Have you been using your servers for many years and finding that they are now getting old? Are your systems and applications running slower because your servers have reached their limit? Are you facing rising costs for the maintenance of your hardware? It might be time for you to seriously consider swapping your physical servers for cloud services. All elements of your server infrastructure can be moved to the cloud. The thought of this might fill you with anxiety and seem like an impossible mountain to climb but Ilkley IT can help you and make it a smooth process.
Migrate Files
Migrating your files from your server to the cloud is a straightforward process however the timeline for this needs to be considered. A realistic timeline needs to be worked out and this can depend on several factors such as the number of files and folders, total amount of data being moved and the complexity of file and sharing permissions. Ilkley IT will work with you to determine the best plan for this and recommend carrying out the migration during quieter times, such as the weekend to avoid work disruption.
Move to Cloud Software
More and more software companies have cloud-based software products, such as CRM and Accounting packages. Some companies only have cloud-based software and are moving away from on-premise versions completely. Cloud-based products can be accessed at any time from any location, whether you are working remotely or from the office. Accessing tools in the cloud is very secure and provides a huge amount of flexibility. It makes any product updates much quicker and easier as there is no need to manually install the updates on every single local machine.
Migrate users to Azure Active Directory (AD)
If you are worried that you will lose your log-in details for all the systems and programs you use, there is no need to. The process of migrating cloud logins for all users can be done seamlessly. Using cloud logins also opens the door for single sign on for 3rd party web applications.
Cloud Printing
It makes sense if you are moving your server infrastructure to the cloud to also move your on-premise print infrastructure. Cloud printing is the technology that enables printers to be accessed over the network via the cloud, in simple terms, it is a service that connects your printers to the web. You can print from anywhere using any internet-connected device.
Transitioning Legacy Software to your Cloud Server
Once you have made the decision to migrate your business to the cloud, the second step is to decide which software programmes to take with you. You might think, well, all of them, but it is the perfect opportunity to evaluate the tools you are using and whether these are serving their purpose within your business or not. Some legacy software might not be compatible with being used as a cloud product, depending on its age, but others can be successfully migrated. It is worth considering if there is a cloud solution offering the same functionality that can replace legacy software.
The team at Ilkley IT have the expertise to help you to migrate your business to the cloud, so if this is something you are considering, contact us today to find out how we can work with you to do this with minimal disruption to you and your business.
