The inventory to take before a cloud migration

Moving an organisation’s email, files or applications to the cloud is usually technically possible. What makes it hard is not knowing exactly what is being moved. A forgotten shared folder, the email setting of an old scanner or an application only one person knows about can cause unexpected outages during migration week.

Four layers of the inventory

1. Users and accounts. List active users, people who have left but whose accounts remain open, shared accounts and technical accounts created for applications. A migration is a good opportunity to close accounts nobody uses.

2. Data. List folders on the file server, critical files kept on personal computers, email archives and application databases. For each group of data, note its owner, its size and who needs access.

3. Applications. For each application in use, write down where it runs, which data it accesses and which applications it talks to. Some older applications may not move to the cloud; that shapes the migration plan.

4. Devices and connections. Printers, scanners, cameras, card readers and other devices that send email are easy to forget. Check which server or email setting each of these devices depends on.

Seeing dependencies

The real value of the inventory is that it shows dependencies. If the accounting application writes a report to a shared folder that someone else opens every morning, moving that folder affects two different jobs. Showing these relationships, even in a simple table, makes it possible to order the migration correctly.

Rebuilding access

Permissions accumulated over years in on-premises environments are often complex. Instead of copying them as they are, setting up role-based access during the migration improves security and makes later management easier. This is the stage to decide which team accesses which folders, how guest users are added and for whom multi-factor authentication is mandatory.

Migration order

A good migration is not done in one go. A small pilot group moves first, problems are found and solved, and then the other teams move at planned intervals. At every stage there is a way back, and users know in advance what will change and when.

Checklist

• Have all active and inactive accounts been listed?
• Is the owner and access need of each data group known?
• Has a solution been chosen for applications that cannot move?
• Have the settings of devices that send email been noted?
• Are the pilot group and the rollback plan ready?

Taking an inventory can look like a task that delays the migration. In fact, it removes most of the surprises that would otherwise appear during migration week.