[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":128},["ShallowReactive",2],{"\u002Fblog\u002Fcloud-migration-checklist":3,"\u002Fblog\u002Fcloud-migration-checklist:surrounding":121,"\u002Fblog\u002Fcloud-migration-checklist:related":127},{"id":4,"title":5,"accent":6,"author":7,"authorRole":8,"body":9,"category":110,"description":111,"extension":112,"featured":113,"meta":114,"navigation":113,"path":115,"publishedAt":116,"readTime":117,"seo":118,"stem":119,"__hash__":120},"blog\u002Fblog\u002Fcloud-migration-checklist.md","A Cloud Migration Checklist for East African Operating Teams","#4da3ff","Amina Wanjiku","Cloud Engineer",{"type":10,"value":11,"toc":101},"minimark",[12,16,21,24,43,46,50,53,56,60,63,81,84,88,91,95,98],[13,14,15],"p",{},"Most migration projects become expensive long before they become useful. The pattern is familiar: workloads are moved, invoices arrive, but observability, permissions, backup design, and cost controls are still weak.",[17,18,20],"h2",{"id":19},"start-with-the-operating-model","Start with the operating model",[13,22,23],{},"Before a single workload moves, decide who owns:",[25,26,27,31,34,37,40],"ul",{},[28,29,30],"li",{},"infrastructure changes",[28,32,33],{},"secrets and credentials",[28,35,36],{},"backup verification",[28,38,39],{},"incident response",[28,41,42],{},"monthly cost review",[13,44,45],{},"If those answers are vague, the migration is not ready.",[17,47,49],{"id":48},"check-dependency-chains","Check dependency chains",[13,51,52],{},"Applications rarely move alone. They depend on storage, scheduled jobs, internal APIs, identity providers, and user habits that were shaped by the old environment.",[13,54,55],{},"Map the upstream and downstream dependencies first. That exposes the hidden coupling that usually causes outages during cutover.",[17,57,59],{"id":58},"standardize-the-basics","Standardize the basics",[13,61,62],{},"Every target environment should have a minimum baseline:",[64,65,66,69,72,75,78],"ol",{},[28,67,68],{},"naming conventions",[28,70,71],{},"tagging for finance and ownership",[28,73,74],{},"least-privilege access",[28,76,77],{},"central logging",[28,79,80],{},"monitored backups",[13,82,83],{},"Without that baseline, the cloud becomes a faster way to create entropy.",[17,85,87],{"id":86},"treat-cost-as-a-design-input","Treat cost as a design input",[13,89,90],{},"Cloud cost optimization is not a cleanup phase. It needs to be part of the initial shape of the environment. Rightsized compute, storage lifecycle rules, and scheduled shutdowns matter more than flashy dashboards added later.",[17,92,94],{"id":93},"finish-with-a-rollback-story","Finish with a rollback story",[13,96,97],{},"The strongest migration plans still define what happens if the move needs to pause or reverse. A reversible rollout is calmer, safer, and usually more disciplined.",[13,99,100],{},"The objective is not to “get to cloud.” The objective is to run more predictably once you get there.",{"title":102,"searchDepth":103,"depth":103,"links":104},"",2,[105,106,107,108,109],{"id":19,"depth":103,"text":20},{"id":48,"depth":103,"text":49},{"id":58,"depth":103,"text":59},{"id":86,"depth":103,"text":87},{"id":93,"depth":103,"text":94},"Cloud","Cloud migrations fail when they are treated as hosting moves instead of operating model changes. This checklist keeps the project practical.","md",true,{},"\u002Fblog\u002Fcloud-migration-checklist","2025-03-18","7 min read",{"title":5,"description":111},"blog\u002Fcloud-migration-checklist","Bpsm8gYodAfwgV57ipjUDTG4X9Em-dA0CFyHvqBKhv8",[122,123],null,{"title":124,"path":125,"stem":126,"children":-1},"Cybersecurity Pressure Points Hitting Kenyan SMEs Right Now","\u002Fblog\u002Fcybersecurity-smes-kenya","blog\u002Fcybersecurity-smes-kenya",[],1779824026461]