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SaaS applications work nicely on local appliances (on-premises). However, if youre running your SaaS on legacy hardware, youre bound to run into a couple of challenges. And since youre keeping it to your on-premises infrastructure, you cant tap into the features or capabilities of cloud computing. Thats a big disadvantage. So, your go to solution? Migrate SaaS to cloud. Easier said than done though, isnt it?

In this blog post, I take a closer look at:

Yes, were keeping it brief by sticking it to the rule of three.

One of the most common reasons why organizations move their SaaS workloads to the cloud is legacy infrastructure limitations. These include challenges such as:

In order to ensure high availability for critical workloads, you have to resort to expensive setups such as replication-based twin cluster nodes, RAID configuration, etc.

Even with the expensive solutions, its relatively difficult to ensure high availability for important data. Mostly because of single point-of-failure. Twin clustered nodes are great but theyre expensive. And RAID isnt bad either but if you dont replace your hard drives in time, youll still end up losing your data.

In comparison, Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) deploy geo-replication and other similar services to make sure that even if a data center or region goes down, your data remains available.

By putting your data in the cloud, youre able to leverage the availability measures CSPs have put in place so that theyre in compliance with strict SLAs. And youre not paying any additional charges to benefit from them.

On-premises hardware is expensive and it continues to consume budget that could be otherwise redirected for core operations. OpEx for an in-house data center includes maintenance cost, power and cooling costs, and the cost of the space reserved for the hardware appliances; not to mention the salaries for dedicated IT staff.

On the other hand, if you decide to put your SaaS in the cloud, you can opt to build a completely hardware less environment. This is particularly good for businesses that dont have enough space or are looking to save OpEx so that they can focus on core operations.

Now that we know why most organizations migrate their SaaS applications to the cloud, lets see what kind of challenges they have to overcome to do so.

If the SaaS software is a part of your core operations, usually it is, then migration cannot be a disruptive process for you; because that spells downtime and downtime is bad for business.

That implies, youll have to find a way to migrate your SaaS applications without disruption (solutions suggested below see three ways to migrate your SaaS to the cloud).

When migrating any workloads, SaaS applications or VMs, its a challenge to ensure synchronization. Youd want your applications and staff to continue as though nothing happened or simply start off the next day from where they left off.

However, its not easy to do that when migrating from your production environment to cloud-based servers. Secondly, its also important to do regular integrity checks.

Integrity checks simply mean that you have to make sure that the data has not been corrupted during the transfer (migration) and is available for use without any problems.

Depending on the way its done, SaaS migration can be very expensive. And cost considerations are a critical part of any business decision. Verily, moving core SaaS software from on-premises production environment to the cloud is a business decision. Therefore, the consequent cost has to be weighed in.

Best practice is to look for vendors that offer turnkey solutions instead of a component or a couple of components for the migration process.

If IT is not the core of your organization, then its ideal to look for vendors who are also offering professional services along with their solution to help with the setup and guide your onsite IT staff so that they can use the software effectively.

We have journeyed across the reasons why you might want to migrate your SaaS application to the cloud and the consequent challenges youll have to overcome. Now, lets discuss the three ways you can migrate your SaaS application to desired clouds.

If youre running your SaaS application on VMware, then a good option is the vMotion plugin. It automates VM migration and simplifies migration from one VMware environment to another VMware environment.

If youre running your SaaS application on an OS installed on a enterprise NAS storage, then things can be comparatively trickier. However, there are software available to help with server migration too. A good example would be Azure Migrate. It can simplify the migration process if youre looking to migrate your server to Microsoft Azure.

The challenge with these VM migration or server migration applications is that they lead to vendor lock-in. For example, vMotion, despite being quite expensive, will only work for VMware environments. Similarly, Azure migrate is only going to work if youre looking to migrate your servers to Azure.

Secondly, neither of these are turnkey solutions. They are components. In other words, your staff will have to do most of the heavy lifting.

Comparatively, its not a bad idea to look for third party service providers that offer complete data migration services from setup, to transfer, to switch over.

Note: This may or may not be a completely disruption free process. It depends on the chosen vendor. For instance, VMware vMotion promises a disruption free experience.

The second option are data transfer devices or DTDs.

You might be thinking, hey wait! How can that be a disruption free option?

That was true a little while ago but now there are services that leverage DTDs in combination with applications in a way that you dont feel any disruption at all.

For instance, StoneFly does that with their live VM migration DTDs (for VMware environments only).

How these DTDs work is a combination of replication-based synchronization. First, the major bulk of the data is offloaded to the DTDs, then the DTDs are shipped. The data is transferred to the target location and then the recently written data is synced over the wire. Finally, when everything is synced and ready, the system switches over and completes the migration process.

