7 Critical Success Factors for Moving to Open Source Databases (Like Postgres)
Curate a clear database migration strategy for best results
Unlocking agility and scalability in data management
Businesses today face mounting pressure to undergo digital transformation, yet many find themselves hindered by legacy systems. These outdated database solutions, once deemed suitable, now fall short due to their inflexibility, high costs, and limited integration capabilities. Sticking with these systems could lead to market irrelevance, making it crucial to explore alternatives.
The alternative? Successful enterprises often turn to open source databases, like Postgres, which provide the agility, scalability, and control needed to harness the full power of data.
Backed by vibrant communities and enterprise-grade tools, Postgres not only meets the demands of IT personnel but also positions organizations for transformative outcomes. With 80% of IT leaders anticipating increased adoption of open source software for emerging technologies, understanding and leveraging these solutions has never been more critical.
Understanding your drivers and strategy
Before determining which open source database is right for you, you must identify why you are moving your data and applications, how you plan to do so, and what you expect to accomplish. The answers to these three questions will help you build the foundation of your strategy and ensure you have metrics in place to gauge the success of your efforts.
What Are Your Drivers?
Understanding why you decided to switch to open source is essential. While the umbrella term “digital transformation” may apply, consider the specific motivations that can shape your strategy.
Why open source?
Open source options like Postgres offer significant advantages over legacy databases, such as flexibility and community-driven innovation. Many organizations are adopting open source due to mandates like those from the European Commission, which facilitate efficient code sharing. Postgres’s compatibility with various tools enhances workflow continuity and empowers innovation without the constraints seen in proprietary software.
Benefits of Postgres
Postgres is a cost-effective solution driving innovation through its robust community support. Recognized as a transformative technology, it supports a wide range of enterprise applications, positioning itself as a preferred choice for moving database applications to an open source platform. Developers consistently rank it as the most loved and wanted database, suggesting a promising growth trajectory.
Cloud advantages
For enterprises looking to mitigate reliance on traditional RDBMS systems, embracing cloud technology offers substantial advantages, such as reducing costs and enabling flexibility. Cloud adoption allows for re-platforming and modernizing applications, facilitating a shift from outdated systems to more efficient, microservices-based architectures.
Database Strategy Options
Lift and shift
A lift and shift strategy involves migrating your existing on-premises architecture to the cloud without alteration. This approach is efficient only if there’s inherent compatibility between the old and new environments.
Replatforming
Replatforming encompasses modifying applications to enhance compatibility with open source or cloud environments, often requiring restructuring through microservices to leverage scalability and new features.
New applications
Building new applications may be preferable for outdated applications lacking value. This strategy often proves less resource-intensive than attempting to salvage legacy systems, focusing instead on valuable transformations.
Defining Success
It’s crucial to define how to measure project success in the post-migration phase. This includes ensuring that the Postgres environment meets performance expectations and aligns with overarching business objectives, such as improving application adoption, expanding customer bases, or enhancing database responsiveness to specific commands. Identifying key performance indicators will help you prioritize during configuration and align with desired outcomes.
What long-term success looks like to you ultimately ties back to your drivers:
- Are you striving for increased adoption of your applications by customers?
- Are you looking to expand your customer base by a certain percentage or maybe prevent the loss of existing customers to competitors?
- Are you looking to maintain, restructure, or rebuild your central applications?
- What sort of commands from your applications do you need your database to respond to?
- What non-functional requirements (more on this later) are you prioritizing? Scalability? Security? High-availability?
Even if the answer is as simple as growing your revenue or “all of the above,” knowing how you’ll measure your success is key to figuring out your priorities for your new database and, as a result, how you’ll configure it.
Essential factors for open source migration
Once you’ve defined the reasons for moving to an open source database environment, it’s essential to outline its structure, functionality, and your specific requirements to facilitate transformation. With many businesses selecting Postgres, we’ll use it as our primary example.
Deployment Options
A crucial question regarding a Postgres database is the level of management you’re willing to handle. More responsibility equals greater control, but also increases workload for IT and operations teams. Let’s review the main deployment options and their implications for your database needs.
