Summary
Azure Migrate helps teams move VMs to Azure Local with staged process that keeps downtime low. With Everpure™ FlashArray™ as external storage, the move stays simple and scalable while preserving performance and key data services.
Everpure FlashArray™
Unify storage. Boost performance. Scale efficiently.
Azure Migrate enables you to effortlessly migrate virtual machine workloads to Microsoft Azure Local on high-performance Everpure FlashArray, minimizing downtime and risk while scaling from small projects to large enterprise environments.
Moving between infrastructure platforms is never about the compute layer alone. It’s about ensuring workloads transition cleanly, quickly, and without introducing unnecessary risk.
Azure Migrate simplifies the transition of workloads to Azure Local by providing a controlled and staged migration process that scales from small workload groups to massive enterprise environments. When Everpure FlashArray is integrated with Azure Local as external storage, the migration remains straightforward, predictable, and highly performant.
A controlled, staged migration approach
Azure Migrate leverages staged synchronization. Rather than requiring long downtime windows, it performs an initial data seeding operation while the source virtual machine continues running. After the initial pass, incremental replications capture changed data on a regular schedule, keeping the target VM closely aligned with production.
When it’s time to cut over, a final synchronization completes, and the VM is powered on in Azure Local. Because the vast majority of the data transfer has already occurred during the data seeding phase, downtime is typically strictly limited.
This staged approach allows infrastructure teams to prepare migrations over more flexible timeframes and execute final cutovers during approved maintenance windows. Migration waves can be aligned with application groupings or business priorities, making the transition structured instead of disruptive.
As with any migration, workload characteristics matter. Mission-critical, highly transactional, or write-intensive virtual machines should be evaluated when planning migration waves to ensure uptime and performance expectations are maintained throughout the process.
Storage alignment with FlashArray
From a storage perspective, migrations with Azure Migrate do not require architectural compromises. Everpure and Microsoft have partnered to fully support FlashArray as external storage for Azure Local, enabling enterprises to completely decouple compute and storage.
When FlashArray is configured as external storage for an Azure Local cluster, it operates as it normally would. No additional complex configuration is required to support migrations. During the Azure Migrate workflow, administrators simply select the appropriate storage cluster backed by FlashArray as the destination target for migrated virtual machines.
FlashArray data services—such as industry-leading inline deduplication, compression, and immutable SafeMode™ Snapshots—continue functioning as designed on Azure Local. This allows you to scale performance and capacity at the storage layer independently, without needing to add or disrupt compute resources. As with any migration activity, it’s important to consider overall array utilization and plan migration waves appropriately.
Scalable architecture with flexible deployment
The Azure Migrate appliance is easy to deploy and acts as the bridge connecting your source environment to your target Azure Local cluster. A guided interface simplifies the heavy lifting of source/target selection, network mapping, and destination storage selection.
Migration plans can easily accommodate small groups of virtual machines or massive waves, depending on your unique environmental factors. For broader transitions involving hundreds of VMs, migrations are typically organized into multiple waves to maintain predictability and control.
In large environments, the appliance scales to maintain flexible scheduling across clusters, vCenters, or edge sites. As always, test migrations are recommended before executing large production waves.
Moving workloads without the heavy lifting
Migration doesn’t need to be a complex project that takes up evenings and weekends. Azure Migrate takes much of the guesswork out of shifting your workloads, while Everpure FlashArray ensures they land on the high-performance, efficient storage foundation your business requires. It’s a straightforward way to bridge your hybrid cloud environments and keep your focus on innovation rather than infrastructure.
See it in action
To learn more about the strategic benefits of decoupling compute and storage in hybrid environments, reach out to your Everpure or Microsoft account representative. Discover how to streamline your migration designs and build a modern, scalable Azure Local footprint powered by FlashArray.
