Azure Migration Services

Lift-and-shift migration from on-premises Windows and Linux servers to Azure Virtual Machines. Azure Migrate assessment of your existing server estate to identify VM sizing, compatibility issues, and migration dependencies. Azure Site Recovery for replication-based VM migration with minimal downtime cutover. Network Security Groups and Azure Firewall configuration with least-privilege access rules. Virtual Network design with public and private subnet separation. DNS migration and cutover coordination. Post-migration validation against a defined test plan before on-premises servers are decommissioned. The migration that exits on-premises hardware without requiring application changes.

Re-platforming of IIS web applications and API services to Azure App Service for managed runtime hosting without VM administration overhead. The assessment phase uses Azure Migrate's dependency analysis and the Azure App Service Migration Assistant to identify compatibility issues before deployment, unsupported IIS features, hardcoded UNC paths, Windows registry dependencies, so they are resolved in a controlled way rather than discovered during cutover.

Deployment slot configuration for blue-green deployments with zero-downtime releases: the new version is deployed to a staging slot, validated against smoke tests, then swapped into production with a single operation that is reversible within minutes if a post-swap issue appears. Auto-scaling rules are configured on CPU utilisation, HTTP queue length, and custom metrics via Azure Monitor so the application scales out under load without manual intervention. Application Insights integration instruments the application for distributed tracing, performance monitoring, and exception tracking, request rate, failure rate, and response time are visible from day one in production. Azure Functions migration for scheduled jobs, queue-driven processing, and event-driven workloads that fit the serverless execution model, removing the need to maintain a dedicated VM or App Service plan for background tasks. Terraform modules provision and version-control the App Service plan, application settings, and slot configuration so the environment is reproducible and consistent across staging and production.

SQL Server migration to Azure SQL Database or Azure SQL Managed Instance using Azure Database Migration Service. Compatibility assessment to identify SQL Server features not supported in Azure SQL Database and the options for resolving them. Continuous replication during the migration window for near-zero downtime cutover. Data validation comparing row counts and checksums before cutting over production traffic. Azure SQL Managed Instance for migrations where full SQL Server compatibility is required. Automated backup configuration, geo-redundant backup storage, and point-in-time restore. The SQL Server migration that arrives in Azure with the same data and better availability than the on-premises instance it replaced.

Identity integration between on-premises Active Directory and Azure Active Directory (now Microsoft Entra ID) using Azure AD Connect, single sign-on across on-premises and cloud resources without separate credential sets. The synchronisation scope and attribute filtering is configured before the first sync so only the required OUs and attributes are replicated, keeping the cloud directory clean and audit-ready from day one.

Authentication method selection is assessed for your security posture: password hash synchronisation for simplicity and offline resilience, pass-through authentication for organisations that require on-premises validation to remain the authority, or Active Directory Federation Services (ADFS) for environments with complex claims requirements. Conditional Access policies define access rules for cloud applications, requiring MFA for access from outside the corporate network, blocking sign-ins from risky locations, and enforcing compliant device status using Microsoft Intune device compliance signals. Azure AD Multi-Factor Authentication is rolled out with self-service registration so users enrol without a helpdesk ticket for each. Privileged Identity Management (PIM) provides just-in-time elevated access for administrative roles, Global Admin and Privileged Role Administrator are never permanently assigned, reducing the blast radius of a compromised admin account. Azure Policy enforces baseline configurations across the tenant so new resources are provisioned in compliance with your governance standards rather than requiring manual review. The identity architecture that extends your existing directory into Azure without forcing a cut-over of every application on day one.

Containerised application deployment to Azure Kubernetes Service for workloads that need orchestrated container management. Dockerfile creation and container image build pipelines via Azure Container Registry. AKS cluster configuration, node pool sizing, autoscaling, availability zones, and node OS selection. Ingress controller configuration with Azure Application Gateway or NGINX. Secrets management with Azure Key Vault integration. Horizontal Pod Autoscaler configuration for variable load workloads. Azure Monitor and Container Insights for cluster visibility. The Kubernetes environment on Azure that is configured for your workload requirements rather than left with default settings.

Post-migration cost analysis and optimisation to prevent the Azure bill from exceeding your on-premises equivalent. Azure Cost Management configuration with budget alerts and cost anomaly detection. Right-sizing analysis from Azure Advisor recommendations validated against actual CPU and memory metrics. Azure Reserved Virtual Machine Instances for stable workloads, 1- and 3-year commitments delivering 40-72% savings over pay-as-you-go. Azure Hybrid Benefit applied to all eligible Windows Server and SQL Server workloads using your existing licences. Storage account lifecycle management to move cold data to Archive tier automatically. The cost management setup that gives you visibility and control from the first month rather than a bill surprise at month-end.