Optimizing Cloud Operations with GCP Migration Solutions

Business Opportunity

Large-scale Migration in 1 Month

The client is a leading multinational EdTech company, which provides online learning solutions designed for students across various age groups. Known for its interactive and personalized educational content, it combines innovative teaching methods with technology to deliver enhanced learning experiences. The platform offers courses for K-12 education, test preparation for competitive exams, and skill-building programs, aiming to make quality education accessible worldwide. 

The client faced challenges with workload consolidation, outdated applications, lack of AWS dashboard visibility, and high costs, prompting them to seek a new cloud service provider for cost reduction, streamlined operations, and improved scalability.

We migrated the client’s infrastructure from AWS to GCP, optimizing performance, cost, and operational agility. This included transitioning from AWS EKS to GCP GKE, migrating 4TB of Cassandra data, and implementing a fully automated CI/CD pipeline with ARGOCD for streamlined deployments.

The Challenge

The client faced challenges in their infrastructure management, including – 

• Workload Consolidation: The need to migrate and restructure their workloads in a new environment while addressing redundancies.
• Outdated Applications: Many applications were deprecated and not in use, creating operational inefficiencies.
• Absence of a Proper Dashboard in AWS: Lack of centralized visibility hindered effective management and decision-making.
• High Costs: Escalating AWS bills prompted the client to seek a more cost-effective solution in GCP.

Our Solution

We migrated the client’s infrastructure from AWS to GCP, ensuring improved performance, cost efficiency, and operational agility. The workloads hosted on AWS EKS were transitioned to GCP GKE, while over 4TB of data from Cassandra DB was migrated to GCP using a snapshot and restore method, marking one of the first Cassandra migrations for Niveus. Cost-effective solutions, including the integration of Cassandra with Prometheus, were implemented to optimize database performance and monitoring. 

We moved them from Flux and GitHub Actions to a fully automated CI/CD pipeline built with ARGOCD, streamlining the deployment process for easy and efficient feature updates on the app. This new pipeline enabled end-to-end automation, simplifying the deployment of new features and ensuring consistent and reliable delivery.

In addition, we set up a GKE environment, deploying applications in clusters, and ensuring seamless connectivity with the database. Prometheus, Grafana, and Loki were implemented within the GKE cluster for effective monitoring, along with the setup of Victoria Metrics for enhanced performance insights. 

We migrated MySQL and PostgreSQL to GCP Cloud SQL, using the Database Migration Service for continuous replication. Memorystore for Redis was deployed to support high-performance caching in GCP. For Cassandra, we provisioned VM infrastructure and performed backup and restore operations for a smooth data transition. Lastly, Elasticsearch was migrated to GCP for Exam Preparation App, ensuring minimal downtime with a robust backup and restore process.

Results

• 4TB Data Migrated in One Month: Migrating 4TB of data in just one month ensured a smooth transition with minimal disruption.
• 100% CI/CD Automation: Achieving 100% automation in the CI/CD pipeline streamlined deployments and improved efficiency.
• Operational Efficiency: Streamlined client operations led to significant improvements in performance and overall efficiency.
• Cost Optimization: Optimized infrastructure and resource management helped reduce overall costs.
• Scalability & Visibility: Enhanced deployment and monitoring capabilities provided better scalability and improved system visibility.

Power of Partnership

Niveus brought exceptional value to the client through our expertise in seamlessly migrating their infrastructure from AWS to GCP, ensuring an efficient and secure transition. Leveraging deep expertise in cloud architecture and migration strategies, we demonstrated the technical skill required to consolidate complex workloads with precision and automate CI/CD pipelines. 

This involved advanced knowledge in data migration, cloud infrastructure optimization, and pipeline automation to ensure seamless transitions and efficient deployment processes. With a proven track record in successful migrations and cost optimization, we delivered a robust solution that streamlined operations, enhanced deployment capabilities, and positioned the client for future growth and scalability.

Benefits of Migrating from AWS to GCP

By moving from AWS to GCP, businesses can leverage a number of key benefits, including – 

• Improved Cost Efficiency: GCP offers flexible pricing models and better resource optimization, reducing overall cloud expenses.
• Advanced Analytics & Machine Learning: GCP provides powerful data analytics and AI/ML tools to drive innovation and business intelligence.
• Seamless Integration: Easy integration with Google’s ecosystem of tools, boosting productivity and operational efficiency.
• Better Scalability: GCP’s infrastructure allows businesses to easily scale operations while ensuring high performance and reliability.
• Enhanced Security: Advanced security features, including encryption and identity management, strengthen data protection and compliance.