The general trend of software operating on a cloud system has been visible for a few years now. With the outbreak of the Covid-19 Virus the number of companies that have moved to the cloud has increased even more. The immediate need to transition to remote workforces, has led to an explosion of cloud-based solutions.
In light of this ongoing change, Atlassian has announced that they will also be moving towards a cloud-first strategy. Since February 2nd 2021, Atlassian has thus stopped selling any server licenses.
But what is it that makes everyone move to the cloud?
According to Atlassian, the cloud offers enhanced security, more reliability and is easier to manage. In other words, the cloud stands for more flexibility, mobility, efficiency and safety. Anyone can access and restore data at any time and from anywhere in the world without having to worry about the possibility of losing valuable data. All in all, innovation becomes faster and smarter in the cloud.
What does moving to the cloud mean for the customers with a server license?
Between February 2nd, 2021 and February 2nd, 2022, Atlassian will continue to provide support (i.e. database, browser, Java) and bug fixes on server products.
After February 2nd, 2022, Atlassian will only provide security bug-fixes for critical vulnerabilities until the end of support. The end of support of the products will be reached on February 2nd, 2024, after which no further product updates will be released.
What are the Options?
Cloud Migration
Migrating to the cloud is the best option for you if:
- your organization wants to simplify daily processes by using the Atlassian tools quickly and efficiently
- your organization is already using Jira in both, business and IT-teams
If your company decides to follow Atlassian´s cloud-first approach and migrate to the cloud, you will be receiving new features within the Atlassian software alongside a dual entitlement for the first year of migration. However, the high migration effort, as well as the complex individual security requirements should also be considered. The licensing further only works through a subscription model.
Data Center Model
Migrating to Data Center is the ideal approach for you if:
- your company is growing rapidly and requires their tools to be flexible and adapted to the specific demands of the business
- your company is in an industry where data security and reliability need to be guaranteed on-premise
If you are considering moving to Data Center you should be informed about the costs and make sure you have the right infrastructure and team for such migration.
Hybrid- Model
Following a Hybrid approach is your best option if:
- your business depends on a tool that is only available on only one of the platforms
- you are looking for data security and reliability of Data Center
- you want to try out the benefits of the cloud experience at the same time
- you are looking for a slower transition to the cloud
If your company decides to take the transition slowly, only moving specific parts of the solution to the cloud and keeping the rest on premise, might be the right option. When doing this right, you can actually reduce your total costs. However, you need to ensure that your business is fit for this option, to avoid high costs and internal confusions between on-premise and cloud solutions.
Status Quo
Staying on premise with Atlassian is your best option if:
- you want to take the transition to the cloud slowly and have a look at all your options before deciding
This option would mean no more investment. However, there is a high security risk because there will be no support, and or new updates and features.
Change to another provider
Lastly, changing to another provider is your ideal option if:
- your company wants to stay on premise on long term
With this option you need to consider the possibly very high migrations efforts and costs.
To sum it all up, one can conclude that moving to the cloud will be inevitable at some point in the future. More and more Software providers are following the trend of encouraging their users to migrate to the cloud. The digital transformation is happening right now and will continue to unfold itself in the coming years.
If you have any questions about your transition to the cloud or related issues don´t hesitate to contact our experts at solutions@crossalm.com.
Sources:
www.atlassian.com/migration/cloud/why-atlassian-cloud
atlassian.com/migration/journey-to-cloud?tab=server-key-changes
