4 myths of moving your SQL Servers to the Cloud

At DSP we’re seeing a surge of enquiries and engagements involving migrations to IaaS or Public Cloud Providers.

The work includes assessing data platforms for consolidation, recommending appropriate infrastructure for performance and Disaster Recovery, planning the migration and the actual migration project.

There are a few objections we hear that we firstly would like to dispel…

Myth #1 – My MS SQL Databases are too busy and too big to move to the Cloud

Do you know which ones are the busiest and exactly how much infrastructure these use? Without a formal, impartial analysis and advice on the current state of the data platform, this excuse has no meaning

Myth #2 – It’s too expensive. I have loads of SQL Servers, and it doesn’t cost me near as much to operate internally as it does in the Cloud.

A load of SQL servers generally means an unconsolidated data platform estate running on old technology and aging hardware. Eventually something will have to be done to address the problem.

Migrating to the Cloud is the catalyst to modernise. Buying infrastructure on a utility model means that it is essential to consolidate the databases into fewer servers so that you pay less Cloud costs.

It may appear expensive like for like, but have you actually got the costs on your current as-is versus a consolidated cloud data platform?

Myth #3 – The costs are actually more

The savings in cloud infrastructure needs a full examination before such statement can be deemed true. Most organisations simply look at direct infrastructure costs in refreshing their infrastructure; licensing and hardware, possibly Colo costs. But it goes further than that, examples include;

Indirect costs –holiday cover and sick leave - View this blog for further info

Opportunity costs – the value obtained by not having to worry about the problem –

Direct Costs (other than capital purchase) – enterprise management software/processes/consultancy, ISO and compliance costs,

Human Resource – the biggest expense in an IT department, salary and hidden costs such as holidays, recruitment fees, HR overheads/desk space etc. for the extra staff required to manage internal IT infrastructure

Myth #4 – Security, data protection et al

Public providers (such as Microsoft Azure) are now fully compliant with PCI, ISO standards and can confirm where exactly your data will be held; meaning its auditable and compliant, without the costs of auditing and complying to regulation.