Why a Cloud Migration Checklist Helps Overcome Migration Challenges

Moving data is a complex, often nerve-wracking endeavor. However, it’s often necessary for keeping systems up-to-date and for a business to remain competitive. For instance, cloud computing provides a number of business benefits, making the switch worthwhile. Using a robust cloud migration checklist is a good way to keep a migration project in scope and on point.

A migration checklist helps lay the foundation for project success and can be used to evaluate your project’s progress. It’s no secret that 83% of cloud migration projects fail on some level, be it user adoption, budget, timeline, data loss, misconfigurations, or other areas; taking every step possible to mitigate failure is a good idea.

“Moving to the cloud, at least in part, is almost non-negotiable for businesses today. To make sure the transition is smooth and successful, a checklist can add insight, visibility, and simplicity, into an already complex and involved process.”

– Tim Timrawi, CEO, Sharktech

In this blog, we will explore the essentials of cloud cost management tools, their pros and cons, and why they might not always be the best solution.

In this blog, we’ll explore what a cloud migration checklist is, its essential parts, and why you should take time to develop checklists for your migration project.

What you’ll find in this article:

• What is a cloud migration checklist?
• The key components of a cloud migration checklist.
• Challenges a checklist can help you overcome.

Moving to the Cloud Checklist: What is a Cloud Migration Checklist?

A cloud migration checklist is a comprehensive guide that ensures every aspect of your migration is covered, from planning to execution. It helps you stay organized, avoid common pitfalls, and keep the migration on track.

Key purposes of a cloud migration checklist include:

• Assessing current infrastructure
• Defining clear migration goals and key performance indicators (KPIs)
• Selecting the right cloud provider
• Planning data migration and security measures
• Conducting thorough testing and validation

Using a checklist simplifies the complex migration process by breaking it down into manageable, actionable, and traceable steps. It provides a clear roadmap your team can use to ensure you don’t miss any critical elements and the project stays on track. A good checklist (or series of checklists) ultimately leads to a smoother, more successful cloud migration project.

5 Key Components of Your Checklist for Migrating to the Cloud

Successfully migrating to the cloud requires careful planning and execution. In this section, we’ll explore the essential components that should be in every cloud migration checklist to guide you through each stage of the process.

With a checklist that focuses on these key areas by your side, you can ensure a smooth transition, minimize risks, and fully realize the benefits of your cloud investment for years to come.

Pre-Migration Planning

Pre-migration planning is the foundation of any successful cloud migration. This stage involves assessing your current infrastructure, identifying migration goals, and defining KPIs. It’s also where your organization needs to investigate and choose the right cloud model—whether public, private, or hybrid—to align with your business objectives.

Proper planning helps mitigate risks by identifying potential challenges early and allows you to create a clear roadmap for the entire migration process. This preparation ensures that your migration starts on the right foot and sets the stage for a smooth migration experience.

Types of checklists to use during pre-migration:

• Cloud migration assessment checklist
• Pre-migration checklist

Cloud Application Readiness

Application readiness is crucial to ensure that your software and systems are prepared for the cloud environment. This step involves evaluating your existing applications to determine their compatibility with the cloud.

You may need to modify, replatform, or even refactor certain applications to take full advantage of cloud-native features.

Assessing application readiness also includes identifying dependencies and ensuring that all related components are migrated together. By thoroughly evaluating and preparing your current applications, you reduce the risk of downtime or performance issues later on, ensuring that everything functions smoothly once in the cloud.

Types of checklists to use during the application readiness phase:

• Cloud application migration checklist
• Web application migration checklist

Migration Process

The migration process is the core phase where your data and applications are moved to the cloud. This step requires careful coordination to minimize disruptions to your business and prevent data loss.

Depending on your strategy—whether lift-and-shift, replatforming, or refactoring—you’ll transfer your resources in a way that aligns with your business goals and minimizes downtime.

During the migration, continuous monitoring is essential to track progress and address any issues that arise. Your migration partner should communicate closely with you during this phase. By following a well-structured process, you can ensure that the transition is smooth, with minimal impact on your day-to-day operations.

Types of checklists to use during the migration process:

• Data migration to cloud checklist

Testing and Validation

Testing and validation are crucial steps to ensure that your migrated applications and data function correctly in the new cloud environment. This phase involves conducting thorough functional, performance, and security testing to verify that everything operates as expected. It’s important to identify and address any issues before fully going live.

Validation also includes ensuring compliance with industry standards and regulatory requirements. By meticulously testing and validating your systems, you can catch potential problems early, reducing the risk of disruptions and ensuring a smooth transition to the cloud.

Types of checklists to use during testing and validation:

• Cloud testing checklist
• Cloud validation checklist

Go Live and Post-Migration Optimization

Going live is the final, critical phase of your cloud migration journey. This step involves making the final switch from your old systems to the new cloud environment, ensuring that everything is properly synchronized and operational. It’s essential to monitor the transition closely to address any issues that may arise immediately.

After going live, focus on post-migration optimization to ensure your cloud environment runs efficiently. This includes monitoring performance, optimizing resource usage, and implementing best practices for cost management. Continuous optimization will help you fully realize the benefits of your cloud migration.

Types of checklists to use during go live and post-migration:

• Go live checklist
• Post-migration optimization checklist

Why is a Cloud Migration Checklist So Important?

A well-developed cloud migration checklist is your best friend during a migration project, helping you tackle the many challenges that can pop up along the way. Without a clear plan, things can get overwhelming fast—leading to delays, unexpected costs, and even disruptions to your business.

Nearly 50% of migration projects go over budget, a few good checklists can help prevent that. Here’s how a cloud migration checklist helps you overcome classic migration hurdles:

• Mitigate migration risks. Migration projects can be risky, with potential issues like data loss or security breaches. A checklist makes sure you’ve thought ahead, planned for these risks, and put preventive measures in place.
• Keep the project on track: With so many teams, timelines, and tasks involved, it’s easy for a cloud migration to get off course. A checklist keeps everything organized, ensuring each step is completed in the right order and on time—so you can avoid bottlenecks and keep things moving smoothly.
• Ensure data integrity and security: One of the biggest challenges in cloud migration is keeping your data safe and sound. A checklist helps you classify, encrypt, and validate data at every stage, minimizing the risk of any nasty surprises like data breaches or loss.
• Manage costs: Unexpected costs can throw a wrench in your migration project. A good checklist helps you anticipate expenses, allocate resources intelligently, and avoid costly mistakes, keeping your budget in check.
• Enhance communication and collaboration: Cloud migration projects involve a lot of moving parts and people. A checklist promotes better communication and teamwork by clearly outlining responsibilities and timelines, making sure everyone’s on the same page.
• Meet compliance and regulatory requirements: If your industry has strict compliance and regulatory requirements, a checklist is crucial. It ensures that all the necessary steps are taken to meet these requirements, so you don’t run into any compliance issues down the road.

Make Building Your Cloud Migration Checklist Easy with Sharktech

At Sharktech, we help our clients move their data and systems into our Public or Private cloud as seamlessly as possible. When you choose Sharktech as your cloud provider, full-support migration services are included.

We offer public and private cloud options that are at least 50% less costly than traditional hyperscalers. Plus, many of our clients see up to 80% reduction in cloud costs when they switch to us.

Lower prices don’t mean lower quality or less service – we deliver on our 99.999% uptime guarantee, and you can reach us by phone whenever you need us.

To learn more about our cloud solutions and complimentary migration services, contact our team and request a free consultation.