Quality Engineering Enabled Cloud Migration: A Multistep Approach

• By Anonymous
• 01-03-2022
• Cloud Computing

The motive behind cloud migration can be different for various organizations. Some do it because they want to improve scalability and performance. Others want to reduce the organization’s upfront investment by assigning their IT infrastructure responsibilities to one of the trusted cloud service providers.

No matter the premise, the goal is a successful migration.

Tardy cloud migration can be disastrous as it can interfere with running operations, hamper the business’ reputation and tarnish its image, not to mention the wasted time and resources. Therefore, the most essential part of a sustainable cloud migration strategy is testing for quality all along the way.

The quality engineering approach is focused on successful cloud migration without any business distractions. It places importance on cloud testing to avoid scalability issues, server breakdowns, and database errors.

In this article, we’ve put together the major steps that a quality-focused organization must follow for successful cloud migration.

How does cloud migration happen under the radar of Quality engineering?

Cloud migration in the QE test strategy approach happens in 3 phases. Each phase has a couple of definite steps that are required to be carried out for successful migration. We’ve highlighted the most significant steps for a Quality Engineering enabled cloud migration below:

Role of QE before migration (The advisory stage)

The quality engineering mandated steps before starting the cloud migration include:

Computing the coverage of test cases

In this phase, the test cases are computed. These test cases will be included in the smoke and regression testing suites.

Mapping the automation test suite to test cases

In this phase, it is decided what percentage of test cases will be automated and executed.

Preparing sanity/regression suite

The three critical aspects of cloud migration include data accuracy, integrity, and data completeness. Once that is done, the regression tests are started.

Deciding the order of components to migrate

After determining the types of testing that are applicable and defining the test parameters for each system component, test cases, and test scripts are created for the identified scenarios. The test data is collected for comparison. Also, it is now that we define the sandbox test environment.

Kickstarting the test suite

We list all existing and newly found defects. Based on the cloud testing, we then estimate our resources and efforts for the migration, create a rollback plan and set the exit criteria upfront.

Performance test scripting to baseline

Lastly, a set of performance tests gauges the performance of the app before migration. This is done to compare the performance of the app after migration.

Role of QE during migration (The assurance stage)

The quality engineering mandated steps during the cloud migration include:

Starting QA on POC environment with the latest build

The most stable build in the environment i.e., the build on the physical servers of the project, is deployed on the POC environment on the cloud.

Continuing to test on higher tiers on cloud

The POC environment currently is very minimal. Gradually the servers are increased to accommodate performance testing of standard and premium tiers.

Running performance tests for scalability

Assuring performance at each step, and assessing low response times, is necessary when migrating to the cloud. These performance tests will not just span load and stress tests but also test for volume, availability, reliability, and capacity.

Performing continuous integration tests

Integration with 3rd party tools is a determining variable for a successful cloud move. However, the dependencies between various applications and systems add to the complexity. In this step, we test whether all the components in the cloud are correctly integrated.

Testing iteratively for defects until exit criteria are met

The defects and bugs that are recorded as a result of the testing are simultaneously fixed.

Final sign off on the QA build

When all the requirements specified in the exit criteria are met, QA readies the runway for build departure.

Role of QE after migration (The Validation stage)

The quality engineering mandated steps after the cloud migration include:

Deploy release candidate build to production

On the day of the migration, the final build passed by the QA teams is deployed. Cloud servers are provisioned, databases & files uploaded, and configurations are tuned to match the new environment.

Carry out sanity and smoke tests

Post-migration tests are started to ensure a successful migration. Functional and performance tests are run in the production environment to gauge resource utilization and traffic load. Also, QA teams kick off the component-level regression test suite.

Compare data to determine migration impact

To ensure that there was no data loss during the migration, the data collected before the cloud move is matched to the current data.

Sign off from QA

The role of QA teams comes to an end as they hand over the project to business teams. However, in a continuous improvement environment, QA continues to monitor cloud performance well after the migration is over.

Business team to perform UAT and sign off

After a round of user acceptance testing, the business team finalizes states that the Product is live in the migrated environment.

Checking all boxes on your cloud migration strategy

Cloud migration is inevitable in the upcoming future with more companies investing in digital transformation post-Covid. Organizations are steadily increasing the use of cloud technology because of perks like:

- An exponential increase in bandwidth
- Low operational maintenance cost
- Agility
- Clear, achievable ROI

Quality engineering teams can tactfully handle any pre- or post-migration deployment issues such as downtime, server errors, connectivity issues, etc. Therefore, they are indispensable for ensuring data completeness and data integration at all stages during the migration.

Furthermore, QE can ensure product teams and stakeholders stay on the same page (no discrepancies in the estimation of deliverables) and have a rollback plan in place if things go south.

Cloud migration is not a standalone process. It requires proper planning. If you are facing cloud challenges and unable to decide your migration goals, be it for Azure, EC2, Google Cloud, AWS, or any other platform, you need the help of an experienced quality engineering cloud-testing provider. Choosing the right QE partner can make a massive difference in terms of saving time and resources.