Migration of On-Premise Workload for Financial Institution to AWS Lagos Local Zone for Data Residency Requirements

Introduction

In an era of evolving digital landscapes and stringent data residency requirements, financial institutions face the challenge of migrating on-premise workloads to cloud environments that comply with local regulations. This case study explores the successful migration of GT Pensions Managers' on-premise workloads to the Lagos Local Zone, enabling adherence to Nigerian data residency laws while improving scalability, security, and operational efficiency.

Background

GT Pensions Managers, a leading Nigerian financial institution, specializes in managing pension funds and investments. To enhance data security and comply with local regulations, the company decided to migrate its infrastructure to the AWS Lagos Local Zone, ensuring customer data remains within Nigerian borders.

Challenges

GT Pensions Managers faced the following challenges:

• Downtime Minimization: Ensuring minimal business disruption during migration.
• Data Residency Compliance: Adhering to Nigerian regulations for data storage.
• Scalability: Managing increasing data volumes and business growth.
• Security: Strengthening the security of sensitive customer data.
• Operational Efficiency: Improving infrastructure management and service delivery.

Solution

GT Pensions Managers partnered with CloudPlexo to execute a seamless migration of its workloads to the AWS cloud, using the Lagos Local Zone.

Planning and Assessment

• Conducted a comprehensive assessment of on-premise infrastructure.
• Developed a detailed migration roadmap, including rollback strategies.

AWS Architecture Design

• Designed a highly available, secure, and scalable Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) architecture.

Migration Execution

• Migrated workloads using AWS MGN, ensuring data integrity and security.
• Securely transferred Microsoft SQL Server, IIS Server, and Active Directory data.
• Implemented encryption for data in transit and at rest.

Security and Compliance

• Adopted advanced security protocols: encryption, IAM policies, and regular audits.
• Ensured compliance with Nigerian data residency regulations.

Testing and Validation

• Conducted rigorous testing (e.g., failover scenarios, load testing).
• Validated the seamless integration of all services dependent on Active Directory.

Deployment and Optimization

• Monitored performance using AWS Systems Manager, AWS CloudWatch, and AWS Config.
• Optimized configurations and automated patch management for efficiency.

Governance and Backup

• Implemented governance with AWS Control Tower and custom service controls.
• Established robust backup protocols with AWS Backup Service.

Results

Key Benefits

• Improved Scalability: On-demand scaling for business growth.
• Enhanced Reliability: High availability and performance with AWS infrastructure.
• Cost Efficiency: Reduced operational expenses by eliminating on-premise hardware.
• Streamlined Management: Simplified infrastructure management using AWS tools.
• Advanced Security: Strengthened protection of customer data with AWS's robust features.
• Data Residency Compliance: Full adherence to Nigerian data storage regulations.
• Operational Continuity: Seamless migration ensured uninterrupted operations.

Conclusion

The successful migration of GT Pensions Managers' workloads to the AWS Lagos Local Zone highlights the transformative benefits of strategic cloud adoption. By achieving compliance with data residency laws and leveraging AWS's scalable and secure infrastructure, GT Pensions Managers strengthened their position as a forward-thinking financial institution, delivering exceptional services to clients while ensuring operational excellence.

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