When pursuing a multi-cloud strategy, you're turning nearly all your infrastructure into code. Doing so requires that you build a strong repository for all your developers to use.
This is where application programming interface (API) management factors into the equation.
API Management Is Key to Multi-cloud Management
With application portfolio sizes reaching all-time highs, there's a growing need to integrate and orchestrate across disparate applications. To do that, you must have a robust publish/subscribe integration strategy in place.
When embracing infrastructure-as-code, API management becomes the new focus and allows you to pursue a multi-cloud strategy. But there's no reason to reinvent the wheel as far as API management is concerned.
All hyperscale cloud providers base their technology on delivering consumable APIs and many leading software providers are joining the party as well, delivering their APIs through API management tools like Mulesoft.
By leveraging these readily available tools and frameworks, your developers can move faster and dedicate more time, resources and energy on areas that will differentiate your business and make it more successful.
Migrating to the Cloud
You've determined the solutions and providers that best fit your needs, gained executive buy-in and established governance. You understand how to perform an application workload placement analysis, how to combat vendor lock-in and the importance of API management. Now it's time to turn your attention toward migrating to the cloud.
Two migration paths are lift and shift and refactoring.
- Lift and shift
- Benefits: Works best when you need to evacuate your data center quickly. It's good for avoiding hardware refreshes and costly capital expenditures that may arise from end-of-life equipment. It requires less development work for your resources.
- Drawbacks: You can't take advantage of cost-saving public services and might end up spending more in the cloud than you did on-prem.
- Refactoring
- Benefits: Ideal for differentiated services so you can move more quickly and take advantage of public cloud innovation. It may reduce the cost of public cloud services and help you better optimize these applications in the cloud.
- Drawbacks: It's more time consuming, and can lead to vendor lock-in.
Completing the migration process doesn't mean the work is over. You should constantly be reviewing feedback, evaluating for efficiency and adjusting as necessary.
This Is a Multiyear Journey
Never forget that this is a multiyear journey.
You should be a strong advocate for a cloud-first strategy, but also recognize that not all your applications need to live in the cloud – at least not in year one. As new tools and services arise and the cloud landscape evolves over time, you will need to reassess. Think constant iteration and focus on making lots of small changes, which, when bundled together, result in real transformation.
Whether you're at the beginning of your journey or a few years in, make sure you're constantly reevaluating your position to ensure you're taking full advantage of the cloud.
Happy migrating!
Learn more by checking out my full BrightTalk webinar on Creating a Multi-Cloud Buying Strategy.
