The biggest challenges of migrating legacy data to the cloud

More and more companies are moving their legacy data to the cloud for a variety of reasons. Chief among these reasons is the ease of access that comes with having data in the cloud. With all company data in one place that's accessible via the internet, on-site and remote employees can easily find what they need without wasting time navigating through disparate systems.
 
Another reason companies are moving to the cloud is the increased security that comes with outsourcing their data management. Cloud service providers (CSPs) have the resources and expertise to create more robust security protocols than most organizations, making it easier to protect sensitive information.
 
Finally, moving legacy data to the cloud can help companies streamline their operations by reducing inefficiencies associated with managing obsolete systems. With all of their data in a constantly updated system, they can more easily manage and utilize their data.
 
However, before your company can enjoy these benefits, you may need to overcome a few hurdles. Let's take a look at five barriers to migrating old data from legacy systems to the cloud.

IT security jitters

Just like most other business owners and managers, you probably have two major concerns over the security of your company’s legacy data. First, you may be afraid that your data may be compromised by cybercriminals during the migration process. Thankfully, top-notch CSPs like SimplyClouds encrypt data in transit so that hackers who get a hold of your data would only get unintelligible gibberish.
 
Second, you may feel anxious about letting a CSP secure your data for you. Allay your fears by asking the CSPs that you're vetting how they protect data. Premier CSPs implement the latest and most effective cybersecurity measures, such as threat detection, multifactor authentication, identity and access management, and mobile device management.

Concerns over costs

Your company might find the cost of migrating legacy data to the cloud to be too high. This can be addressed by migrating data in stages.  Not only will this spread migration costs over time, but this will also give your organization time to adapt to using the cloud and making processes more efficient.
 
Your firm might also be concerned about whether the benefits of cloud migration will outweigh the initial and ongoing costs. This will ultimately depend on what you wish to get out of your IT investment. Indeed, you may actually end up spending more on the cloud than on legacy systems. However, the returns that you get from the cloud may be far more than what you could ever get by remaining on outdated and faulty systems.

Lack of technical resources for migrating legacy data

Your company might not have the technical resources and expertise to move legacy data to the cloud, but CSPs worth their salt make this possible for their clients. However, not all CSPs are created equal. The older and more complex a legacy system is, the more difficult it is to migrate data, so choose an MSP that can ensure a proper and reliable migration from start to finish.

Overly complex data

Imagine copy-pasting a data table from a spreadsheet onto a barebones text editor program like Notepad. You may end up with continuous strings of letters and numbers that are difficult to parse and use. This mental exercise shows how the haphazard migration of data — especially overly complex or unstructured data — to the cloud can lead to its corruption, resulting in costly downtime and problem-solving efforts.
 
Unscrupulous CSPs will promise inexpensive migration of such data just to get your account, but reputable providers will warn you of the dangers beforehand. The latter will then work with your IT team to ensure proper data transmission, which may involve organizing it and giving it structure before or after cloud migration. However, this procedure will eat up time your IT team would otherwise spend on accomplishing their primary tasks, which may be critical to business operations.
 
Moreover, even if you and your CSP migrate data as carefully as possible, the data’s complexity may still cause technical problems in the future. Therefore, you must work with your CSP to consider whether or not you should move overly complex data to the cloud in the first place.

Data regulations compliance

You must keep a close eye on your cloud data management practices to ensure that your company complies with increasingly stringent regulations, such as HIPAA and GDPR. Since your firm may need to pay hefty fines if it breaks the rules, you may feel hesitant to entrust compliance to a CSP.
 
The good news is that CSPs like SimplyClouds can help you with your compliance requirements. Our cloud specialists keep abreast of all data regulations that may apply to your company so that it will always be on the up and up.
 
If you have any concerns about moving your old data to the cloud, talk to our cloud experts at SimplyClouds today. We'll gladly assist you with all of your cloud migration needs.