Definitive Guide for a Safe Cloud Migration

Definitive Guide for a Safe Cloud Migration

Studies have shown that normally, cloud storage is safer than on-premises storage. However, a bit like with every other aspect of technology, security isn’t something that happens unintentionally. It involves thoughtful planning, focused attention, and clear comprehension. This can be especially important to stay in mind when transitioning from a locally hosted system, which you’ve already secured, to a cloud-based system, which has distinct security needs and procedures.

Here are Some Tips for a Secure Cloud Migration:

1. Get an accurate picture of the dimensions of your relocation (and give yourself enough time to try and do it securely)

Before you set expectations with leadership about timelines and budgets, someone (either in-house or an expert consultant) has to take the time to know the scope of your project. This includes the time and budget you would like to induce the technical tasks done and to form sure that you just haven’t left any security loose ends undone. Before you set expectations with leadership about timelines and budgets, this person has to take the time.

2. Analyze your stack

So, where can we begin the method of scoping? The solution, from the purpose of view, is to perform a stack audit. Examine your existing stack and also the way within which you handle user access at this time. it’s more probable that you just will forget to create essential adjustments before the cloud migration, or that you simply will overlook warning signs associated with security if you do not understand how it works. Which one will have what significance in the future?

3. Evaluate your users

Before cloud migration, you ought to evaluate each of your users individually and modify their access levels.

There are also certain users who require less access. Still, others may require further access so as to regain access to crucial activities. People who aren’t getting used in any respect, on the other hand, are often decommissioned entirely, which eliminates potential vulnerabilities (and saves you money since fewer users’ means less cost).

The bottom line is that having an excessive amount of access (such as inactive users or those with more rights than they need) poses a security risk while having insufficient access, which prevents people from accessing systems they require, could be a productivity risk. After you finally move your operations to the cloud, your business is going to be safer and more productive if you took the time before the move to ascertain the proper balance.

The most successful businesses not only review their users and therefore the levels of access they need to grant them, but they also make use of the possibility to review their policies on user access.

4. Know your data

If your data may be a problem on the server, it’s visiting a multitude after you move it to the cloud. This is often another area within which you must pause and analyze before making the leap to the cloud. You would like to possess an understanding of how your current user management and data setup functions, how the business functions as a whole (not only for the individual you’re talking to at the time), and the way the management of knowledge will alter after it’s moved to the cloud.

5. Ensure to document and evaluate your processes and controls

Conduct an audit of the prevailing controls and document both their current state and any future modifications you would like to create to them within the cloud.

To begin, it’s important to research the business reasons behind each control and procedure. Sometimes the logic is smart, and there is no need to change the procedure to the slightest degree. There are instances when one makes a call that seemed reasonable at the time but now does not (because technology has evolved or other processes have changed, necessitating a change to the present one as well). And there are instances when a controversy must be fixed as quickly as possible, and immediately we have the chance to boost our security by finding a stronger solution. You’ve got the flexibility to extend not only your security but also your productivity, ways of working, and regular amount of employee happiness if you’ll be able to identify the last two possible circumstances.

6. Remember the regulatory responsibilities that are yours

Are you required to adjust to HIPAA? Must one protect the holding that you just have developed? Are there audit requirements that you just must confirm you’re founded for, and you would like to create sure you do?

Gaining an understanding of your needs before beginning the cloud migration process will allow you to form educated choices regarding what and the way to migrate, similarly to where you may temporarily require a hybrid configuration.

7. Take the large picture into consideration

A focus on the long run is important to understanding cloud migration. The acceleration of the digital transition, the cloud, and also the rise of remote work are all more significant than they need ever been. And businesses that don’t adapt in this way are already slipping behind their competitors.

However, moving away isn’t the sole solution. Think not only about what you would like to try to do today to remain up, and what’s (and isn’t) working for you immediately, but also about what is going to still work for you in five years, ten years, twenty years, and beyond. This is often the key to achieving real, long-term success in business.

You will have a greater chance of success in the future if you’re able to give longer-term solutions more priority immediately, despite the fact that doing so will take longer and value more.

8. Locate an appropriate companion

Although it’s possible to handle a cloud migration on your own, it’s impossible to understand what you are doing and not fathom the method. Due to this, we advise you to think about whether or not you must induce a partner, particularly if the migration you’re performing could be a complicated one.

You might not be ready to notice some steps or holes within the process on your own, but an experienced partner who features strong expertise in security can assist you in doing so.

9. Ensure to schedule regular checkups along with your doctor

Finally, cloud migration provides a chance to assess, update, and otherwise enhance security (among other things), but this could not be the sole occasion on which you are taking such steps.

Your plans for the longer term should include regular access checks, process checks, and regulatory checks. These checks should be included in your schedules. You do not want to be too far along before you discover that you simply have 100 idle users with active accounts, as this wastes money and leaves gaps for possible security breaches. Or, what may be even worse, you’ll learn that you simply have a security hole since you neglected to schedule regular check-ins.

About Enteros

Enteros offers a patented database performance management SaaS platform. It proactively identifies root causes of complex business-impacting database scalability and performance issues across a growing number of clouds, RDBMS, NoSQL, and machine learning database platforms.