Migrate an on-premises Microsoft SQL Server database to Amazon EC2 using Application Migration Service

Senthil Ramasamy, Amazon Web Services

Summary

This pattern describes the steps for migrating a Microsoft SQL Server database from an on-premises data center to an Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) instance. It uses the AWS Application Migration Service (AWS MGN) to rehost your database using an automated lift-and-shift migration. AWS MGN performs block-level replication of your source database server.

Prerequisites and limitations

Prerequisites

• An active AWS account

• A source Microsoft SQL Server database in an on-premises data center

Limitations

• Your network bandwidth may be limited between the on-premises data center and AWS.

• AWS MGN is limited to databases that are hosted on standalone servers with dedicated storage. It doesn’t support migrating clustered database systems and database systems where the rate of change exceeds a network’s throughput.

• Some AWS services aren’t available in all AWS Regions. For Region availability, see AWS services by Region. For specific endpoints, see the Service endpoints and quotas page, and choose the link for the service.

Product versions

• All versions of Microsoft SQL Server database

• Windows and Linux operating systems that support AWS MGN

Architecture

Source technology stack

An on-premises Microsoft SQL Server database

Target technology stack

A Microsoft SQL Server database on an Amazon EC2 instance

Target architecture

This architecture uses AWS MGN to replicate data from an on-premises corporate data center to AWS. The diagram shows the data replication process, API communications, and the test and cutover phases.

1. Data replication:

   • AWS MGN replicates data from the on-premises corporate data center to AWS and initiates ongoing replication of changes.

   • Replication servers in the staging subnet receive and process the data.

2. API communication:

   • Replication servers connect to AWS MGN, Amazon EC2, and Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) API endpoints through TCP port 443.

   • AWS MGN manages the migration.

   • Amazon EC2 manages instance operations.

3. Test and cutover:

   • Test instances launch in the operational subnet using replicated data.

   • After successful testing, AWS MGN creates cutover instances for the final migration.

Tools

• AWS Application Migration Service (AWS MGN) helps you rehost (lift and shift) applications to the AWS Cloud without change and with minimal downtime.

• AWS Direct Connect links your internal network to a Direct Connect location over a standard Ethernet fiber-optic cable. With this connection, you can create virtual interfaces directly to public AWS services while bypassing internet service providers in your network path.

• Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) provides scalable computing capacity in the AWS Cloud. You can launch as many virtual servers as you need and quickly scale them up or down.

• Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) is a cloud-based object storage service that helps you store, protect, and retrieve any amount of data.

Best practices

• Set up API regional endpoints for AWS MGN, Amazon EC2, and Amazon S3 in the virtual private cloud (VPC) to prohibit public access from the internet.

• Set up AWS MGN launch settings to launch target database servers in a private subnet.

• Allow only required ports in database security groups.

• Follow the principle of least privilege and grant the minimum permissions required to perform a task. For more information, see Grant least privilege and Security best practices in the IAM documentation.

Epics

Set up AWS MGN

Task	Description	Skills required
Configure AWS MGN.	Search for the AWS Application Migration Service in the AWS Management Console, and initiate the setup process. This will create a replication template and redirect you to the MGN console Source servers page. As you configure the MGN service, choose a service role from the generated list.	DBA, Migration engineer
Add source server.	Add details of your on-premises source database server, and then add the server.	DBA, Migration engineer
Install the AWS MGN agent on the source server.	Download the AWS MGN agent installer to your local system, and transfer the installer to your source database server. To validate the installer hash, see Validating the downloaded AWS Replication Agent installer for Windows 2012.	DBA, Migration engineer

Install AWS MGN agent on source machines

Task	Description	Skills required
Generate client IAM credentials.	Before you install the AWS MGN agent, generate AWS credentials by creating a new IAM user with the appropriate permissions. For more information, see AWS managed policies for AWS Application Migration Service and Generating the required AWS credentials.	DBA, Migration engineer
Install the agent on the source server.	Install the agent on the source machine that hosts the Microsoft SQL Server database. For more information, see Installing the AWS Replication Agent on Windows servers. Provide the following AWS credentials: AWS Region AWS access key ID AWS secret access key Your unique AWS credentials enable the AWS MGN agent to authenticate and perform migration tasks.	App owner, DBA, Migration engineer
Choose disks to replicate.	After entering your AWS credentials, the installer verifies that your server meets the minimum requirements for agent installation (for example, whether the server has enough disk space to install the AWS MGN agent). The installer displays the volume labels and storage details. To replicate your database using AWS MGN service, select the applicable disks on your source server. Enter the path of each disk, separated by commas. If you want to replicate all of the disks, leave the path blank. After you confirm the selected disks, the installation proceeds.	DBA, Migration engineer
Monitor synchronization progress.	AWS Replication Agent initiates the synchronization process by first taking a snapshot of the selected disks and then replicating the data. You can monitor the synchronization progress from the Source server page in the AWS MGN console. For more information, see Monitor the server in the migration lifecycle.	DBA, Migration engineer

