The saying “The future is cloud” might be an understatement when a large number of global businesses have already settled on the cloud.
According to a study by 451 Research, if you’re still undecided on a cloud migration in 2021, then you’re already behind 90% of businesses.
So, there’s really no denying the fact that being on the cloud is a key move in any digital transformation initiative.
In a move to help businesses migrate quickly and effectively, Atlassian has ended its server licensing for many of its products, including Confluence.
As a current Confluence Server user, you still have a couple more years before Atlassian ends its support for the product. However, it’s wise to start planning for migration as soon as possible to reap cloud benefits.
This article will explore said benefits as well as the steps involved in migrating to the cloud. Continue reading to learn more.
Key Benefits of Deploying Confluence on the Cloud
Being on the cloud is a highly beneficial move for businesses that understand the importance of staying ahead of the curve – especially in such uncertain times.
This is because the cloud has dramatically changed the way businesses keep and gain data. According to Forbes, when you move to the cloud, you have the ability to quickly recover your data when there is an unforeseen disaster.
It offers better security, stability, and scalability, and is also one of the most cost-effective hosting capabilities.
But in the context of Confluence Cloud, moving to the cloud means the following:
- Gaining enterprise-grade security capabilities to help keep your data secure and compliant
- Experiencing greater speed to market value delivery; a result of greater capacity and improved business pivoting capabilities
- Gaining immediate and automatic access to new features, integrations and extensibility that can encourage continuous innovation
- Getting to maximize your ROI by redirecting your effort and focusing on core business competencies instead of infrastructure maintenance
- Having a wider range of scaling capabilities that could meet your business needs and requirements
- Driving more strategic work that could help user adoption, onboarding, and cloud governance which can better support digital transformation initiatives
Now that the key benefits are covered, let’s move on to the migration steps!
Cloud Migration Strategy for Your Confluence
While a migration to the cloud is a critical digital transformation move, there’s no denying that the process won’t always be linear.
So, having a strategy in place can help you stay on track and migrate successfully. Here are some key steps that you need to consider.
Assess the Functional Differences between Confluence Server and Confluence Cloud
Start by educating yourself on the functional differences between Confluence Server and Confluence Cloud.
Apart from the cost and long-term operational benefits, it’s key that you know how Confluence Cloud differs from Server.
For instance, in terms of wiki management, you should know that on the cloud, pages from your wiki can only be deleted individually; unlike in server, where you can copy and delete a page along with its child pages.
Nevertheless, there is a bulk archiving feature in the cloud that you can use instead.
Information like this will help you communicate knowledge base practices better to your users.
Understanding functional differences will also help you present a solid case for cloud migration to stakeholders and gain their buy-ins.
Evaluate Current Server Apps and Identify Their Availabilities in the Cloud
Not all of the apps you have on Server can be migrated to the cloud. This is especially true for vendors and Solution Partners that do not offer (or have yet to develop) cloud hosting capabilities for their apps.
If the apps that you deem necessary do not have any cloud hosting options, then you should contact the solution provider and ask them when the cloud version of their app would be available. This will help you plan out when you can leverage said app once you’ve settled on the cloud.
Once you have narrowed down on your apps, you should also evaluate their usability and necessity to validate having to migrate them to the cloud along with your instance.
A great way to do this evaluation is through the Confluence Cloud Migration Assistant App, which you’ll learn about in the next section.
| Pro Tip: If you are using Communardo apps like Metadata for Confluence, SharePoint Connector for Confluence and User Profiles for Confluence, then rest assured, these apps are also available on the cloud. If you’re looking for a way to enhance user profiles in Jira instead, check out User Profiles for Jira, which will also soon be available for cloud. |
Leverage the Confluence Cloud Migration Assistant App
In an effort to help you migrate to the cloud successfully and effectively, Atlassian has introduced the Confluence Cloud Migration Assistant.
It is a free app that you can leverage to allow you to assess your Confluence Server usage and develop a suitable migration strategy that meets your needs. However, do note that you need have Confluence Cloud set up beforehand and a instance that runs on version 5.10.0 or above.
One of the features offered is the ability to assess and migrate your current apps. This helps you make more calculative moves throughout your migration period.
Move your content, users, groups, or all of it at once with the help of the app; it also allows you to monitor your entire migration process.
There are a number of phases that you have to go through once you’ve leveraged this migration assistant app, but fret not, all the steps will be laid out for you. It won’t be long before you reach the launching phase.
Launch Your Confluence Cloud
Once you’ve completed your migration strategy you can launch your Confluence Cloud confidently!
Do remember that this entire process takes up a reasonable amount of time and requires commitment from your entire IT team as well as user base.
You most probably need to set up a small committee to keep track of the migration process, help you prep the team, and test the cloud environment before it’s launched to the users.
But rest assured, you won’t feel lost as Atlassian has prepared comprehensive guides for you to follow.
Expand the Capabilities of Your Confluence Cloud
When you’ve moved to the cloud and experienced the new environment, you will be even more aware of your users’ and organization’s needs.
As you and your team settle in the cloud, you need to invest in expanding your instance capabilities to deliver a robust, highly navigable Confluence to your users.
For instance, you can leverage SubSpace Navigation for Confluence to gain the ability to customize navigation paths for specific user groups.
The possibilities are limitless. Learn more about how you can expand your Confluence Cloud by reading “The Ultimate Guide to Building a Confluence Cloud Team Workspace.”
