AWS & Azure Cloud Migration Services

Why migrations fail, and how we prevent it

Most cloud migrations that go wrong fail for the same handful of reasons, and none of them is the actual data transfer. They fail because dependencies were not fully mapped, so a service breaks when its hidden connection to another system is severed at cutover. They fail because someone assumed the cloud environment would behave exactly like the old one, and performance characteristics differed. They fail because there was no tested rollback, so when something went wrong there was no safe way back. Our process is built specifically to eliminate these failure modes: exhaustive dependency mapping before anything moves, parallel-running so the new environment is proven under real load before cutover, and a rollback path validated at every stage. The migration itself is the easy part; the discipline around it is what makes it safe.

Lift-and-shift versus re-architecting

A common early decision is whether to lift-and-shift, moving workloads to the cloud largely as-is, or to re-architect them to use cloud-native services. Neither is universally right. Lift-and-shift is faster, cheaper up front, and lower-risk, ideal when you need to exit a data centre quickly or the application is stable and works well. Re-architecting takes more effort but unlocks the real advantages of cloud: auto-scaling, managed services that reduce operational burden, and often significantly lower running costs. The pragmatic path for most organisations is a phased one: lift-and-shift first to get onto the cloud safely, then selectively re-architect the workloads where the payoff is clearest. We help you decide which workloads justify which approach rather than applying one strategy to everything.

What happens to cost after migration

Migrating to the cloud does not automatically save money, and teams that assume it will are often surprised by their first few bills. Cloud saves money when it is used deliberately: right-sized instances, commitments for steady workloads, storage tiered by access pattern, and non-production environments shut down when idle. A migration is the ideal moment to build these practices in from the start, rather than over-provisioning "to be safe" and paying for it every month afterward. On our engagements, cost optimisation is part of the migration itself, not a separate later project, which is why clients typically see a 30 to 40% reduction versus a naive lift-and-shift, with the savings baked in from day one rather than clawed back later.