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A data centre migration and a VMware exit in one move

Kirby is an Australian wholesale distributor and manufacturer serving the HVAC&R industry through branches across the country. We moved its systems out of an on-site server room into a Sydney data centre and onto Microsoft Hyper-V in the same project, and the branches stayed connected throughout.

See the dependencies we mapped Infrastructure & Cloud

The brief

The location and the platform changed in the same move

Kirby’s branches and remote users work on systems that were hosted in an on-site server room. Moving those systems into a Sydney data centre was also the point at which the virtualisation platform changed, from VMware to Microsoft Hyper-V.

Branch connectivity, remote access and the other dependencies behind each system had to move with it. Mapping them was the first job, and the cutover was built around what the map showed.

The migration plan

We mapped what each system depends on, then built the new platform before anything moved

The dependency mapping tied each hosted system to the access paths and operational requirements around it, and that set the cutover order. We built and tested the Hyper-V environment in the Sydney data centre before any production workload moved.

  1. Identity and naming Identity services and DNS
  2. Connectivity and access Network paths, firewall rules, branch connectivity and remote access
  3. Data and operations Virtual machines, storage, backup, monitoring and support processes
  4. Destination Hyper-V built and validated in the Sydney data centre
  5. Cutover Workloads moved in stages onto the tested platform

What we delivered

What the move involved

  • A Hyper-V platform built and tested in the data centre

    The Microsoft Hyper-V environment went up in the Sydney data centre first and was checked against the dependencies we had mapped before any workload moved.

  • Virtual machines converted and moved in sequence

    Each virtual machine was converted for Hyper-V, tested on the new platform and then brought live, working through the estate in a planned order.

  • Branch and remote access planned into the move

    The move was designed around how branches and remote users reach each system, and the network paths and firewall rules from the review went into the cutover plan.

  • Backup moved with the workloads

    Backup was realigned to the new platform and location, and recovery stayed in scope through cutover.

  • Cutover in stages, then checked in operation

    The cutover ran in stages. After go-live we checked the environment in operation, including monitoring and support, and then brought it into our managed infrastructure services.

Kirby’s systems now run on Hyper-V in a Sydney data centre

The move out of the server room and the change of platform happened in one project, with access, recovery and managed services handled in the same engagement.

Branches stayed connected

Branch connectivity and remote access stayed available through the migration, with the network paths and firewall rules carried into the cutover plan.

Out of the server room and off VMware

Workloads run in a purpose-built data centre on Microsoft Hyper-V, outside the VMware renewal cycle.

Managed after go‑live

The migrated environment was validated and brought into our managed infrastructure services, with monitoring and support processes in place.

Data centre migration Dependency mapping Microsoft Hyper-V VMware to Hyper-V conversion Network and firewall review Branch and remote access Backup and recovery Staged cutover Managed infrastructure
Next step

Thinking about moving out of your server room?

Describe what runs there and who depends on it. We will come back with how we would stage the move.

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