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Alternative Migration Methods — Prerequisites

Readiness requirements for file-level and application-native deploy-first migrations.

Common prerequisites

Area Requirement Why it matters
Azure Local target Target cluster healthy, capacity confirmed, target networks ready All build-first variants land directly on Azure Local
Target VM design CPU, memory, storage, and OS design approved for each workload This path intentionally right-sizes the destination
Identity and DNS Domain join, DNS updates, and service account needs documented Cutover depends on clean name/IP transitions
Application ownership App owner available for smoke testing and sign-off Build-first validation is application-driven
Rollback plan Source VM hold period and rollback trigger defined No staging checkpoint exists for these paths

Network requirements

Flow Protocol / Port Used by
Source file server to target VM SMB 445 SMS, Robocopy
Source and target to DNS / AD DNS 53, Kerberos 88, LDAP 389/636 All domain-joined workloads
Source SQL to backup location SMB 445 or HTTPS 443 SQL backup/restore
Linux source to target SSH 22 rsync / Linux-native transfer
Target VM to Azure HTTPS 443 Azure integration and management

Target VM readiness

  • Provision target VMs on Azure Local before starting migration activity
  • Apply baseline OS configuration, patching, security policy, and monitoring agents
  • Pre-create data disks and mount points to match the target application design
  • Confirm target VM backup or rollback expectations with the application owner

Tool-specific readiness

  • Source and target file paths inventoried
  • Permissions model reviewed (share + NTFS)
  • Exclusions documented (temp, cache, transient folders)
  • Maintenance window approved for final delta and share cutover
  • Storage Migration Service role installed on the orchestrator (Windows Admin Center or PowerShell)
  • Application-specific runbook approved by app owner
  • Backup location selected and tested (accessible from both source and target)
  • Connection strings, certificates, bindings, and service accounts documented
  • Post-cutover validation script or smoke-test checklist prepared
  • Required application roles/features pre-installed on the target VM

Pre-start checklist

  • [ ] Target Azure Local VM exists for every workload in scope
  • [ ] IP mapping and DNS update plan approved
  • [ ] Application validation owner assigned
  • [ ] Cutover window approved
  • [ ] Source VM rollback/hold policy documented
  • [ ] Tool-specific ports confirmed open
  • [ ] Storage sizing reviewed with 25-30% free headroom on target
  • [ ] Monitoring baseline captured on each source workload
  • [ ] Admin credentials confirmed for source and target systems