In the introduction to this series, we identified that there are multiple parts of the cloud migration journey; namely: Discover, Assess, Migrate, Manage, and Operate.
We will cover various tools that either falls into one of or span multiple phases in the migration journey.
As a quick-link reference, here is the list of tools this series will cover:
- Part 1: Introduction
- Discover
- Part 2: Microsoft Assessment and Planning (MAP) Toolkit
- Part 3: Service Map
- Part 4: OVF/OVA
- Part 5: Custom Scripts
- Assess
- Migrate
- Part 10: Azure Websites Migration Assistant
- Part 11: Azure Database Migration Planner
- Part 12: Azure Migrate
- Part 13: Azure Migration Center
- Part 14: Manage and Optimize
- Part 15: Third-Party Tools
- Part 16: Summary
Continuing our focus on the tool(s) that fall within the first phase: Discovery, the next tool that we categorize under Discovery, is Service Map.
What Is It Used For?
Service Map is used to discover the various application components (across Windows and Linux) and map communications. The tool effectively builds a living topology diagram of your connected systems, including connections between systems, processes that are running, and ports that are utilized.
Pro’s vs Con’s
Here is a quick list of what we deem as Pro’s/Con’s of this tool.
Pro’s
- Helps to identify all related systems and components
- Helps to identify server and process dependencies
- With the addition of other Solutions, you can quickly view changes, performance, security, and update data
Con’s
- Requires the installation of 2 Agents (the OMS/MMA Agent, and the Dependency Agent)
Other Thoughts
The Service Map tool is very useful in a cloud migration project, as it will help you to identify all of the required/interconnected components so that you don’t miss something during the migration execution.
We are already seeing this becoming a central starting point for migrations, as other tools like Azure Migrate (covered later in this series), leverage this mapping technology as well.