tl;dr:
Rehosting, or “lift and shift”, is a migration path that involves moving existing applications and workloads to the cloud with minimal changes. It can be particularly beneficial for specialized legacy applications that are difficult or expensive to refactor. Rehosting can reduce on-premises infrastructure costs, improve performance and availability, and provide access to a broader ecosystem of cloud services. However, it may not always be the best option, and careful assessment of needs and goals is necessary.
Key points:
- Rehosting is an attractive option for specialized legacy applications that are tightly coupled to specific hardware or operating systems, or have complex dependencies and integrations.
- By rehosting, businesses can reduce on-premises infrastructure costs and maintenance overhead, freeing up IT resources to focus on more strategic initiatives.
- Rehosting can improve the performance and availability of legacy applications by leveraging the global network and data centers of cloud providers like Google Cloud.
- Rehosted applications can take advantage of the broader ecosystem of cloud services and tools, such as Cloud Storage, Cloud SQL, and Cloud Logging, without requiring a complete rewrite.
- Careful assessment of needs, goals, and costs is essential when considering a rehosting migration path, as it may not always be the best option for every legacy application or workload.
Key terms and vocabulary:
- Refactoring: Restructuring existing code without changing its external behavior, often to improve performance, maintainability, or readability, or to better align with cloud-native architectures and practices.
- Cloud-native: An approach to designing, building, and running applications that fully leverage the advantages of the cloud computing model, such as scalability, resilience, and agility.
- Google Cloud Migration Center: A centralized platform that provides a suite of tools, best practices, and resources to help organizations assess, plan, and execute their migration to Google Cloud.
- Migrate for Compute Engine: A service that simplifies the migration of physical servers and virtual machines to Google Compute Engine, automating the process of creating cloud-based VMs and transferring data.
- Agility: The ability to quickly adapt and respond to changes in business needs, market conditions, or customer demands.
- Scalability: The ability of a system, network, or process to handle a growing amount of work or its potential to be enlarged to accommodate that growth.
- Innovation: The process of translating an idea or invention into a good or service that creates value for customers and stakeholders, often leveraging new technologies or approaches.
When it comes to modernizing your infrastructure and applications in the cloud, you have a variety of migration paths to choose from, each with its own advantages and trade-offs. One of these paths is rehosting, also known as “lift and shift”, which involves moving your existing applications and workloads to the cloud with minimal changes to the code or architecture.
Rehosting can be a particularly attractive option for specialized legacy applications that are difficult or expensive to refactor or rewrite. These might include applications that are tightly coupled to specific hardware or operating systems, or that have complex dependencies and integrations with other systems. In such cases, rehosting can provide a way to quickly and cost-effectively move these applications to the cloud, while minimizing the risk and disruption to your business.
One of the key business values of rehosting specialized legacy applications is the ability to reduce your on-premises infrastructure costs and maintenance overhead. By moving these applications to the cloud, you can take advantage of the scalability, reliability, and security of cloud infrastructure, without having to invest in and manage your own hardware and software. This can free up your IT resources to focus on more strategic initiatives, and can help you reduce your overall IT spend.
Rehosting can also provide a way to improve the performance and availability of your legacy applications, by leveraging the global network and data centers of cloud providers like Google Cloud. By running your applications closer to your users and customers, you can reduce latency and improve response times, while also providing higher levels of redundancy and failover. This can help you deliver a better user experience and can increase the reliability and resilience of your applications.
Another benefit of rehosting is the ability to take advantage of the broader ecosystem of cloud services and tools, without having to completely rewrite your applications. For example, by rehosting your applications on Google Compute Engine, you can easily integrate them with other Google Cloud services like Cloud Storage, Cloud SQL, and Cloud Logging, allowing you to extend and enhance your applications with new capabilities and insights. You can also use services like Cloud Monitoring and Cloud Security Command Center to better manage and secure your applications in the cloud.
However, it’s important to note that rehosting is not a silver bullet, and may not be the best option for every legacy application or workload. In some cases, the cost and effort of rehosting may outweigh the benefits, particularly if the application is heavily customized or dependent on specific hardware or software. Rehosting may also not provide the same level of flexibility and scalability as more cloud-native approaches like refactoring or rebuilding, which can limit your ability to fully optimize your applications for the cloud.
Therefore, when considering a rehost migration path for specialized legacy applications, it’s important to carefully assess your specific needs and goals, and to weigh the costs and benefits of different approaches. This might involve conducting a thorough assessment of your current applications and infrastructure, identifying any dependencies or constraints, and estimating the time and resources required for different migration scenarios.
It’s also important to work with a trusted partner like Google Cloud, who can provide the expertise, tools, and support you need to successfully migrate and run your applications in the cloud. Google Cloud offers a range of migration services and tools, such as the Google Cloud Migration Center and the Migrate for Compute Engine service, which can help you automate and streamline the rehosting process, and can provide guidance and best practices for optimizing your applications in the cloud.
Ultimately, the decision to choose a rehost migration path for specialized legacy applications will depend on your specific business needs and goals. But by carefully evaluating your options and working with a trusted partner like Google Cloud, you can unlock the benefits of cloud computing for your legacy applications, and can set yourself up for long-term success in the cloud.
So, if you’re looking to modernize your infrastructure and applications in the cloud, consider rehosting as a potential migration path for your specialized legacy workloads. With the right approach and the right tools, you can quickly and cost-effectively move these applications to the cloud, and can start realizing the benefits of increased agility, scalability, and innovation for your business.
Additional Reading:
- The 7 Rs of Cloud Migration: 7 Strategies Explained – Nexcess
- Rehost vs Replatform: Selecting a Cloud Migration Strategy – ModLogix
- The 5 Rs in Cloud Migration and What’s the Right R for You? -iShift