Replication using AWS MGN

Task	Description	Skills required
Manage replication progress.	After you start the initial synchronization, your source server appears in the AWS MGN console, where you can manage and monitor the migration. The console displays an estimated time for complete replication, which is based on the total size of selected disks and available network bandwidth.	DBA, Migration engineer
Verify the synchronization.	After the disks on the source server are fully synchronized, verify that all selected disks are listed as fully synced and no errors are reported in the console. The AWS MGN console will then automatically transition the migration lifecycle status to Ready for testing, indicating that the replicated environment in AWS is prepared for performance and functionality testing.	App owner, DBA, Migration engineer

Test and cut over

Task	Description	Skills required
Configure launch settings.	Choose the source server in the AWS MGN console, and update the launch settings for the target test instance. From the source Server details page, navigate to the Launch settings tab to configure the test instance. Choose a cost-effective instance type and Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS) volume type, and then configure the security groups and network requirements. For more information, see Launch settings.	DBA, Migration engineer
Launch the target test instance.	Navigate to the AWS MGN console of your synchronized source machine, and launch a target test instance by choosing Test and cut over and then Launch test instances. This creates a launch job that deploys the test instance using your configured settings. The instance launches in the AWS Cloud and replicates your source database server's environment. Monitor the launch progress from the Launch history page, where you can track the instance creation and address any issues.	DBA, Migration engineer
Validate the target test instance.	Validate the Amazon EC2 database server: Ensure the AWS MGN console shows that the test instance is running successfully. Use an RDP client to log in. From the Start menu, open SQL Server Configuration Manager. Verify the status of SQL Server services, including SQL Server (MSSQLSERVER) and SQL Server Agent, ensuring they are intact and set to the correct startup type. Compare disk settings and configurations between the test instance and the source database server, confirming that drive letters, volumes, disk allocations, and necessary directories are mapped correctly. Connect to the SQL Server on the test Amazon EC2 instance and verify that all source databases have migrated and appear in the database list. Conduct validation tests to ensure the database functions as expected.	DBA, Migration engineer
Rename the server.	AWS MGN migration involves a storage-level copy of your on-premises source server. Your SQL Server EC2 instance contains only the original source server's details in its binaries, so update the binary information to reflect the new server's name. Use SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) to connect to your SQL Server EC2 instance. Check the server’s name: SELECT @@SERVERNAME AS 'Current Server Name'; Rename the SQL Server instance by replacing NEW_SERVER_NAME with the name of your server: EXEC sp_dropserver 'OLD_SERVER_NAME' EXEC sp_addserver 'NEW_SERVER_NAME', 'local'; Verify that the server name is correct: SELECT @@SERVERNAME AS 'Updated Server Name'; Restart the SQL Server instance.	DBA, Migration engineer
Launch the cutover instance.	In the AWS MGN console, on the Source servers page, confirm that the migration lifecycle status of the server is Ready for cutover. Configure the launch settings for the cutover instance, ensuring that the settings mirror your on-premises environment. Before initiating the cutover, shut down your on-premises database, which ensures the following: All ongoing transactions are complete. No new transactions will occur during the cutover process. Data synchronization between the source and target disks is complete. Initiate the cutover instance in the AWS MGN console. When the cutover instance is operational, log in to the instance and perform the following tests: Ensure that SQL Server starts correctly and that the databases are accessible. Validate that your data is intact and consistent with the source server. Run any application tests to confirm that they perform as expected. In the AWS MGN console, set the migration state to Cutover complete. Begin routing traffic to the EC2 instance.	App owner, DBA, Migration engineer, Migration lead

Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
The initial synchronization fails at the authentication step.	This is a network connectivity issue. The replication server can’t connect to AWS MGN.

Related resources

AWS documentation

• Getting started with AWS Application Migration Service

• Migrate an on-premises Microsoft SQL Server database to Amazon EC2

• What is Microsoft SQL Server on Amazon EC2?

Videos

• Performing a Lift and Shift Migration with AWS Application Migration Service (video)