Introduction
In this blog, we are going to learn in-depth about ” AWS Database Migration Service(AWS DMS).” It is a managed service that allows you to migrate your on-premise databases to the cloud easily and safely. Without having to perform a full migration, you can now migrate just the data of an application across different platforms and OS versions. As a result, you’ll be able to concentrate your attention on the aspects of your migration that are critically necessary.
What is AWS Database Migration Service(DMS)?
AWS Database Migration Service (AWS DMS) is a cloud service that makes it possible to migrate relational databases, data warehouses, NoSQL databases, and other types of data stores. You can use AWS DMS to migrate your data into the AWS Cloud or between combinations of cloud and on-premises setups. The databases that are offered include Redshift, DynamoDB, ElasticCache, Aurora, Amazon RDS, and DynamoDB.
Now let’s check why DMS is important
Why do we need Database Migration Service?
There are several reasons why you might need to use a database migration service like AWS Database Migration Service (DMS).
- Reduced Downtime: Database migration services minimize downtime during the migration process. By continuously replicating changes from the source database to the target database, they ensure that data remains synchronized, allowing for a seamless transition with minimal disruption to your applications and users.
- Security: Migration services typically provide security features such as data encryption, secure network connections, and compliance with industry regulations.
- Cost Effectiveness: Data Migration Service is a free migration solution for switching to DocumentDB, Redshift, Aurora, or DynamoDB (Supports Most Notable Databases). You must pay for other databases based on the volume of log storing and the computational load.
- Scalability and Performance: Migration services are designed to handle large-scale migrations efficiently. They employ techniques such as parallel data transfer, data compression, and optimization algorithms to optimize performance and minimize migration time, allowing for faster and more efficient migrations.
- Schema Conversion: AWS DMS can automatically convert the source database schema to match the target database schema during migration. This eliminates the need for manual schema conversion, saving time and effort.
How Does AWS Database Migration Service Work?
Moving information from one database to the next is made possible by AWS DMS, a controlled and automatic migration service. If you are planning to migrate your database, then you should gather all the information required to successfully complete the project. I have segmented the database migration steps into three:
- Pre-migration steps
These steps should be taken before actually migrating the database, which will include basic planning, structuring, understanding the requirements, and finalizing the move.
- Migration Steps
These are the steps that are to be taken while implementing database migration. These steps should be accomplished with proper accountability taking utmost care about data governance roles, risks related to migration, etc.
- Post-migration steps
Once db migration is complete, there might be some issues that would have gone unnoticed during the process. These steps would be necessarily taken to ensure that the migration process gets over in an error-free manner.
Now let’s move forward to use cases of DMS!
Use cases
Use Cases of AWS DMS
Data Migration Service supports migration to Amazon RDS, Aurora, Redshift, DynamoDB, and DocumentDB. There are multiple application cases for AWS Database Migration Service, among which are detailed below:
1. Migration of a Homogeneous Database
Homogeneous database migration occurs when the target and source databases are identical or consistent with one another, such as MySQL to AWS RDS for MySQL, MySQL to Amazon Aurora MySQL to Amazon Aurora, Oracle to Amazon RDS for Oracle, or Microsoft SQL Server to Amazon RDS for SQL Server. It is a one-step method since the schema structure and data types of the target and source databases are consistent
2. Migration of Heterogeneous Databases
- When the target and source database engines are diverse, such as when moving from Oracle to PostgreSQL, Oracle to Amazon Aurora, or Microsoft SQL Server to MySQL, this is known as heterogeneous database migration.
- A schema and code transformation is necessary before migration since the source and target databases’ schema structures and data types differ. This makes migration a two-step procedure.
Components of Database Migration Service in AWS
Before you initiate the migration to AWS DMS, you need to be aware of three components:
- Replication instance:
- Replication instances are managed instances of the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) that hold one or more replication jobs.
- A replication server doing several linked replication jobs is seen in the figure above.
- Source & Target Endpoints:
- To connect target and source databases and move data, the AWS DMS makes use of endpoints.
- Depending on the database, the kind of endpoint will change, but all endpoints need the same data, including, engine type, credentials, encryption techniques, port number, server name, and endpoint type.
- Replication Tasks:
- The replication job is used to transport data from the source endpoint to the destination endpoint; this is where you specify which tables and schemas are migrated and when.
- The replication task creation phase must be accomplished before initiating a migration.
- When creating a replication job, you must also provide the migration type, the source and target endpoints, and the replica instance to use.
Now It’s time to come to a conclusion!
Conclusion!
I think you now have a great understanding of AWS Database Migration Service’s functions, capabilities, structure, Components & many more. This should help you get beyond the challenging issues with moving databases to AWS.
Overall, Database Migration Service is a powerful & useful service that can simplify the migration process for users and help organizations to better manage their IT infrastructure.
Next time we will meet with some new tool concepts!
References
- https://docs.aws.amazon.com/dms/latest/userguide/Welcome.html
- https://docs.aws.amazon.com/dms/latest/userguide/CHAP_Introduction.Components.html
- https://www.workfall.com/learning/blog/how-to-do-database-migration-using-aws-database-migration-service-dms-from-on-premise-ec2-to-rds/
Blog Pundits: Shweta Tyagi and Sandeep Rawat
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