Managing a VM migration, of any kind, can sometimes come with trade-offs. In an edge environment, the more sites you need to cover, the more complex, longer, and disruptive the rollout can become.
But this is no longer the norm. Businesses are using virtualization software as an alternative to vendors like VMware, in order to scale the IT infrastructure they need, and combat the changing licensing models, climbing costs, and per-site expenses that add up fast across dozens or thousands of locations.
The right virtualization vendor can deploy across hundreds or thousands of distributed sites, in hours and days, not months. And they’re not limited to rip-and-replace, either. It’s possible to manage a VM migration without replacing existing IT infrastructure, like hardware, or sending technicians to every location. This helps save on costs, and improves the speed of the VM migration process.
So, how is this all possible?
4 Factors That Speed Up the VM Migration Process
No Hardware Replacement
Virtualization software, like StorMagic SvHCI, deploys hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) on the servers already running in each location. Migrating VMs to SvHCI doesn’t mean waiting on new hardware orders or budgeting for a refresh cycle, it means putting your existing servers to work differently.
Fully Remote Execution
Because virtualization separates software from the physical hardware underneath it, migrating a VM doesn’t require anyone on-site. The entire process, from configuration to cutover, can run remotely, which removes technician travel and scheduling as a bottleneck.
Option for Two-node Architecture
Some virtualization software, like StorMagic SvHCI, can be built around a highly available two-node architecture, right sized for edge locations that don’t need racks of servers. That simplicity means less to configure, test, and validate at each site, which speeds up every stage of the migration. Having this option provides greater flexibility.
Minimal Downtime
The right VM migration process will be designed to keep business-critical services, payment processing, loyalty programs, store operations, running throughout the process, not just at the end of it.
An Example of Enterprise Virtualization at Scale
Sheetz, a convenience retail chain with more than 830 store locations, needed to migrate its VMs off its previous virtualization platform. Using StorMagic SvHCI, Sheetz completed migrations at more than 600 stores in the first phase of the rollout, averaging 200 stores per month, all without replacing the Dell servers already installed at each location. The company expects to complete the full 830-plus-store migration in four months.
Gary Sliver, director of platform engineering at Sheetz, described the shift:
“This project is proof that large-scale edge migrations don’t have to be disruptive, drawn-out or scary affairs.”
That pace reflects Sheetz’s specific environment, but it shows what’s possible when hardware reuse and remote execution come together. Read the full press release.
How to Speed Up the VM Migration Process
VM migration follows a consistent, repeatable process across every site.
Whatever vendor or software you choose to move away from your existing provider, choose one that can configure and validate remotely, without requiring a technician on-site. This is especially important for edge environments, where you might have multiple remote sites, and want to scale that number, either up or down, in the future.
Each site must be confirmed operational before the team moves to the next batch, reducing risk across the rollout. And because the process is remote and repeatable, teams can migrate multiple sites in parallel rather than one at a time, which is how large rollouts complete in hours and days, instead of months. Click here to learn about the deployment options and features of StorMagic SvHCI.
Manage VM Migration Without the Disruption Using Enterprise Virtualization
Many organizations built their virtualization strategy years ago, on a platform that made sense at the time. Since then, licensing models have changed, costs have climbed, and per-site expenses add up fast across dozens or thousands of locations. For distributed businesses, retail stores, bank branches, restaurants, and utility outstations, that pressure is even more pronounced.
The instinct is often to assume migrating away means months of disruption, new hardware, and technicians traveling site to site. That’s not the case anymore.
But VM migration doesn’t have to mean months of downtime, new hardware, or a fleet of technicians on the road. With a remote, repeatable process and infrastructure that runs on the hardware you already have, enterprise virtualization, like StorMagic SvHCI, makes moving away from a legacy virtualization platform something you can plan in quickly. Book a briefing with the StorMagic team to see what your migration timeline could look like. Or, view our product roadmap to see how we’re making the future of edge virtualization a reality.