Note: Again, this option too depends on the chosen vendor. Its a good idea to clarify during the early stages that youre looking for a disruption-free process. If the vendor can deliver, they agree to it. If not, then you should look for vendors who can.

This solution is only suitable if you dont have a large bulk of data. For larger data, replication services become expensive, they overload the network, consume compute resources and bandwidth. In other words, everything comes to a grinding halt and this may even take days or weeks depending on the total volume you wish to migrate.

If you dont have a large chunk of virtual data to move, then this isnt a bad idea.

Replication, as the term implies, simply copies your data to the target site. Once the replication is completed, you can switch over and then stop the replication process.

It sounds simple and it is, as long as you choose the right vendor and application for the job.

Theres a good chance that the reason why youre looking to migrate your SaaS application to the cloud is to:

Here are the challenges youll have to overcome to do that:

Here are three effective ways to do it:

Which do you think is the best way to migrate your SaaS application to the cloud? Comment down below and share your expertise.

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Migrating SaaS to Cloud: How to do it without disruption - Techiexpert.com - TechiExpert.com

(MENAFN - Editorial) During the recent virtual GSMA Thrive event hosted by GSMA, Huawei executives delivered keynote speeches, shedding light on how industries are leveraging 5G to embrace digital transformation in a faster and more efficient manner. The online event brought together industry leaders to discuss technologies like 5G, AI, IoT, and Digital Transformation and how they are influencing every part of our lives, society and businesses. Huawei''s Rotating Chairman Guo Ping delivered a speech titled "5G in a post-pandemic world: Countdown to the digital blastoff". In this speech, Ping discussed the social value of ICT in combating COVID-19, as well as the practices and prospects of applying 5G in digital transformation for industries. "With the help of 5G, industries are going digital at a faster pace. Next, we will work with our partners on industry applications to help our customers unleash the potential of 5G, generating the first round of dividends from major 5G applications," Ping said. He pointed out that during the pandemic, the social value of ICT applications developed based on 5G, AI, cloud, and big data has been greater than ever. Ping confirmed that Huawei will continuously support open and collaborative standards and industry organizations in their efforts to safeguard a unified global communications industry. Global collaboration is critical to successfully beating the virus, no matter whether it is in the medical or communications sector. He also expressed his belief that ICT is extending to every industry on a large scale, becoming a key enabler of social development and generating multiple waves of technology dividends for all industries. In another keynote speech entitled "5G Brings Five Opportunities with New Value", Mr. Gan Bin, Chief Marketing Officer for Huawei''s Wireless Network Solutions elaborated why 5G is the digital foundation of new infrastructure to upgrade connectivity, AI, cloud, computing, and industrial applications and inject new vitality into economic development. "5G significantly improves the experience of connectivity, expanding 4G''s people-centered connections with smartphones to a full range of scenarios that span not only smartphones, but also smart wearables and homes. This will add greater convenience to daily lives," Gan said. 5G eliminates data upload limitations, meaning that a massive amount of data can be transferred from hundreds of millions of devices to cloud servers to provide AI operations with tremendous data, which will greatly reduce the training period. It enables devices to make the best of the powerful computing in the cloud to relax requirements on local computing, reducing device costs. Furthermore, 5G enables the transfer of AI operation results to devices to greatly expand the availability of AI-based functionality. Constrained by insufficient local capabilities, less than 2% of the nearly 40 ZB data generated in 2019 was saved. 5G stimulates the demand for huge storage worldwide, offering a new option to implement cloud storage to save the massive data. Furthermore, limited by current technology, less than 10% of all data has been analyzed and applied so far. 5G stimulates the demand for enormous computing power, enabling devices to leverage powerful cloud computing capabilities anytime, anywhere. "While 4G has changed lives, 5G is set to change society. 5G has proven an indispensable enabler for business digitalization and will greatly improve the operational efficiency across industries," Gan concluded. For her part, Zhu Huimin, Director of Marketing Execution Dept of Huawei Wireless Network Product Line, delivered a keynote speech titled ''AI for 5G Network Automation Empowers the Intelligent 5G Era''. Zhu noted that one of the most significant driving forces for future mobile service innovation and development is the automated operations capability of mobile networks based on AI. Compared with 4G networks, 5G networks feature a qualitative leap in key performance indicators (KPIs), such as transmission rate, transmission delay, and connection scale. Therefore, 5G networks can support more diverse service scenarios and applications; Zhu remarked that the key to achieving upgrade from these two aspects lies in AI for 5G. AI-powered network automation capabilities can spawn higher O&M efficiency, better network performance, and more agile service provisioning for 5G networks. Global operators, equipment vendors, and third-party vendors have currently started to explore the application of AI technologies to mobile networks. Zhu said that the road to intelligent autonomous networks will most likely not be easy, and it requires continuous collaboration between all industry parties. Huawei therefore proposes the "1+3+N" industry strategy in the wireless field and hopes to collaborate with operators as well as industry partners to ensure the ecosystem prospers, and to enable the Intelligent 5G era. She stated that openness is the key to incubating and enabling more innovative services, and scenario-based APIs need to be built to enable intent-based E2E intelligent autonomous networks. "As the two most important technologies in modern human society, 5G and AI promote and collaborate with each other. The AI-based automated operations capability of mobile networks is one of the most significant driving forces for future mobile service innovation and development," commented Zhu.

