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Migrating to Azure: Azure Migrate and Azure Data Box

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Azure architecture and services

Migrating to Azure: Azure Migrate and Azure Data Box

Short Summary

Migrating to Azure usually has two parts: understanding what I have, and then moving it. Azure Migrate helps me discover, assess, and track migrations. Azure Data Box helps me move very large datasets when uploading over the network isn’t realistic.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

  • Describe what Azure Migrate does in a typical migration.
  • Differentiate migration assessment/tracking from bulk data transfer.
  • Select Azure Data Box when bandwidth, time, or cost makes online transfer impractical.
  • Outline how Azure Migrate and Azure Data Box can be used together in a single migration plan.
  • Distinguish migration tools from backup and Disaster Recovery (DR) tools.

Core Concepts

Migration is planning + moving

A migration is moving workloads and data (often from on-premises) to Azure so Azure becomes the new “home.” In practice, migrations usually include:

  1. Discovery and assessment: what servers, apps, and data do we have, and what changes/costs are involved?
  2. Execution: moving data and workloads into Azure.

Azure Migrate: discover, assess, and track

Azure Migrate is Azure’s central place to plan and manage migrations. I typically use it to:

  • Discover environments (what exists today).
  • Assess readiness, dependencies, and sizing/cost considerations.
  • Track progress of migrations in one place.

A useful mental model: Azure Migrate is the “migration control center.” It helps me organize and coordinate migration work, and it integrates with tools/services that do the actual moving.

Azure Data Box: offline bulk transfer using shipped devices

Azure Data Box is designed for one specific problem: moving large amounts of data when online transfer is too slow, too expensive, or the timeline is too tight.

How it works at a high level:

  1. Microsoft ships me a Data Box device.
  2. I copy data to it locally.
  3. I ship it back.
  4. Microsoft uploads the data into Azure (for example, into an Azure Storage destination I choose).

It’s a transfer method, not an always-connected storage product.

When to use which

A simple rule of thumb:

  • If I need discovery, assessment, and progress tracking for migrating workloads, I start with Azure Migrate.
  • If I need to move tens or hundreds of Terabytes (TB) and the network can’t keep up, I consider Azure Data Box.

Migration vs backup vs DR

Migration is about moving to a new runtime location. Backup and DR are about recovery and continuity after incidents (accidental deletion, corruption, ransomware, or a major outage). Mixing these concepts often leads to the wrong tool choice.

Practical Understanding

Practical Situation 1: “We need a central place to assess what we have”

A company wants to understand what servers and workloads they run, estimate costs, and track a migration plan.

How to think about it: This is discovery + assessment + tracking, which points to Azure Migrate.

Common misunderstanding: “Azure Migrate is just a copy tool.” Azure Migrate is primarily about discovery, assessment, and managing the migration process.

Practical Situation 2: “We must move 60 TB and the network can’t handle it”

A team has 60 TB to transfer, but their internet link would take too long to upload it.

How to think about it: This is bulk transfer under bandwidth constraints, which points to Azure Data Box.

Common misunderstanding: “Data Box is where the data lives long-term.” Data Box is for transfer; the long-term storage is an Azure service after ingestion.

Practical Situation 3: “We’re migrating apps and also have a 200 TB archive”

A company is migrating workloads and also has an archive dataset around 200 TB that would take months to upload.

How to think about it: I use Azure Migrate for assessment/tracking of workload migration, and Azure Data Box for the archive dataset that’s impractical to move online.

Common misunderstanding: “One service must handle everything end-to-end.” Real migrations often combine multiple tools because the problems are different.

Practical Situation 4: “Someone suggests backup as the migration plan”

A team proposes: “Let’s just use backup to get our on-premises environment into Azure.”

How to think about it: Backup is about restore points; migration is about moving and running in Azure. For migration planning/tracking I look at Azure Migrate; for bulk offline transfer I look at Azure Data Box.

Common misunderstanding: “Backup equals migration.” Backup can be part of a safe plan, but it doesn’t replace migration assessment or the migration execution approach.

Common Pitfalls

  • Mistake: Assuming Azure Migrate is only about copying workloads. Correction: Treat Azure Migrate as the hub for discovery, assessment, and tracking, with integrations that help execute the move.
  • Mistake: Treating Azure Data Box as a general online storage service. Correction: Use Data Box as an offline transfer method; store and serve data from Azure services after ingestion.
  • Mistake: Using Data Box for small, routine transfers. Correction: Reserve Data Box for cases where online transfer is impractical due to bandwidth, time, or cost.
  • Mistake: Confusing migration goals with backup/DR goals. Correction: Use backup/DR for recovery and continuity; use migration tools for relocation to Azure.
  • Mistake: Expecting a single tool to solve assessment, app migration, and massive data movement equally well. Correction: Combine Azure Migrate (plan/track) with Data Box (bulk transfer) when the scenario needs both.

Check Your Understanding

  1. In your own words, what’s the difference between “migration assessment” and “migration execution”?
  2. What signals would make you consider “ship the data” instead of uploading it (think bandwidth, time window, dataset size)?
  3. If a team says “we have to migrate,” what are the first 3 questions you ask before choosing tools?
  4. Explain why Azure Data Box doesn’t replace Azure Storage services for day-to-day access.
  5. Describe one realistic plan where you use Azure Migrate and Azure Data Box together.

Further Reading