Virtual Machines (VMs) and Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS)
Using VMs demands the most internal management, requiring both an infrastructure architect and an infrastructure database administrator (DBA). While it may seem daunting, this approach is valued by those seeking maximum control, allowing for minimal architectural changes and easing the transition for critical applications.
Your architecture also does not change from a traditional on-prem architecture, making it easier to move applications and make use of critical solutions without much of a learning curve.
Kubernetes
Kubernetes reduces the need for a DBA because an operator handles the Kubernetes system management. However, it limits architectural flexibility, which may frustrate users who moved away from legacy databases for this reason. Maintaining your architecture in an on-prem state requires a microservice transformation, which can present challenges.
Database-as-a-Service (DBaaS)
With the DBaaS approach, you don’t need an infrastructure architect or DBA, as the service provider such as EDB manages all infrastructure. This option sacrifices some flexibility but provides greater elasticity and on-demand capabilities. For businesses less focused on customizing every aspect of their architecture, DBaaS is popular and allows reallocating resources from infrastructure management to innovation. It's praised for its adaptability, ease of deployment, low administrative overhead, and cost-effectiveness.
Functional and Non-functional Requirements
Functional requirements
Understanding functional requirements is vital when considering DBaaS solutions. These relate to the commands your applications will send to the database and the services it must provide. Examples include creating new employees, compiling payroll data, or adjusting salaries. Provider distinctions, including but not limited to relational vs. non-relational, SQL vs. non-SQL, schema vs. non-schema, and structured vs. unstructured pertain to how databases will interact with your applications. Assessing your application needs will ultimately guide your investment choices.
Non-functional requirements
Non-functional requirements refer to the efficiency of the database in performing tasks – its speed, capacity for multi-functionality, and overall consistency. This category includes scalability, high availability, performance, and security, focused on how well your applications and database communicate rather than if they can do so.
Consider the 5R’s for the move to open source database
As you consider your transition to Postgres, it's critical to examine the various strategies available. Each option is often driven by similar motivations and requires distinct evaluations of its effectiveness. This section aligns with the three questions posed in the initial part of the guide and introduces the 5 R’s of Rationalization to explore your choices.
The 5 R’s of Rationalization
EDB is a database company to the core; we excel in PostgreSQL and offer innovative database-as-a-service (DBaaS) options.
1. Rehost
Also known as "lift and shift", rehosting refers to the moving of assets to a new database provider with minimal architectural changes.
Reasons to rehost:
- Cost reduction
- Space efficiency
- Utilizing new features or technologies
Considerations:
- Network traffic
- Asset compatibility
- Business continuity risks
- Onboarding difficulties
2. Refactor
Adapting application codes for Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) environments.
Reasons to refactor:
- Quicker updates
- Enhanced code portability
- Improved efficiency
Considerations:
- Application size
- Network bandwidth
- Database CPU availability
- Business dependencies
3. Rearchitect
Businesses looking to deploy Postgres in the cloud often opt to rearchitect. Rearchitecting refers to updating application architectures for continued cloud compatibility.
Reasons to rearchitect:
- Access to cloud capabilities
- Enhanced application agility
- Storage flexibility
Considerations:
- Application size
- Network requirements
- Database CPU resources
- Development tools
- DevOps impact and potential strain
- Business dependencies
4. Rebuild
Businesses may rebuild their applications with a new code base that aligns with their new DBMS if the existing ones are too costly to maintain.
Reasons to rebuild:
- Lower operational costs
- Drive innovation
- Speedier development
Considerations:
- Application and asset scale
- Application limitation on business processes
- Network bandwidth
- CPU constraints
- Development languages
- End-user responses
- Major business dependencies
- Rebuilding costs
5. Replace
Businesses may choose to invest in pre-built solutions to retire existing applications.
Reasons to replace:
- Standardizing best practices
- Accelerating process adoption
- Focusing resources on competitive applications
Considerations:
- Operating cost impact
- Current application architecture vs. SaaS solutions
- Asset retirement needs
Effects on automated workflows
Key roles and considerations for your transition to an open source database
When migrating to an open source database, expect various changes that require thorough preparation. Open communication is crucial for identifying who needs training and clarifying responsibilities to ensure a smooth transition.
