Martin Snellgrove, global competency lead, EMC Consulting discusses the steps that datacentre managers need to apply when planning a cloud implementation.

The promise of cloud computing and the buzz which surrounds it, can often lead businesses to make assumptions in adoption without truly understanding the steps they should take to ensure its success. Without preparation, businesses are unlikely to reap the benefits of agile information management and cost/energy efficiencies or any of the other benefits that cloud can bring.

Stage 1 – Virtualising within the datacentre
If there is one tip that every company should consider, it’s never forget that the journey to cloud is just that – a journey. Datacentre managers should always bear in mind that it is not just a case of consolidating existing systems, but embracing a new architecture which requires a whole new way of working.  In order for the journey to begin, the physical datacentre needs to become virtual. This doesn’t have to happen immediately, but the first step should be to virtualise at least 60 per cent of the servers, in order to lay the foundations of the migration to the cloud.

Often, at this first stage, some datacentres falter and stall the virtualisation process. This can happen for several reasons, but it is rarely the technology causing compatibility or performance problems. Instead, more often than not, it is rooted in a lack of buy-in from the business. By ensuring that the business fully understands the temporary costs within the context of the eventual gain, you can avoid complications and drive the journey forward. To help manage this process, it is vital that datacentre managers tackle virtualisation within strict boundaries of when they’re going to complete the project.

Stage 2 – Adding applications and optimising the virtualised datacentre
Now that you’ve virtualised a critical mass of servers, you should focus on unifying the different elements of the datacentre – the network, storage and server – to ensure that each element is able to support the other. For example, a lack of co-ordination can mean that while it is possible to move the virtual server to where it is most needed, the network may not be able to keep up. This not only reduces datacentre efficiency, but also has the potential to derail the whole process and risk the loss of support from the business.

The implementation of a cloud infrastructure alone will not result in business benefits. The process has to be managed and it is at this stage that datacentre managers should start thinking about the decommissioning of legacy applications. Legacy applications can create a burden to IT administrators as they optimise IT operations for a virtualised model.  It’s critical to rationalise the application portfolio to determine whether and when to virtualise production applications.

Stage 3 – IT-as-a-Service in a private cloud environment
The third stage sees the move onto private cloud architecture, and this makes it possible for companies to start moving towards a self-service model. Currently, the self-service model is used by IT architects to manage the networks via service portals. However, ultimately the aim is for business users to leverage the portal directly and confirm their own service, so that IT becomes a supplier of services instead of a supplier of technology.

Similar to the first stage, it is important that datacentre managers set clear goals and define a self service timeline. Ultimately, they will be constricted by what technology they have available in the cloud, but it is advisable to plot the role of self service into their overall journey so it is fully integrated at the end. IT will become an architect of cloud-based services to the business, including internal clouds that are managed on-premises. However, it will also include elements of the public cloud for services like email and development environments, as well as more niche services which require specialist providers like CRM.

Many times, business teams within a datacentre try and jump straight to stage three. This is not because they wish to cut corners, but because the vital ground work can appear to take the most effort whilst yielding the least reward. I started out this article by advising that a clear plan is vital for the success of any implementation, particularly cloud. However, the key to any plan is people, process and then finally technology.  To be truly successful, a plan has to be agreed upon across the whole business so that everyone is working towards a single goal and end result.