Challenges of Oracle Cloud Migration

Oracle cloud migrations are becoming more and more popular among businesses, but many companies still choose to operate with legacy systems. Those reluctant to make the move to the cloud are often deterred by their perceived stigma of the complexity of an Oracle cloud migration. For this reason, we have written a blog on the real challenges of an Oracle cloud migration, how to overcome them, and the advantages that make those challenges so worthwhile.

‘Wasted’ on-premises infrastructure

One of the main reasons businesses are reluctant to migrate to the cloud is the fact that they have already invested in expensive internal infrastructure. With so much capital already spent, it can be difficult to convince decision-makers to tear it down and switch to a cloud service – even the inevitable long-term cost benefits might not be enough to sway them.

The challenge here is about creating a convincing argument for the transition to sway anyone still sceptical. The future of database management lies in the cloud, with many of the database service providers developing benefits and improvements that focus largely on remote databases. Any long-term business strategy needs to consider cloud-based solutions, as it underpins the vision of every company’s future. With this in mind, a thoroughly outlined long-term strategy for the company should be enough to persuade any cynics.

It’s important to recognise that Oracle cloud migration doesn’t mean a business’s investment in infrastructure was wasted, but rather a stepping stone to a secure, efficient, and highly-available cloud database.

Addressing security concerns

For some businesses, it can be comforting to have their server on-site where they can look after their database and take full responsibility for it. However, this isn’t necessarily the most secure strategy. There are many preconceptions about remote databases and several of them are that they can be vulnerable to attack; putting all that data in one place makes remote data servers a more obvious target than a specific business.

On the other hand, the security offered by Oracle servers makes a successful data hack very unlikely. Oracle clouds are very secure for both physical and network access, with cloud administrators going through multiple rounds of background checks, all activities logged and monitored for unauthorised access attempts, and a centralised security information and event management system tracks all events, making sure businesses are kept aware of all database activity.

Oracle runs many different security systems concurrently, including encryptions that cannot be turned off. They made a short video about their security features that you can watch here.

At the end of the day, if a cloud database is like a bank, an in-house database is like a piggy bank. A piggy bank offers personal control, but a bank has the security measures and insurance to protect its vaults.

Some data must remain on-premises for regulatory compliance

Sometimes, businesses have data that they can’t put on a public cloud for legal reasons. These could include particularly sensitive information or even classified data. In this case, they could look for a cloud deployment model that allows movement to a modern cloud operational model without the necessity of a migration to a public cloud. Oracle Cloud at Customer allows businesses to stay in control of data and where it is located using private cloud systems or a public cloud behind your firewall. These offer the same capabilities as public cloud deployments, making sensitive data available to customers while also complying with data location requirements.

In addition to regulatory compliance, data privacy, and governance, Oracle Cloud at Customer offers integration with your network security, low latency for on-premises applications and data, a significant increase in time-to-market, and a pronounced boost in performance.

Integrating applications and data

Integration might be the most intimidating part of cloud migration. Critical processes and data collection directly affect customer and employee experience, but they are also the most complex processes, often involving a broad spectrum of applications and data that are not integrated. In most cases, they will require human intervention, increasing the chances of error.

Oracle Integration Cloud is a unified platform that allows businesses to connect all their applications and data, even those that are not Oracle products. Its features include automated processes, integrating and creating applications, and analysing results. Better still, there’s no coding required to connect the data that drives businesses, meaning it’s a simple process to increase efficiency and productivity.