its integrity or accuracy during the process.

Attempting to migrate data from legacy systems to modern databases can present legacy data challenges. Data migration from legacy systems to modern databases requires careful planning and preparation, including understanding the source and target databases, mapping the data fields between them, and ensuring that all necessary transformations are applied.

Legacy Data Migration Strategy

Before you can begin a legacy data migration project, it is important to understand the data you are dealing with. This includes identifying all sources of legacy data, determining the accuracy and relevance of the data, and categorizing the data based on its importance to the business. Effective data migration strategy examples typically include taking inventory of data, assessing that data, and developing a clear project plan.

Data Inventory

The first step in overcoming data migration challenges is to gain a better understanding of your data by conducting a data inventory. This means identifying all sources of legacy data, including physical and digital storage systems. Making a list of legacy databases is a good place to begin. It is important to be as comprehensive as possible in this step in order to ensure that no data is left behind.

Once you have identified all sources of legacy data, you can begin to categorize the data based on its importance to the business. This can help you prioritize which data needs to be migrated first and which data can be migrated later.

Data Assessment

After you have conducted a data inventory, you should assess the accuracy and relevance of the data. This means determining whether the data is still valid and useful to the business. It is important to be thorough in this step in order to ensure that no inaccurate or irrelevant data is migrated to the new system.

You should also consider the format of the data as well as any dependencies or relationships between different sets of data. This can help you determine the best approach for migrating the data and ensure that all data is transferred accurately and completely. Once you have a thorough understanding of your legacy data, you can begin to plan your data migration project. This involves choosing the right migration approach, setting migration goals, and developing a project plan.

Developing a Project Plan

Once you have chosen a migration approach and set migration goals, you can begin to develop a project plan. This involves creating a timeline for the migration project, identifying key milestones and tasks, and assigning responsibilities to team members. Your project plan should be detailed and comprehensive in order to ensure that all aspects of the migration process are covered. It is important to communicate the project plan to all team members and to update the plan regularly as the project progresses. Consider using a master document like a data migration strategy PDF to keep your organization’s data migration strategy organized.

Data Migration From Old System To New

With a solid plan in place, you can begin to execute your legacy data migration. There are several key data migration process steps, including data mapping, data cleansing, and data validation.

Data Mapping

Data mapping involves identifying the relationships between different sets of data and determining how the data will be migrated to the new system. This can be a complex process, especially if you are dealing with a large amount of data or complex data structures.

It is important to be as thorough as possible in this step in order to ensure that all data is migrated accurately and completely. You should also test the data mapping process before proceeding with the migration in order to identify any potential issues or errors.

Data Cleansing

Data cleansing involves identifying and correcting any errors or inconsistencies in the legacy data. This can include removing duplicate records, standardizing data formats, and correcting misspellings or typos. Data cleansing is an important step in ensuring that the migrated data is accurate and useful to the business. It can also help to streamline business processes and reduce the risk of errors or misinformation.

Data Validation

Data validation involves ensuring that the migrated data is accurate and complete. This means testing the data against predefined criteria and identifying and correcting any errors or discrepancies. You should conduct thorough data validation testing before deploying the migrated data in order to ensure that the new system is working as intended and that all data has been transferred correctly.

Azure Data Migration Steps

Microsoft Azure is a cloud platform that provides businesses with access to many kinds of cloud-based services and applications. One available Microsoft Azure service is Azure Migrate for data migration. Here are some benefits of using Azure for data migration:

• Scalability: Azure can handle large volumes of data, making it ideal for large businesses or businesses with rapidly growing data needs.
• Security: Azure comes equipped with robust security features and is fully compliant with industry regulations, which can help to protect your business from data breaches.
• Reduced expenses: Microsoft Azure can reduce the costs associated with maintaining and supporting on-premises systems.

Azure cloud migration may sound like a complex task at first. Here are some steps to help you seamlessly migrate your business’s data to Azure:

Step 1: Assess

First, you should assess your organization’s current data environment and determine what data needs to be migrated to a cloud environment. This includes evaluating the size of the data, its complexity, and any security or compliance requirements that must be met. 

Step 2: Plan

Next, you should develop a detailed migration plan and determine the best approach for your business’s needs. This includes deciding on the type of Azure service that will host the data, mapping out how it will be transferred from its original location to Azure, and setting up any necessary security protocols. 

Step 3: Migrate

Then, you can migrate the data to Azure using the appropriate Azure data migration tools and technologies. 

Step 4: Validate

Finally, remember to validate the data in Azure to ensure that it is complete and accurate by running tests on all migrated components and verifying their integrity with source systems if possible.

The most successful Azure data migration examples follow best practices such as using the proper Azure data migration services and involving all stakeholders in the process.

Azure Data Migration with Skytap

Looking for guidance on your legacy data migration or cloud strategy? Discover Skytap on Azure and contact our team of expert cloud solution architects.