Most of us accept that time is money. But how about knowledge?

Cloud computing is a niche and complex field. Just skim the manual for VMware's market-leading HCX migration tool if you don't believe us.

It's also a field that's developing rapidly. As more and more of us come to rely on the cloud, the technologies allowing us to do so are being constantly fine-tuned.

Despite all this, cloud computing is a fact of business life that is sometimes left to the IT technician. It's their job to manage a company's cloud infrastructure, which could include multiple cloud providers and tonnes of data.

Perhaps your IT department is run by cloud experts. If that's true, you can stop reading.

But we have a hunch that it's not. We suspect that IT in your company is trained in traditional computing – and while they may be perfectly capable of using cloud technologies, they're not experts.

And we're willing to place a bet on something else. Your staff will know what backing up means. Maybe they use AWS or Google Drive. But they're probably a bit shaky on the issues of cybersecurity and compliance that are an integral part of cloud computing.

We're not passing judgment here. The average working day is packed enough without expecting you to swot up on the subtle but important differences between NSX-V and NSX-T.

Even so. Knowledge gaps cost time and money – and they disrupt your business's continuity.

You don't expect your cafeteria to serve you an haute cuisine taster menu. So why expect your IT department to know the ins and outs of cloud computing?

Luckily for you, help is at hand.

How cloud consultancy can help

A little expertise can go a long way.

You have the vision. You want your workloads off your physical hardware and onto the cloud. Or let's say you want to bolster your security with a hybrid or multi-cloud approach. Hand on heart, do you have the skills to pull it off?

The number one thing that a cloud consultancy can offer you is experience.

We all know that there's no shortcut to experience. It can't be acquired through a one-off training course. It can't be bought – but it can be borrowed.

Cloud migration depends on virtualisation software. We've gone into more detail about this in another article, but here's the headline: if you're moving large amounts of data from a physical box to an ethereal cloud, you're going to need something in the middle.

That something is virtualisation software – it creates virtual machines and virtual networks that run your software, acting as a bridge between the physical and the purely digital.

If you're going to deal with virtualisation software, you need to know it inside out. Otherwise, you risk falling behind schedule or botching the attempt altogether – a costly and disruptive mistake.

A cloud consultancy can help identify the best method of migration for you and implement it with a minimum of fuss and a maximum of detail.

They'll also be able to help you to streamline your operations, unlocking cost savings in the process.

Of course, you can arrive at a rough approximation of this expertise through recruitment and training. But it's expensive and time-consuming and there's no guarantee that it will deliver.

Handing the reins to an old hand gives you peace of mind as you focus on your own areas of expertise.

As well as providing general cloud support, a high-end consultancy will also be able to help you with specific pieces of software. These include:

VMware HCX

WAN optimisers. Stretched VLANs. Service mesh. Interconnect.

No, this article hasn't been hijacked by an avant-garde poet. These are just some of the concepts that underpin VMware's HCX platform.

HCX is designed specifically for migrating applications from one place to another – from a physical data centre to the cloud, or from one cloud to another.

It aims to manage these processes as securely and speedily as possible without any compromise on security. That means a business won't be faced with downtime mid-migration.

VMware's HCX platform is an indispensable bit of kit – but it's far from easy to use.

If your want to move all or some of your on-premise applications to the cloud, a cloud consultant can help you to do so safely, seamlessly and on schedule. Don't let a gap in your knowledge lead to holes in your security.

NSX-V to NSX-T migration

As we discuss in another article, changes are afoot in the world of virtualisation and cloud migration.

Companies that use NSX-V for network virtualisation need to upgrade to NSX-T by January 2023. This is because VMware has been winding down technical guidance and support for NSX-V and are soon to end it altogether.

This means that from next year, any technical or security issues will have to be dealt with in-house. By not upgrading, you're opening the gate to all manner of cyber-barbarians and wasting money as your IT team does battle with them.

For this reason, VMware is encouraging customers to migrate to NSX-T. But you may feel unsure about exactly how to achieve this.

Again, this is hard stuff. It bears very little relation to traditional computing skills. It requires a deft hand and all the latest intel.

So if you're planning to future-proof your network and keep those security risks at bay, don't let knowledge gaps get in the way – find a cloud consultancy and let them handle the tough stuff.

Ascend Cloud Solutions is a specialist cloud consultancy founded by former VMware engineers. With over 400 successful migrations and counting, we can handle migrations to any VMware-based cloud – public, private or hybrid. If you're looking for technical know-how, please get in touch.