What does it take to migrate on-premises Microsoft CRM to online Microsoft Dynamics 365?
So, you want to get with the modern world and move to online cloud.?Okay I get it, why not, after all the cloud is safe, fast, reliable, and with modern internet, readily accessible from just about anywhere these days.
Everything is in the cloud and it's clear that Microsoft’s entire strategy in respect of its business application is focused on cloud, and it has been for many years.
The days of clunking old servers residing in-house in those noisy server rooms (or lurking in dusty corners) are, or at least should be, long gone by now.
Yet plenty of businesses are still running Microsoft Dynamics CRM on-premises, which are likely be one of the following versions:
The most widely used is without doubt CRM 2016, comprising of either versions 8.1 or 8.2.
None of the on-premises versions listed work like or look like Microsoft Dynamics 365. The user interface is completely different, as are many of the building blocks under the hood. Dynamics 365 offers a truly modern and much improved way of doing CRM, using a much slicker user interface, (known as the Unified Interface), which has been built for modern businesses.
All the previous versions lack this more dynamic way of working (pun intended!).
Now, plenty of people think that it would be easy to migrate and upgrade from the older Microsoft Dynamics CRM to the newer Microsoft Dynamics 365.?I mean "just how hard can it be", I hear you ask.
You won’t like the answer if you were to engage a typical Microsoft Partner, who’s intention it to follow Microsoft’s procedures to get you from your current state (MS Dynamics CRM) to the desired future state (MS Dynamics 365).?
The reason you won’t like the answer is that the investment required in consultancy services to enable you to migrate is going to be extremely large. Even the most simply migration projects will likely take 15–20 days. More complex and you could be talking 50+ days and upwards. It might work for them, but for you, not so much!
In today’s challenging economic climate, I don’t think many small to medium sized businesses will enjoy paying thousands of ￡s for consultancy services to achieve getting from the older CRM into the new cloud world of D365 (D365 is how everybody refers to Microsoft Dynamics 365).
Before I explain how MyCRM can ease the pain and lesson the burden on your wallet, let me first explain what Microsoft explains partners have to do to conduct the migration and upgrade. This is done using Microsoft FastTrack services which some partners may or may not wish to follow (many do not).
As you can see from the below it’s rather involved and complex and not without risk of things not working. Please skip if you lose the will to read the techi bit!
KEY FACTORS TO CONSIDER
Data migrated through the FastTrack services may be transferred to, stored, and processed anywhere that Microsoft maintains facilities (except as otherwise provided for your FastTrack engagement). The FastTrack services aren't designed or intended for data subject to special legal or regulatory requirements.
In order to perform the migration, your source environment must be a version of Dynamics CRM 2011, Dynamics CRM 2013, Dynamics CRM 2015, or Dynamics CRM 2016, and SQL Server must be a version of SQL Server 2008, SQL Server 2012, SQL Server 2014, or SQL Server 2016, whereas Dynamics CRM and SQL Server versions must be aligned with the documented supportability statements.
Unforeseen issues (including but not limited to unreadable or corrupt items in the source environment) may prevent some items from being migrated.
It is the customer's responsibility to perform the mitigation or fixing of unsupported customisation or SQL Server-level changes that might block the database migration via this method.
Microsoft performs the following during migrations:
Conduct a migration walkthrough workshop covering the process and approach for the selected migration scenario.
Provide prerequisites for assessment and migration tools as applicable for the scenario.
Provide prerequisites for migration team access to the source and target environment for the purpose of assessment and migration.
Make the Dynamics 365 Lifecycle Services portal and the Dynamics CRM On-premises to Dynamics 365 Online Migration Tool available to customers in accordance with the terms and conditions for such usage.
Assist in running assessment and migration tools (if applicable).
Configure migration infrastructure in preparation for content migration (when applicable).
Conduct a limited test migration to validate the migration infrastructure and required prerequisites.
Conduct one pilot migration prior to production CRM migration.
Provide guidance on migration scheduling for the selected scenario.
Participate in migration issues triage and provide guidance on potential remediation options.
Provide a final migration report for each migration.
Provide post-migration assistance during user acceptance testing up to five days past migration completion.
You perform the following during migrations:
Provide project resources recommended for assessment and migration activities. These include:
o??Project management.
o??User acceptance testing (UAT).
o??Admins responsible for source and target content platforms.
Provide infrastructure prerequisites for assessment and migration activities (if required).
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Provide access and permissions to the staging and target environments to Microsoft personnel to perform migration activities (if required).
·??????Complete assessment data gathering activities (if applicable).
·??????Complete remediation activities outlined in the FastTrack-provided remediation report (if applicable).
