Microsoft Azure migration and modernization
Move the estate you have. Build the platform you need next.
CPI Consulting helps organisations leave ageing datacentres, end-of-support platforms and unmanaged cost behind. We assess the full IT estate, choose the right Azure path for each workload, and deliver a migration your teams can operate.
One estate. One plan.
Why estates move now
Migration is rarely just a technology project.
Most moves to Azure start with a date, a contract or a risk the business can no longer carry. The organisations that get value from the move treat it as a chance to reduce cost, free scarce IT capacity and prepare data and applications for analytics and AI.
A decision with a date on it
Unsupported platforms are already a migration trigger.
Extended support for SQL Server 2016 ended on 14 July 2026. Extended support for Windows Server 2016 ends on 12 January 2027. Waiting turns a planned move into an emergency, with higher risk and fewer good options.
CPI maps what you still run, which workloads can take Extended Security Updates as a bridge, and which should move to Azure Virtual Machines, Azure SQL or a managed database before the next renewal.
Why Azure
A cloud that can hold the estate you already run.
Azure is built for mixed estates: Windows and Linux, SQL and open source, VMware and containers, plus the identity, security and data services around them. CPI uses that breadth so you are not forced into a single migration pattern.
These are Microsoft-cited research findings, not a CPI guarantee. Actual results depend on the estate, licensing, region and how the move is run. We use them to frame the business case, then replace them with your numbers.
Azure modernization services
From first inventory to a platform you can run.
We stay with the work. Strategy, landing zone, migration and the operating model are delivered by the same senior team, not handed between sales and a distant factory.
01 / ASSESS
Estate discovery and business case
See what you have, what it depends on, and what it is worth moving.
- Server, application and database inventory
- Dependency mapping and end-of-support exposure
- Azure Migrate assessment, right-sizing and TCO
- Quick wins, retire candidates and wave priorities
02 / DECIDE
6R roadmap for every workload
Not every application deserves the same treatment. We choose the path that matches business value and risk.
- Rehost, replatform, refactor, rebuild, replace or retire
- IaaS, PaaS, containers or managed database targets
- VMware, Azure Local and hybrid decisions
- Licensing, Azure Hybrid Benefit and savings-plan options
03 / LAND
Landing zone and migration architecture
A move fails when identity, network and security are invented during cutover.
- Cloud Adoption Framework landing zone
- Entra ID, network, backup and management design
- Defender for Cloud and governance baselines
- Infrastructure as code for repeatable deployment
04 / MOVE
Infrastructure and VMware migration
Get workloads out of the datacentre without pretending every server should be rewritten first.
- Windows and Linux virtual machines
- Azure VMware Solution where speed and skills matter
- Azure Local for edge, disconnected or residency needs
- Test migrations, cutover planning and rollback
05 / MODERNIZE
Applications and data platforms
Use the migration to reduce the platforms your team has to babysit.
- .NET and Java upgrades toward App Service or AKS
- Azure SQL, SQL Managed Instance, PostgreSQL and MySQL
- Oracle and open-source paths, assessed not assumed
- SQL Server 2025 where cloud is not the first move
06 / RUN
Secure operations and AI readiness
The project is finished when the estate is observable, supportable and ready for what comes next.
- Cost, backup, patching and resilience baselines
- Microsoft Sentinel and Defender for Cloud operations
- A data path toward Microsoft Fabric and Azure AI
- Team handover, not a black-box environment
Start with the estate, not a tool demo.
Tell us what is expiring, what the board is asking, and where the team is stuck. We will tell you what is worth assessing first.
Pathways that fit the workload
Modernize in the order the business can absorb.
Azure gives you more than one destination. CPI sequences them so quick exits do not block the deeper modernization that creates lasting savings.
Move servers without a rewrite
Lift Windows, Linux and SQL Server onto Azure Virtual Machines when the deadline is the datacentre, not the application design. Fastest time to value, with a plan for what still needs managing.
Change the platform, not the business logic
Move suitable .NET and Java apps to App Service or Azure Kubernetes Service, and SQL workloads to Azure SQL Managed Instance or Azure Database for PostgreSQL, with configuration-level change rather than a rebuild.
Keep what is valuable. Retire what is brittle.
For applications that still matter, we use a staged redesign: containers, integration, APIs and, where it helps, GitHub Copilot to speed code and infrastructure updates. Not every app earns this investment.
Exit, extend or gradually leave the stack
Azure VMware Solution preserves skills and tooling for a fast datacentre exit. Native Azure IaaS and PaaS remove the VMware subscription over time. We recommend the path that matches the contract, not the slogan.
Make databases ready for more than reports
Agentic workloads expose weak databases: latency, concurrency, weak audit and no path to vector or AI features. We modernize SQL and open-source data with minimal downtime options, including Arc-assisted SQL migration where it fits.
Keep control where the workload must stay
Azure Local and Azure Arc suit sites that need local compute, disconnected operation, data residency or a slower move. You still get Azure management, security posture and a route to public cloud services.
How an engagement runs
Discover, decide, land, move, then govern.
The method follows Azure Essentials: Cloud Adoption Framework, Well-Architected review and a security baseline, applied to your estate rather than a generic workshop.
01
Discover
Inventory servers, apps and databases. Capture dependencies, utilisation and support risk.
02
Decide
Build the 6R treatment, wave plan, cost model and the workloads that should be retired.
03
Land
Prepare identity, network, landing zone and security so the first wave has somewhere safe to go.
04
Execute
Rehost and replatform for early wins. Refactor only the workloads that justify the change.
05
Govern
Cost, backup, detection and handover. Then point the platform at analytics and AI, if that is the goal.
Security is part of the move
A migrated estate that is still exposed is not modern.
Azure is operated with security controls at every layer. CPI designs those controls into the landing zone so protection is not a project that starts after go-live. For organisations that also run workloads outside Azure, Defender for Cloud can extend posture and threat protection across the estate.
Why CPI Consulting
A Microsoft Partner that stays on the tools.
CPI Consulting is a Melbourne practice working with mid-size and enterprise organisations. You get a senior architect on the engagement, Australian operating context, and a delivery style that prefers a working landing zone over a slide deck.
Talk to CPI
Bring us the constraint. We will bring a path.
A datacentre renewal, a Windows or SQL support date, a VMware decision, or a board request to get ready for AI. Start with a conversation. If an assessment is the right next step, we will say so.
CPI Consulting Pty Ltd • Melbourne • Microsoft Partner