MENAFN0407202000702288ID1100432128

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Huawei Rotating Chairman Highlights Practices and Prospects of 5G - MENAFN.COM

June29, 20205 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Cloud computing has long been poised to change the business landscape.Cisco predicts that 94 percentof all workloads will be handled in the cloud by next year and the COVID-19 crisis is speeding up the process.

As the coronavirus whips the business world into a tailspin, your company cant afford to go unprepared. Old, server-based computing options can be sluggish in the face of todays high-paced tech world. By adopting cloud computing, youre ensuring your organization has the digital tools it needs to face down whatever challenges may come next.

More and more companies are being forced to take their business online, but not all of them have the necessary digital infrastructure in place. If youre hoping to get your business through this pandemic unscathed, youll need cloud computing to help. Here are fiveways it can.

Related: A COVID-19 Survival Kit For Entrepreneurs

In times like these, businesses can no longer afford to let important documents get lost in endless email chains. Cloud-based document sharing is a great way of ensuring that key pieces of content can be viewed and accessed by anyone who needs to see them without hours of digging.

As COVID-19 sends workers home, working together is both more difficult and more important than ever. Thankfully, document-sharing platforms have begun responding to the pandemic, with leader Dropbox integrating many of its features with Zoom to allow for seamless collaboration. Apps like Dropbox or Google Docs make it easy to keep a tight grip on your key content, even if everything else is in flux.

Cyberattacks have always posed a serious threat to the increasingly digitized business world, but the pandemic is only exacerbating the problem. McKinsey research shows that the increase in employees working from home and the pressure faced by some organizations have significantly boosted the possibility of breaches.

Cloud-powered cybersecurity can solve many of the problems businesses face in this realm. Keeping security operations in the cloud gives your company significantly more digital horsepower, with many of the best security platforms utilizing artificial intelligence to detect and paralyze threats in real time.

Businesses arent the only ones hit hard by the pandemic. Consumers the world over are being plagued with uncertainty and reduced incomes. Research published in Harvard Business Review found that the virus is already making it significantly more difficult for call centers to cope, and this is only going to get worse as time goes on.

Taking your customer service to the cloud is a surefire way to help alleviate these problems. Cloud-based customer service carries the benefits of additional speed and bandwidth, but it also can make life easier for your CS agents. Cloud contact center Five9 recently partnered with Google Cloudto allow agents greater access to relevant customer information in real time. Firms need to be able to deal with high call volumes smoothlyto function, and the cloud can make that a reality.

COVID-19 may have shuttered offices in the short term, but the long-term effects might be just as profound, as74 percentof businesses plan on reducing the number of employees in their office, even after the virus subsides. Remote work has been on the rise for the past several years, but the recent spike in stay-at-home workers means that businesses need to be able to handle entire teams located outside the office.

The aforementioned document-sharing and videoconferencing platforms are crucial components of any work-from-home model, but these arent the only tools at your disposal. While Zoom allows you to make seamless video calls, it also weighs down internet connections and can be unruly at times. Messaging service Slack, however, recently underwent a speed increase and RAM usage reduction, making it a valuable cloud-communication option that wont prohibit your workers from connecting whenthey need to.

Related: 4 Major Cybersecurity Risks of Working From Home

For almost all businesses, this is a time of great uncertainty in regards to size. While some digital firms, such as Amazon, are experiencing explosive levels of growth, many are facing the serious possibility of furloughs or downsizing. To stay solvent, you need to be able scale your business up and down on a dime.

Because the cloud doesnt require a physical server to operate, it allows you to use as much or as little computing power as you need. Research from MIT has shown that on-site data centers can take up to a year to properly build time your business likely doesnt have at its disposal. Cloud computing lets you scale dynamically, without the need for waiting.

With COVID-19 comes an unprecedented number of unknowns, so your business needs to cover all its basesto stay prepared. Moving your company to the cloud offers your business a number of new advantages while allowing you to run all of your key operations,whether you're in the office or at home.

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5 Ways the Cloud Can Benefit Your Business During the Pandemic - Entrepreneur

The semiannual taking of HPCs pulse by Hyperion Research late fall at SC and early summer at ISC is a much-watched indicator of things come. This year is no different though the conversion of ISC to a digital event forced Hyperion to simply issue the report rather than present the results at ISC. Top line: 2019 was a flat year (revenue) compared to a booming 2018, reported Hyperion, and 2020 is tumbling thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, though how low it will go remains unclear.