Key Roles
Architects
Engage with architects early to discuss how your assets' architecture will shift. Their familiarity with the new environment is essential for testing and maintaining business continuity. While some open source databases allow for minimal changes, others demand significant adjustments that the architects need to be aware of.
Developers
Developers primarily focus on testing applications post-migration. Their role is critical, as ensuring application functionality impacts business elements like security and compliance.
Third-party support
For enterprise-grade workloads, rely on experienced database experts for continual support. EDB's extensive work with Postgres provides expertise and tools that streamline management while minimizing complexity, allowing your team to concentrate on strategic initiatives.
Leverage existing skills
Migrating from Oracle may seem daunting, but EDB's feature-rich Postgres platform is designed to mirror Oracle functionalities, enabling your team to utilize their existing skills effectively.
Downtime Management
Preparing for migration involves understanding your available downtime. For example, migrating 5 TB of data might take one to two weeks, which could necessitate application downtime.
Implementing “Change Data Capture” through EDB’s Replication Server allows data to be copied and updated during migration, preserving business continuity by minimizing disruptions. This strategy highlights EDB's “Always-On Postgres” approach, facilitating migrations without compromising critical operations.
Preparations to make for a successful open source database migration
At this point, you’re in a position to execute your move to Postgres or your chosen open source database. However, to ensure that everything gets where it needs to go, and functions properly once there, you must move the components of your business in specific, strategic waves.
Moving to open source in 3 simple steps
1. DB schema, codes, and data
Migrate the schema, functionality, and data as a snapshot or via Change Data Capture (CDC). This step forms the foundation of your new database and highlights any gaps to fill, influencing your cutover timelines.
2. Interfaces and applications
During this phase, shift APIs (JDBC, ODBC, OCI, .NET, etc.), convert embedded SQL, and move applications. Testing is crucial to ensure proper functionality and integration between your applications and database.
3. Reports and management tools
Lastly, prepare to transfer reports, DBA utilities, and scripts to ensure your management tools are effective and reports can be generated through platforms like SQLPlus, Tableau, or Qlik.
Each step's order is vital for an organized and secure architecture, with particular attention needed during the first phase. If your schema, codes, and data aren't properly set, your interfaces and applications will fail, preventing teams and customers from accessing essential tools and services.
Support for business availability
Unplanned outages can be detrimental, with 80% of data centers experiencing one in the last two years. EDB Postgres Distributed enhances operational resilience and disaster recovery, ensuring high availability and continuous access to data and applications during migrations or upgrades.
Validate critical capabilities post-migration
Once you’ve completed your move or transformation into open source, it’s essential to test everything you’ve moved across the board. This will ensure that your most essential applications are working and help guarantee that your digital transformation journey is on the right track.
Functionality Advantages
Testing applications is vital for preventing downtime and efficiently managing outages, whether they affect internal operations or customer interactions. Maintaining consistent performance is key to business continuity and customer satisfaction.
Security Considerations
Applications managing vital data must operate correctly to ensure security. If issues arise, identifying the cause quickly is essential to protect sensitive information. Effective testing helps mitigate vulnerabilities and prevent potential breaches.
Compliance Assurance
Maintaining compliance with industry regulations is critical, particularly for applications dealing with sensitive data. While security breaches are already a black mark on a business’ reputation, they can also lead to substantial penalties. Violating compliance regulations such as GDPR even accidentally, is a major issue. Regular testing minimizes the risk of security breaches and compliance violations, protecting your reputation and avoiding penalties.
Access innovation at your fingertips
One of the greatest strengths of open source databases is the community that builds it, made up of experts and enthusiasts who are always working to make the solution better. The Postgres community ships significant releases with high quality on a predictable cadence. This means that bugs are identified and fixed swiftly and updates are regularly and easily available.
As you’re considering investing in open source, we encourage you to explore all the resources at your disposal. Adjusting to a new DBMS can sometimes feel tricky, but with Postgres you’ll find businesses whose needs and drivers align closely with yours, as well as information on exactly how to make the most of your enterprise’s new home.
