28 February 2011
Data has to be migrated from one location to another for a variety of reasons. A lot of times, it may be because the hardware has failed or become obsolete and data has to be transferred to a newer computer. Or a company simply changes location, or more commonly, the data itself has become bigger that some or all of it must be moved to additional array. Data migration, then, is part of corporate growth.
As data becomes larger and more complex, the process of data migration becomes more challenging and requires an altogether distinct specialty of work. Thus came about the development of data migration consulting services which ensure proper management of data migration.
As data becomes larger and more complex, the process of data migration becomes more challenging
Correct data migration practices are a must because migration of data has its risks such as downtime and even data loss. There really is no best method as it all depends on a company’s requirements such as downtime, resource availability and the volume of data that has to be migrated. The following methods are the best ones in the field:
Online Migration
This method allows the data migration process to occur alongside the daily operations. The applications necessary to the company’s operations are still running and online though in a slightly degraded condition. The technology behind this is capable of migrating the data in a way which is transparent to the application which accesses the same data. Eventually, online migration synchronizes both the source and destination of data, in which case all new writes go the new location.
Offline Migration
Offline migration is the exact opposite of the above method as data migration is done offline. It simply shuts down all the environment, data are copied from the old to the new location and once the new location is in place, all pointers are then switched to the new location. The obvious advantage of this method is the ease with which it can be carried out. The disadvantage is the long downtime which most companies cannot afford to undergo.
Hybrid Migration
In reality, this method is the most usually employed. For instance, there may be an online data migration ongoing which has few outages to switch between source and destination. This method represents a strategic compromise between the first 2 methods.
Data migration is risky but necessary at times. Delicate planning and well-thought-out implementation is a must to minimize impact on business.
As with all mechanical or electrical devices, there is the risk of something going wrong during the data migration process. Instances such as power cuts, data corruption, or disk failure can leave companies stranded with their data inaccessible between one or more locations. Should this occur, the services of a professional data recovery company should be able to assist in retrieving your data regardless of the circumstances in which it was lost. Contact a professional data recovery company, like Kingdom Data Recovery for further details on any aspect of file, disk or memory card recovery.