·??????Provide a migration schedule using FastTrack templates and guidance.
·??????Conduct migration quality assurance and user acceptance testing.
·??????Conduct post-migration remediation (if applicable).
·??????Plan and implement change management and user communications (if applicable).
·??????Administrate and configure any changes to the source system and devices required for successful completion of assessment and migration activities.
?IN OUR OPINION THE CHANCES OF A SMOOTH AND SUCCESSFUL MIGRATION FROM ON-PREMISES TO CLOUD FOLLOWING THE ABOVE STEPS ARE VERY LOW.
IN THE MAJORITY OF CASES, MOST MICROSOFT PARTNERS WILL ABANDON A MIGRATION AND PREFER TO SET UP A NEW D365 CLOUD INSTANCES BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO MIGRATE THE DATA TAKEN FROM THE OLD ON-PEREMISE INSTANCE.?
THIS REALLY EQUATES TO STARTING OVER AND IS THE REASON WHY MANY PROJECTS OF THIS NATURE TAKE A GREAT DEAL OF EFFORT AND MONEY TO COMPLETE.
HERE IS THE GOOD NEWS!
Actually, some VERY good news, as MyCRM have already gone through the pain of building a Dynamics CRM version 9.1 platform, which is the same as what Microsoft offers on their hosted.
So, essentially, we are providing D365, only we’re not allowed to call it that.?It is however the same thing; it shares the same modern user interface (UI) as well as all the functionality. If you want cloud and modern Dynamics CRM then this is for you.
Our hosted platform is fully managed, and support for the application is included in our monthly hosting fee, based on a typically cost per user per month. However, unlike Microsoft, we do not believe that any customer should have to sign up and commit to a minimum contract term of 12 months. Our service is purely delivered on a 1-month rolling contract.
Hosting is delivered by the power of Rackspace, a well-known, highly trusted and advanced certified secure data centre located in London, UK. The MyCRM Dynamics CRM v9.1 application is covered by a 99.99% uptime availability guarantee. That’s slightly better than what Microsoft provide.
If you compare MyCRM’s offering to Microsoft’s D365 offerings, ours compares to Dynamics 365 Sales Enterprise in terms of overall functionality.
Microsoft’s pricing for this is currently ￡78.10 per user per month. Microsoft do not include backups as part of this charge.
The MyCRM price is just ￡49.95 per user per month, and this includes backups as part of the service - a saving each month of ￡28.15 for each and every user. That can really start to add up you know!
Yes, our price point is even lower than Microsoft’s ‘Professional’ license offering which is ￡53.40 per user per month.
?Now, before anyone gets too carried away by the monthly savings to be had, it’s VERY important to consider that this is only one part of the overall financial consideration.
As mentioned, trying to do a migration is complex and because of that it’s likely to be VERY expensive. With so much to do, projects typically take too long and end up costing way more than first quoted. It’s very easy to see cost spiral out of control once complexity unravels challenges – especially when it comes to data migration and existing customisations.
No Nasty Surprises
With more than 16 years of experiences delivering Dynamics CRM and hosting it for our numerous customers, we have already built a solution that allows us to migrate Dynamics CRM users from any version from version 2011 onward.
Our new shiny version 9.1 platform awaits and getting you there is something we’ve done many, many, times before. We don’t like nasty surprises at all, so we are careful to ensure you don’t get any!
After an initial Upgrade Assessment, we will provide you with a fixed price to migrate and upgrade you. No extra’s, no broken promises, and no false dawns - just what you need in a way that makes sense and that doesn’t break the bank.
So, if you want to move to cloud Microsoft Dynamics, MyCRM offers the perfect solution to ensure you get there without any all the hype, BS and jargon laden slick sales tactics.
Yes, we really do deliver what you want and will work with you to deliver what you really need, not what we think we can sell you!
Post Migration and Live
So, the work is complete and now you have your new upgraded, improved and easier to use Microsoft Dynamics CRM version 9.1 in the cloud. Yes it's business as usual albeit made a great deal better. However, it doesn't stop there as working with us means that MyCRM is here to help you every step of the way. We manage your CRM ongoing, help your users, and most important ensure that you are making the best use from the technology you have invested in.?
The way we work at MyCRM is not like just another SaaS (software as a service) provider. Just like you do, we also know just how important customers are, so we strive to make sure you are always supported and highly content with the services we provide.
If you want to discuss how we can help you and your business, or have any question relating to Dynamics CRM upgrades, just connect or send me a DM.
Thanks for reading.
See you soon.
Mike
Visit: mycrmgroup.com
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1 年Thanks for Sharing.
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1 年great article that explains how