Introducing the VMware Rapid Migration Plan

Like many customers today, you are probably reevaluating how to best run your VMware workloads, and whether to keep them on-premises or move them to the cloud. Whichever path you choose, it will require an investment of time and resources. This is an opportunity to consider your long-term platform strategy – so you spend your resources wisely to reduce technical debt while you set yourself up for success in the future.

With the era of AI upon us, the benefits of running your workloads in the cloud will grow in ways that you have not yet imagined. For your company to be a leader in its industry, your IT organization needs to be ready to meet new demands:  

• Will you be ready to respond with agility to meet business needs as they arise?  
• Are you well prepared to provide the levels of security, compliance, and resiliency you need?  
• Do your developers have access to the tools they need to innovate, with proximity to the most current data and AI services?  
• Have you automated your environment to maximize efficiency, so your staff has time to work on strategic initiatives? 

A move to Azure today will give you peace of mind with access to 200+ cloud services that ensure you are ready to meet these business needs with confidence for years to come.

Start your journey with Azure VMware Solution  

Azure is a comprehensive cloud with solutions from public cloud to the edge. Azure VMware Solution is a great first step to the cloud for VMware customers, and Microsoft is committed to our partnership with Broadcom to meet the needs of our common customers.

Azure VMware Solution delivers a fully managed VMware environment in Azure that is operated and supported by Microsoft. You can move VMware workloads to Azure “as is” so your applications require little or no refactoring. This streamlines migration and you can continue using familiar skills while learning new Azure skills. The State of Alaska recently migrated 1,200 servers comprising 700 applications in less than three months. The state faces unique challenges due to its size and geography, and the move to centralize applications and data on Azure improved resiliency and security, while helping the state enhance data transparency to its citizens.

As part of your move, we recommend that you optimize with Azure monitoring, security, automation, and other services. This approach has been successfully adopted by Knorr-Bremse, a global manufacturing firm based in Germany. They utilized Azure Migrate and Modernize to facilitate their transition, which included planning, migration, and staff training for Azure skills. They now efficiently run their workloads using Azure VMware Solution as well as other Azure IaaS and PaaS services. The beauty of Azure management services like Azure Monitor is that you can use them across all your cloud workloads and extend them to manage VMware workloads on-premises or even those running in other clouds. With this adaptive approach, Azure becomes your new unified IT operations center with access to any Azure service you need now or in the future. 

Get started with the VMware Rapid Migration Plan  

With the VMware Rapid Migration Plan, Microsoft provides a comprehensive set of licensing benefits and programs to give you price protection and savings as you migrate to Azure VMware Solution.

Get price protection and savings 

Use Reserved Instances to lock in pricing for one, three or five years. We are happy to offer a 20% discount on Azure VMware Solution when you purchase a new one-year Reserved Instance before December 31, 2024. The five-year Reserved Instance for Azure VMware Solution is only available for a limited time and access ends on June 30, 2024.

Save with existing Windows Server and SQL Server licenses 

Windows Server and SQL Server commonly run on VMware environments. With a purchase of Software Assurance, you can run cloud versions of Windows Server and SQL Server in Azure VMware Solution without any additional licensing costs. And you get free Extended Security Updates for older versions that face end of life. 

Get migration assistance 

Use Azure Migrate and Modernize to get resources, expert help, and funding for a streamlined migration.  

Get Azure credits to modernize 

When you buy a new Reserved Instance for Azure VMware Solution, you can get an additional Azure credit of up to $120,000*. Use this for Azure VMware Solution, or consider using it for other Azure services to help you optimize and modernize in the cloud.

Source: microsoft.com