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The Migration Problem

If you are serving IT needs of an enterprise, chances are that in 2010 you will have to face the problem of migration to Windows 7. Gartner adds that this will most probably happen next time you buy new workstations.

So how do you do this? How do you get from existing, personalized workstations running Windows XP or Vista - to Windows 7? After all, you have to preserve all the existing user data, applications, settings, look and feel - everything that makes them productive. Just deploying the same image for everyone won't cut it - and Microsoft does not provide any upgrade path at all from Windows XP to Windows 7, which 83% of the enterprises are still running.

All these hardships drive the migration cost estimate to $1,930 per user, according to a Gartner cost model.

How do we solve this?

 

Balancing the interests

 

A migration process can be seen as a balancing of IT and End-user interests.

IT interests:

 

IT administrators constantly need to move applications, data and personalization settings to new computers and/or OSs. The problem is that it is hard to troubleshoot and resolve desktop personalization configuration issues. Furthermore, non-standard applications, user settings, and user-created data files are not on the “golden image”.

From SMB to LE, IT needs to provide the best experience for the users – while cutting down costs. To do this, IT staff wants to:

  • Eliminate desk-side visits
  • Reduce support tickets
  • Reduce time spent on software installations and configurations

 

User interests:

 

  • Dislike changes
  • Do not care about hidden directories, registry, proxies, DLLs, roaming profiles
  • Do not care about OSs
  • Only care about having the apps they want, working exactly as they want

 

Migration pitfalls

 

What are the common pitfalls to be aware of when migrating a personalized user system to a new OS?

1. Software conflicts:

When the old system runs GreatApp 3.0, and the new one has GreatApp 4.0, migration is problematic.

Do you leave the old one and uninstall the new one? That would prevent you from having all the new features.

Do you leave the new one? That may lead to old files and settings being incompatible with the new app - or just placed in incorrect locations.

Furthermore, sudden changes in not just the OS, but also the apps will confuse the user and hit the productivity hard. When the "Send" button moved to a new location in Office 2007, thousands of people have to call support just to send an email.

 

2. Software incompatibility:

Legacy applications may not even run on the new system. Most enterprises rely on their tailor-made applications, that are running for years and hold the business together. An IE6-based CRM not working after migration to Windows 7 is a disaster!

That's why the traditional solution for enterprise migration is to prolong the migration process for 12 to 18 months, spent extensively testing and upgrading all existing applications for the new system - all the while preventing new OS deployment in the field.

 

3. Data loss:

Manual and utility-assisted migration will, in many cases, copy only selected files to the new location. It may be just the user profile, or the My Documents folder. While this may suffice for task-based employees, this is not enough for knowledge workers.

Although the corporate policy to everything on the network-based storage, this is not the case in real-life: most users still save some work and personal documents on workstations. These are usually not even noticed - until they go missing.

To ensure a successful migration, we need to provide the confidence that all the user files are available on the new system - wherever and whatever they may be.


4. Changes in user environment and system look and feel:

Right-click menus, Outlook rules, toolbar placements, application settings - these are all subtle but powerful things. While not really noticable in your daily routine, you will feel it when they are gone. Without these settings, the new system just won't feel like home. Even look-and-feel aspects, like changes in the order of icons on the desktop, are devastating for many users, leaving them frustrated and non-productive.

How many support calls did you receive from users not being able to access Internet because the Explorer icon is missing?