years in business
clients
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I want to get rid of my on-premises servers.
My current cloud is costing me too much.
Switch from outdated productivity apps to Microsoft 365, a cloud-based suite that includes everything from Word and Outlook to Teams and SharePoint.
Your cyber security can’t be lifted and shifted. You need a cloud-native security posture – one that’s designed to defend a larger, less visible attack surface.
Matt Harrison
Service Desk Manager, IT Leaders
Have full control over your performance and your data with Australian-based private cloud.
Talk through your business’s IT with us.
We’ll explain the benefits of the cloud and help you explore different pathways.
One of our technicians will audit your current environment.
We’ll then propose a cloud migration plan that supports long-term business outcomes.
Migrating off-premises shouldn’t be complicated.
We invest in clear, detailed planning to keep the actual migration process simple.
Helping Queensland brands take control
since 2003.
Apps are ‘moved and improved’ – modified slightly for better performance.
1 of 8 RetireApps you no longer need are retired.
2 of 8 RehostApps are ‘lifted and shifted’ to the cloud without any changes to how they run.
3 of 8 RefactorApps have their code cleaned up to perform better over time.
4 of 8 Re-ArchitectApps are redesigned to help them perform better in the cloud.
5 of 8 ReplaceOld apps are ‘dropped’ and replaced by new SaaS apps.
6 of 8 RebuildOld apps are fully rebuilt to take advantage of the cloud.
7 of 8 RetainBusiness-critical apps that can’t be moved to the cloud are kept on-premises.
8 of 8Before we begin any migration, we develop a business case for the cloud. Most organisations can benefit from moving, but it’s still an important first step (particularly given that not all workloads benefit from being cloud-based).
Part of building that business case involves auditing your IT estate and inventorying your workloads. We’ll then prioritise migration based on the criticality of each workload and select an 8 Rs strategy for each one. Once we know how we’ll move each workload over, we’ll calculate annualised costs for your new cloud environment and present you with a written plan to sign off on.
Once you’ve approved the plan, we’ll begin implementation. That can involve everything from setting up a new Microsoft 365 plan to working with legacy app vendors to rearchitect a business-critical workload for the cloud.
A lift-and-shift migration (also known as ‘rehosting’) is exactly what it sounds like. An app or a system is essentially copied and pasted from your on-premises environment into the cloud. It’s fast, easy – and, often, extremely expensive.
Because of the way cloud computing works, you’ll pay your cloud provider more when your workloads run in certain ways. Your IT partner should evaluate each app or system being migrated and check whether another strategy (such as replacing an on-prem app with a SaaS app) makes more financial sense.
For example, moving your file server to Microsoft SharePoint isn’t as simple as just lifting and shifting all your files. With the help of your IT partner, you’ll need to think about an appropriate file structure – one that’s easy to navigate, works with the accesses set up in Entra ID, and complies with SharePoint’s file path character limits. Trying to move everything without proper planning will lead to errors, frustrated staff members, and lots of extra IT work.
Because we invest heavily in pre-migration planning, most of our clients experience minimal downtime during active work hours.
Keep in mind that every migration is different. If you have complex legacy apps that need to be integrated – or processes that run 24/7 – you might experience a longer outage. We’ll advise expected downtime during planning.
The specific benefits of the cloud vary from business to business. If you have frequent changes in demand for things like data storage or network capacity, the cloud makes it easy to scale your resources up and down.
For most organisations, though, switching away from an on-premises environment is just easier. You don’t need to worry about security your server room. You don’t need to employ people who understand server maintenance. Part of your office isn’t taken up by IT hardware. Your cloud-related costs are operational expenses, not large capital expenditures.
It’s very rare that an SMB won’t see big security, cost and efficiency benefits by moving to the cloud. In cases where certain apps can’t practically be migrated, a hybrid setup – those apps on-premises, everything else in the cloud – is ideal.
The cloud is just as (if not more) secure than most on-premises environments. Think about what’s involved.
Your server room needs to be physically secured against unauthorised access, which means cameras, swipe cards, and other standard security hardware. You need to protect against environmental threats like flooding, fire and cyclones. You need an IT team that constantly checks and updates your hardware and software. Most of those measures are extremely difficult to execute properly – and, for a single SMB, they’re normally cost-prohibitive.
Now think about a major cloud provider like Microsoft (or even a small private cloud provider like us). The economies of scale mean all those protections can be put in place – not by a jack-of-all-trades IT administrator, but by security specialists who fully understand the technologies they’re working with.
Our Brisbane data centre, for example, is protected by a GE Challenger security system, sited above BCC’s 100-year flood lines, and equipped with a VESDA fire detection system. That kind of security apparatus simply wouldn’t be viable for an SMB server room.
One common concern is cloud vendor trustworthiness. Although the odds of Microsoft or Amazon deliberately compromising your data are incredibly low, the workaround – if that’s something you’re worried about – is simple. Choose an Australian-based cloud provider instead. Your data will be kept onshore, subject to Australian privacy laws, and you’ll always have legal recourse if something goes wrong.
