Rehost Migration to AWS (Lift and Shift)

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Rehosting—commonly called “lift and shift”—moves applications to AWS with minimal or no changes. It’s the fastest path to the cloud and often the right first step for organizations facing datacenter exits, hardware refresh deadlines, or immediate cost pressures.

When Rehosting Makes Sense

Rehost migration to AWS is ideal when:

Datacenter exit deadlines loom: You need applications out of the current environment quickly
Hardware refresh is pending: Avoid capital expenditure by moving to EC2
Modernization ROI is limited: Some applications don’t justify re-architecture investment
You need quick wins: Demonstrate cloud value before tackling complex modernizations
It’s phase one: Plan to replatform or refactor after establishing AWS presence

When to Consider Alternatives

Rehosting may not be optimal when:

Applications have significant technical debt that will persist in AWS
Licensing costs (especially Oracle, SQL Server) make EC2 expensive
The application is a strong candidate for containerization or serverless
Performance requirements demand cloud-native architectures

How Rehost Migration Works

1. Discovery and Assessment

Identify all application components, dependencies, and infrastructure requirements:

Compute specifications (CPU, memory, storage)
Network dependencies (ports, protocols, latency requirements)
Data volumes and I/O patterns
Integration points with other systems

2. AWS Environment Preparation

Set up the target AWS infrastructure:

VPC design: Subnets, security groups, routing
EC2 instance selection: Right-size based on discovery data
Storage configuration: EBS volumes, instance store, EFS as needed
IAM and security: Roles, policies, encryption

3. Migration Execution

Move applications using AWS migration tools:

AWS Application Migration Service (MGN): Primary lift-and-shift service with continuous block-level replication, test cutovers, and low-downtime migrations
AWS Migration Hub & AWS Application Discovery Service: Agent-based and agentless discovery to inventory servers, dependencies, and utilization before using MGN
VMware Cloud on AWS with VMware HCX: For VMware-to-VMware migrations when you want to keep the vSphere control plane and gradually shift workloads closer to AWS services

4. Cutover and Validation

Test application functionality in AWS
Validate performance against baselines
Execute cutover during maintenance window
Monitor and optimize post-migration

AWS Services for Rehosting

Component	AWS Service	Purpose
Compute	EC2	Virtual servers matching on-prem specs
Block Storage	EBS	Persistent storage for instances
File Storage	EFS, FSx	Shared file systems
Migration	MGN	Automated server migration
Networking	VPC, Direct Connect	Secure connectivity
Load Balancing	ALB, NLB	Traffic distribution

Rehost Now, Modernize Later

Rehosting isn’t the end state—it’s often the beginning. Once applications are running on AWS, you can:

Optimize costs: Right-size instances, leverage Reserved Instances or Savings Plans
Improve resilience: Add auto-scaling, multi-AZ deployments
Incrementally modernize: Containerize components, adopt managed services
Refactor strategically: Use the Strangler Fig pattern to replace monolithic components

This “rehost then optimize” approach delivers immediate benefits while preserving flexibility.

Case Study: Datacenter Exit in 6 Months

A financial services firm faced a datacenter lease expiration with 200+ servers to migrate.

Approach: Rehost with AWS MGN, followed by optimization phase

Results:

All applications migrated in 5 months
40% infrastructure cost reduction (right-sizing + Reserved Instances)
Zero unplanned downtime during migration
Foundation established for future containerization

Get Started

Not sure if rehosting is right for your applications? Our free assessment analyzes your portfolio and recommends the optimal migration strategy for each workload.