What is your primary objective as a technology leader?
Reduce the technical debt and achieve higher operational performance, isn’t it?
Organizations that migrated from AS400 to cloud platforms have experienced an average cost reduction of 40%, with lowered maintenance and operational expenses.
~ According to a study by Forrester Consulting.
76% of respondents reported that cost saving is the primary driver for AS400 migration.
~ According to a survey by Fresche Solutions.
Well, we agree that it’s not always the cost that bothers technology leaders to take that plunge – AS400 migration to cloud.
But would you agree with the benefits that AS400 cloud migration brings up besides improving operational efficiency?
What benefits are we discussing? – you may ask.
- Access to modern technologies
- Advanced security and compliance
- Improved scalability and performance
- An opportunity to Futureproof your technology
The list is long enough though, but we believe the glimpses are good enough for you to get started, aren’t they?
Still have the question clouds bothering you, whether to take that plunge or not?
Here are some more numbers, that will certainly push you to act upon the AS400 migration to cloud.
A company achieved a 1000% improvement in scalability with a 70% reduction in the batch processing time with AS400 migration to cloud.
~ According to a Case Study by Microsoft Azure
81% of respondents reported improved performance & scalability after migrating from AS400.
~ According to a survey by Fresche Solutions.
57% of organizations viewed accessing new technologies as a top motivator for AS400 migration.
~ According to a report by International Data Corporation(IDC)
We believe this motivates you to unleash the lasting effect that AS400 migration will leave on the way you operate.
Ready to understand how to begin your journey for a successful AS400 cloud migration?
Let’s dive in!
What should be the approach for AS400 Cloud Migration
For several mid and large businesses, AS400 has been a preferred choice to run mission-critical ERPs to streamline business operations.
As businesses expand and emerging technologies disrupt various processes, enterprises are exploring ways to reduce the cost of supporting and maintaining AS400 applications.
This is coupled with the need to enable faster application delivery, gain clear visibility into how IT impacts the business, and reduce manual effort.
This is driving enterprises to consider AS400 migration initiatives to significantly improve system agility, scalability, and operational efficiencies. And this is one of the key reasons, there is an ever-increasing demand to modernize, migrate and integrate AS400 applications.
AS400 Migration is a broad term that is used to deploy- the portfolios of AS400 applications -on the cloud to reduce cost and increase scalability, without any modifications.
Depending upon the business objectives, it could comprise migration of the batch jobs to the cloud for optimal use of all business systems. After migration to open-source databases, you can integrate multiple cross-platform or cloud-based applications and leverage your existing AS400 operational data.
AS400 Migration to SQL server or to any other advanced database will help several businesses regain large volumes of valuable information and leverage core business logic. SQL server is an open-source platform, which enables small applications to run independently or along with ERPs.
The migration of the AS400 iSeries can be challenging owing to its monolithic code that has been developed over decades.
Several organizations lack a detailed understanding of AS400 applications and related batch jobs. In addition, their in-house knowledge is often limited and these subject matter experts (SMEs) are not well-versed in migration.
To ensure business continuity and sustainability, it’s recommended to carefully evaluate cloud migration on factors such as desirability, feasibility, and viability.
There cannot be an ideal or proscribed approach for AS400 migrations, as it varies from business to business depending upon the desired goal.
The common approach for migration is to keep old and new systems in sync using hybrid cloud architecture and ensure that end-to-end processes are not broken.
Additionally, large amounts of data can be cleansed, transformed, and migrated to the cloud in a secure manner.
Re-hosting – Most Opted AS400 Cloud Migration Approach
This is one of the highly suitable approaches from an end user’s perspective as existing interfaces or functionality are kept unchanged. It is highly advisable to identify a remediation plan before migration.
Rehosting is one of the AS400 cloud migration approaches, which in turn is the most-suited approach from an end user’s perspective.
Rehosting is also known as Lift and Shift approach for As400 migration.
The rehosting approach includes moving existing AS400 applications and data to the cloud environment without making any major changes to the design, function, and procedures.
Rehosting incorporates exhaustive testing to ensure that the applications perform at capacity within the new, unused cloud environment.
The best leverage that you get with the rehosting approach is that, in any case, the AS400 migration won’t disrupt the current application portfolio. The reason is minimal to no changes in the applications and data.
Re-engineer – Comprehensive Approach to AS400 Cloud Migration
The re-engineer approach to AS400 cloud migration diversly differs from what we do in the rehosting AS400 migration.
