As federal IT professionals, it’s easy for us to think of our organizations as collections of IT solutions. But they aren’t. They’re collections of people and data. Our responsibility is to ensure those people can use the data as efficiently as possible.
The rise of hybrid IT and the accelerated adoption of cloud-native apps are making that clear. Workloads are shifting to the cloud, where applications can perform only as well as the underlying database lets them.
IT professionals know this. The recent SolarWinds Query Report 2021 proves it. Nearly one-third of respondents said they were managing more than 300 databases in their organization’s environment.
Nearly 60% of respondents said less than one-fourth of the data or systems currently managed within their organization were in the cloud. But, as a group, they expect that to change within the next four years.
Of those who responded, 54% reported cloud database-as-a-service (DBaaS) was one of the database management systems their organization was currently running, and 33% rated it as their organization’s highest-priority database platform to adopt within the next three years.
The mix of traditional and cloud DBaaS platforms will require IT professionals to master new skills. This is nothing new; if you’ve survived in this industry for any length of time, you’ve learned to adapt regularly.
To hone your skills for the shift to cloud DBaaS, you’ll want to:
1. Get back to basics
Cloud DBaaS is a new platform, but it’s best used with time-tested practices: testing and validation.
For example, perform data integration tests, passing a sample data set through the pipeline to see if you get the expected results. Regular testing as part of your production monitoring process helps you spot anomalies and avoid reacting to problems after they develop.
This can take a lot of time and energy to do manually, so leverage automation to make you more efficient.
2. Map your data estate for migration and cost efficiency
Cloud migration is an opportunity to improve your data before you move it. Simply lifting and shifting moves your existing problems to a new environment and robs your organization of one of the greatest benefits of the cloud: scalability.
A detailed map of the data estate starts with a basic data and code cleanse that ensures only what is truly needed is being migrated to reduce complexity and overall cost. But it doesn’t end there. It should include an assessment of dependencies or complex coding features. Everything interconnected with a database must move with it.
From there, database professionals should seek visibility into what the organization will need to pay for in the cloud, optimize performance and compute requirements for those costs, and test for data fidelity to validate data integrity post-migration.
3. Keep your eyes on open source
Survey respondents listed Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle and cloud DBaaS platforms as the most critical database platforms running in their organizations today. But a growing number were considering the adoption of NoSQL and open-source databases.
Developers may prefer them, and there may be cost advantages to open-source approaches. But database professionals must invest the time to understand when these databases make sense and when they create pitfalls—particularly since tooling for open-source databases isn’t yet mature.
4. Don’t forget the little things
As with most big undertakings, managing database platforms often falls apart in small details. Time and again, we see security, compliance, cost and licensing pushed down the priority list.
Neglecting them can do a great deal of damage. Paying careful attention to them, and returning to them regularly, can help your organization do more with less, and help you get the senior team’s buy-in.
5. Let the technology do the work
Lastly, leave the time-consuming daily maintenance tasks to technologies that free you up to see the forest for the trees. Appropriate automation and monitoring technologies let database professionals focus on tasks the human brain is still best at, like proactively managing database performance, innovating and upgrading their own skills.
Brandon Shopp is group vice president for product management at SolarWinds.
How federal IT pros can prepare for the shift to cloud DBaaS adoption
The mix of traditional and cloud DBaaS platforms will require IT professionals to master new skills.
As federal IT professionals, it’s easy for us to think of our organizations as collections of IT solutions. But they aren’t. They’re collections of people and data. Our responsibility is to ensure those people can use the data as efficiently as possible.
The rise of hybrid IT and the accelerated adoption of cloud-native apps are making that clear. Workloads are shifting to the cloud, where applications can perform only as well as the underlying database lets them.
IT professionals know this. The recent SolarWinds Query Report 2021 proves it. Nearly one-third of respondents said they were managing more than 300 databases in their organization’s environment.
Nearly 60% of respondents said less than one-fourth of the data or systems currently managed within their organization were in the cloud. But, as a group, they expect that to change within the next four years.
Learn how DLA, GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service and the State Department are modernizing their contract and acquisition processes to make procurement an all-around better experience for everyone involved.
Of those who responded, 54% reported cloud database-as-a-service (DBaaS) was one of the database management systems their organization was currently running, and 33% rated it as their organization’s highest-priority database platform to adopt within the next three years.
The mix of traditional and cloud DBaaS platforms will require IT professionals to master new skills. This is nothing new; if you’ve survived in this industry for any length of time, you’ve learned to adapt regularly.
To hone your skills for the shift to cloud DBaaS, you’ll want to:
1. Get back to basics
Cloud DBaaS is a new platform, but it’s best used with time-tested practices: testing and validation.
For example, perform data integration tests, passing a sample data set through the pipeline to see if you get the expected results. Regular testing as part of your production monitoring process helps you spot anomalies and avoid reacting to problems after they develop.
This can take a lot of time and energy to do manually, so leverage automation to make you more efficient.
2. Map your data estate for migration and cost efficiency
Cloud migration is an opportunity to improve your data before you move it. Simply lifting and shifting moves your existing problems to a new environment and robs your organization of one of the greatest benefits of the cloud: scalability.
A detailed map of the data estate starts with a basic data and code cleanse that ensures only what is truly needed is being migrated to reduce complexity and overall cost. But it doesn’t end there. It should include an assessment of dependencies or complex coding features. Everything interconnected with a database must move with it.
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From there, database professionals should seek visibility into what the organization will need to pay for in the cloud, optimize performance and compute requirements for those costs, and test for data fidelity to validate data integrity post-migration.
3. Keep your eyes on open source
Survey respondents listed Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle and cloud DBaaS platforms as the most critical database platforms running in their organizations today. But a growing number were considering the adoption of NoSQL and open-source databases.
Developers may prefer them, and there may be cost advantages to open-source approaches. But database professionals must invest the time to understand when these databases make sense and when they create pitfalls—particularly since tooling for open-source databases isn’t yet mature.
4. Don’t forget the little things
As with most big undertakings, managing database platforms often falls apart in small details. Time and again, we see security, compliance, cost and licensing pushed down the priority list.
Neglecting them can do a great deal of damage. Paying careful attention to them, and returning to them regularly, can help your organization do more with less, and help you get the senior team’s buy-in.
5. Let the technology do the work
Lastly, leave the time-consuming daily maintenance tasks to technologies that free you up to see the forest for the trees. Appropriate automation and monitoring technologies let database professionals focus on tasks the human brain is still best at, like proactively managing database performance, innovating and upgrading their own skills.
Brandon Shopp is group vice president for product management at SolarWinds.
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