The pandemic has made many things murky.

Steve Conway, Hyperion senior advisor, told HPCwire, The Q1 (2020) numbers are almost locked, and it looks like Q1 is going to come in 15-to-18% lower than last years first quarter. Its tending toward that 16% number now not a disastrous departure from the prior year, but definitely down. Q2 is the one that were most curious about.

What people have told us a couple of months ago was that orders werent being cancelled. Things are mainly getting pushed out and sort of the higher up you go in the price range, when you get to exascale-class systems, it doesnt look like that development has taken much of a hit at all. They seem to have redoubled their efforts to, to make sure that they have the parts that they need, and so forth. The biggest hit is in the work group segment.

The implication is strength at the high-end will offset some of the slippage below. Hyperions most recent pre-COVID 2020 forecast was for 8.7 percent growth (CAGR) in HPC to $14.4B. That wont happen but how much of a decline wont become clearer until Q2 numbers are final, said Conway. Hyperion reports supercomputing revenue will still grow. Below are Hyperions HPC market numbers issued in June and not yet revised down to accommodate pandemic effects.

One of the more interesting developments reported by Hyperion is Arms sudden rise in HPC much of that fueled by big systems such as Japans Fugaku supercomputer which topped the recent Top500 List and uses a Fujitsus 48-core Arm A64FX SoC. There are three other Arm systems on the Top500: the A64FX Fugaku prototype at Fujitsu (#205); the new Fujitsu PRIMEHPC FX1000 A64FX system, Flow, at Japans Nagoya University (#37); and Astra, the Marvell/Cavium ThunderX2 installation at Sandia (#245), recognized as the worlds first petascale Arm system in November 2018.

Hyperion made its first full forecast for Arm processors in its latest update.

As you can see in the slide above, Arms forecast jump in HPC is startling before flattening somewhat in 2023, presumably because of completion of a number of large system installations. With two major chip-makers now providing high-end Arm processors (Fujitsu and Marvell) and adoption by Cray of a Fujitsu Arm chip for its CS500 line (cluster supercomputer), Conway expects more big systems builders to embrace Arm. Many systems vendors have already flirted with Arm but now the stage seems set for wider adoption.

Geopolitical forces are also at work here, noted Conway. Countries increasingly see HPC as a necessary competitive tool and want more control over their computer technology. This includes owning their own big systems and greater control over computer component (e.g. microprocessor) supply lines. Current global trade tensions and pandemic-caused supply-chain interruptions have exacerbated the worries, said Conway.

Case in point: There is an effort underway in the UK, a pretty solid effort now that they are no longer part of the European Union, to have an exascale system. Thats being led by three universities, Edinburgh and Leicester and Bristol. Bristol is where all the Arm development is taking place. They are already on second generation Cray system with Fujitsu arm 64 FX processors, noted Conway.

HPC (FINALLY) TAKES TO THE CLOUDS

After years of steady but perhaps unspectacular growth, Hyperion reported 2019 is a tipping point for HPC-related cloud spending by users. For several years, cloud providers have been beefing up their HPC resources GPUs, fast CPUS, HPC orchestration services, applications, AI tools, parallel file system support, etc. The investment is now paying off with wider adoption by HPC users.

Its mostly burst capability at this point. Still, theres not a lot of cannibalization by the cloud. Mostly its things that the on-premises folks wouldnt have been able to run before. But whats really driven this most is not the workloads. Its been the cloud services providers. Youll remember in 2011 when NASA took its famous Magellan study, and basically concluded that clouds [then] were only good for embarrassingly parallel workloads and nothing else, said Conway. Thats changed.

There are two big drivers said Conway:

STORAGE DEMAND REMAINS ROBUST AND AI ASCENT CONTINUES

Given the growth of data-intensive computing, especially AIs proliferation, it is not surprising that storage requirements have also soared. Conway says storage has steadily become more complex and that HPC storage buyers have necessarily grown more sophisticated.

Its gotten very complicated because were sort of moving toward a very new model for HPC that affects every part of the architecture, but storage in particular. That model is the containerization of on premises HPC. Were now looking at workflows that might have to go through 20 lightweight containers, each one of which has to quickly assemble the right compute storage software so the workflow can complete. Thats not the way things used to be it used to be, you know, this is your hardware, your software, and so forth, and everything was the same all the way.

Hyperion also singled out accelerating AI development and adoption, no surprise here, and said AI will grow faster than the market as a whole.

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Hyperion Forecast Headwinds in 2020 Won't Stifle Cloud HPC Adoption or Arm's Rise - HPCwire