This approach involves a comprehensive overhaul of the AS400 application, interfaces, design, user interface architecture, and scalability.
When we say comprehensive overhaul, it doesn’t point to the fact that we discard and rebuilt the system from scratch. Rather, the focus is on making it more susceptible to changing business needs and making it future-proof.
This helps AS400 applications and processes access cloud-native workloads for future-proof architecture.
This approach is recommended when existing AS400 applications are unable to meet future-state business requirements or agile target architecture.
Everything you need to know before AS400 migration to cloud
Application Knowledge
This might sound a bit obvious, but right before you get your hands into AS400 migration, having the in-and-out understanding of the AS400 system is a prime criterion.
Your AS400 system is a combination of hardware components, an operating system, AS400 applications, and the function they perform altogether.
A comprehensive understanding of the AS400 system configuration, interfaces, and applications offers you a better perspective before you make the decision of AS400 migration.
Business Analysis
Right before you jump into the AS400 migration activities, it is essential to understand what you are trying to achieve through it.
How beneficial do you think the AS400 migration will be if it proves to be detrimental to the financial outcome?
An in-depth pre and post-ROI analysis of the AS400 cloud migration gives you a better picture of the business revenue and the impact of the improvisation.
Data Quality Checks
AS400 cloud migration can be an invitation for data breaking!
The legacy data that your on-premise system had stored might not be fully compatible with the new cloud environment, amidst AS400 migration.
Importing wrong or duplicated data can ruin the whole process of AS400 migration and make the data messier.
A data quality check is a scrutiny multilayer that involves performing quality checks, data clean-up, elimination of replicated data, etc., all with the objective of shipping only clean data to the new environment.
This step ensures the optimal state of your data and facilitates a seamless AS400 migration.
Besides that, data is critical for any type of legacy migration. Encryption of sensitive information is important for secure data access, storage, and retrieval processes.
AS400 migration is a dynamic process, so encrypting information both on disk and in the cloud is paramount.
Integration
To cater to modern-day business requirements, business leaders like you often implement modern solutions in the nature of third-party integrations.
Now, when you choose to migrate AS400 to a cloud environment, chances are that the integrations might falter.
There are primarily two reasons for this:
1st – The new system in the cloud environment might not inherit the integrations previously enabled.
Solution: You have to be prepared for this situation, beforehand. You need a clear plan of action on the modern integrations that you need in the new environment. You must plan for the modifications needed in the new system environment.
2nd – The new system environment might already support the features that needed third-party integrations in the prior setup.
Solution: In this case, you need to have a clear understanding of the changes taking place with the AS400 cloud migration. This will help you avoid redundancy with the integrations.
System Documentation
The importance of AS400 system documentation cannot be overemphasized.
A detailed record of all system components, policies and procedures, system architecture, data model diagrams, network configuration, etc. is important for AS400 cloud migration because system documentation is not part of the original SDLC.
Risk Assessment
AS400 cloud migration is a game-changing endeavor for any business, despite its shape and size.
Right before the AS400 migration is rolled out and the environment that your AS400 operates in changes, it’s essential to be aware of the change.
AS400 migration will certainly boost the performance and scalability of your AS400 systems. But, at the same time, there is a need to understand the functional and operational changes that the cloud environment will bring up.
Risk assessment is a non-negotiable in this process as it gives you a clearer picture of what remains the same and what changes.
Backup
Don’t lose the backup of your legacy AS400 system, even if you have begun with your AS400 migration initiative.
Why? – you may ask.
Having a backup offers you a cushion to rely on if the cloud initiative fails to propel. You can always roll back to the old environment.
Though it’s not the case with proven AS400 cloud migration strategies, still it gives you and the team of AS400 experts the confidence to act fearlessly on the cloud initiative.
Conclusion
A migration approach that worked for a particular organization may not necessarily work for your business. Therefore, it is important to find the best-fit solution that can help in achieving your goals.
AS400 Experts at Integrative Systems can help you with cost assessments and feasibility frameworks for migrating your system-critical applications to SQL servers.
AS400 migration is a promising solution that will not only save you a considerable amount of operational costs but also improve the performance of your AS400 applications. Though, the approach may differ. What has worked for mid-level enterprises might not work great for your large-level enterprise.
If you are looking for AS400 experts who can help you knock out the challenges of AS400 migration with optimum cost-savings, Integrative can help you achieve that. Feel free to share your requirements at [email protected].