Yes, organizations come to Postgres for all sorts of reasons: cost, flexibility, integration. But, it’s the innovation they stay for. And that’s all thanks to the community.
Get started with PostgreSQL with EDB
These seven critical success factors will ensure you’re equipped to move your business technology forward to the future. With clear objectives and the right methods to deploy them; an understanding of your options and which work best for your enterprise; team preparedness and application environment due diligence; and a direct line to the builders and innovators bringing Postgres to the world – you’re on the fast track to agility and scalability.
Businesses in pursuit of digital transformation and true innovation have long found that open source is their best answer, and the potential of Postgres is limitless. Offering a massive leap forward in flexibility, Postgres has significant knock-on effects that drive a culture of innovation and give every member of your organization the freedom to try things. It’s the ideal home for digital transformation.
The best part is you don’t have to do this alone. EDB has helped thousands of organizations harness the power of Postgres, and we’ve seen firsthand what they’ve accomplished. With your enterprise’s vision combined with our decades of expertise, the future can be even more exciting than you imagined.
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Database migration refers to the process of transferring data between storage types, formats, or systems. This may involve moving data from one database system to another, such as transferring from an Oracle database to PostgreSQL. Database migration projects are often undertaken to upgrade to a newer database version, consolidate multiple databases, or move to a different database vendor that better suits the organization's needs.
Businesses may consider migrating to an open source database for several reasons, including cost savings, flexibility, enhanced features, robust community support, and improved scalability which can drive innovation. Open source databases like PostgreSQL offer a cost-effective alternative to proprietary solutions while providing a rich set of features and the ability to customize the database to specific business requirements.
To ensure data integrity during migration, employ techniques such as data validation, thorough testing of migrated data, and using Change Data Capture (CDC) to monitor data changes throughout the process. Validating data at each stage of migration helps identify and resolve any discrepancies, while CDC ensures that all changes made to the source database are accurately reflected in the target database.
Before starting migration, conduct an analysis of your existing environment, back up all critical data, assess compatibility issues, and develop a detailed migration plan outlining the steps to be taken. Assessing the source and target databases for compatibility helps identify and address any potential issues early in the process, while a comprehensive migration plan serves as a roadmap for a successful transition
The duration of a database migration can vary significantly based on the complexity of the data, the size of the database, and the selected migration strategy. On average, migrations can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks. Factors such as the volume of data, the need for data transformation, and the availability of resources can impact the overall timeline of the migration project.
Testing is vital in the migration process to ensure that applications function correctly in the new environment. It helps identify issues early, safeguards against downtime, and ensures compliance and security standards are maintained. Comprehensive testing, including unit testing, integration testing, and user acceptance testing, should be conducted at various stages of the migration process to validate the integrity and functionality of the migrated data.
Yes, EDB offers a suite of tools designed to simplify the migration process from Oracle and other databases to PostgreSQL, enabling businesses to transition smoothly while minimizing downtime and data loss. These tools include schema conversion utilities, data migration scripts, and performance tuning utilities that help streamline the migration process and ensure a successful transition to PostgreSQL.
EDB provides comprehensive support throughout the migration process, including pre-migration assessments, post-migration validation, and ongoing technical assistance to ensure optimal database performance and business continuity. EDB's team of experts works closely with customers to develop a customized migration plan, address specific challenges, and provide guidance on best practices for managing and optimizing the PostgreSQL database.
Absolutely. EDB offers training programs and resources to help your team effectively adapt to PostgreSQL, enhancing their skills and ensuring they leverage the full potential of the new database system. These training programs cover various aspects of PostgreSQL administration, development, and optimization, equipping your team with the knowledge and confidence to manage and maintain the database effectively.
Yes, EDB offers post-migration support services to assist with any challenges that may arise after the transition, ensuring your database remains functional and effective in meeting your business needs. EDB's support includes troubleshooting, performance optimization, and ongoing database management, allowing customers to focus on their core business objectives while EDB ensures the smooth operation of their PostgreSQL environment.
Gain access to continuous support from EDB and the Postgres community.
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