Zero-Downtime Cloud Migration and Modernization on Microsoft Azure

Executive Snapshot

A leading public transportation provider partnered with Transcloud to migrate its mission-critical ticketing system from Ford’s infrastructure to Microsoft Azure. The goal was to modernize operations, ensure zero downtime for millions of daily users, and achieve full infrastructure ownership with enterprise-grade security, compliance, and scalability.

Key Outcomes:

• Achieved zero-downtime migration across 30+ microservices and databases.
  
• Established a multi-region, production-grade architecture ensuring 99.99% availability.
  
• Implemented automated CI/CD pipelines, reducing deployment time by 60%.
  
• Enhanced security posture with Azure-native identity, encryption, and access control.
  
• Improved network performance by 40%, achieving P95 API throughput under 100ms.
  

Challenge

The client needed to migrate a mission-critical ticketing platform serving millions of commuters from Ford’s infrastructure to their own Azure environment. The migration had to ensure uninterrupted operations, modernize architecture, and strengthen compliance and performance standards.

Key Challenges:

• Zero downtime during migration to avoid service disruption.
  
• Transitioning from OpenShift to Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS).
  
• Cross-tenant Azure SQL Database migration with complete data integrity.
  
• Implementing multi-region disaster recovery and automatic failover.
  
• Migrating 30+ microservices with new CI/CD pipelines.
  
• Meeting enterprise-grade security and compliance requirements.
  

Solution

Transcloud designed and executed a phased migration strategy to Azure, prioritizing continuity, rollback safety, and performance optimization.

• Phase 1 – Data Layer Modernization:
  Migrated the storage layer to Azure with continuous replication and bidirectional sync, ensuring live data consistency between source and target environments.
  
• Phase 2 – Application Deployment:
  Deployed the application on Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) integrated with Azure Container Registry for scalable orchestration. Configured the app to utilize Azure SQL with Failover Groups for seamless database redundancy.
  
• Phase 3 – Controlled Cutover:
  Executed a gradual traffic shift using Azure Traffic Manager and Application Gateway, allowing real-time monitoring and rollback capability.
  
• Resilience and Automation:
  Implemented multi-region architecture, auto-scaling, and disaster recovery (DR) setup for continuous availability.
  Automated deployment pipelines using Jenkins, GitHub Enterprise, and Azure Functions, achieving seamless CI/CD.
  
• Security and Monitoring:
  Strengthened the environment with Azure Entra ID, Key Vault, Web Application Firewall (WAF), and network isolation via NAT Gateway and IP whitelisting.
  Integrated Azure Monitor and Log Analytics for centralized observability.
  

Impact

The migration delivered measurable business and technical outcomes that transformed the client’s operations on Microsoft Azure. By combining zero-downtime execution with a scalable, secure, and fully automated environment, Transcloud ensured uninterrupted service continuity and long-term modernization benefits.

Operational & Business Impact

• Achieved zero-downtime migration, maintaining uninterrupted ticketing operations for millions of commuters.
  
• Improved deployment efficiency by 60% through fully automated CI/CD pipelines built on Jenkins and Azure Functions.
  
• Attained 99.99% system availability with a multi-region, fault-tolerant Azure architecture.
  
• Strengthened security posture with enterprise-grade controls, identity management, and encrypted data flows.
  
• Enabled full operational independence, empowering the client’s internal teams to manage, scale, and innovate autonomously.
  

Performance & Scalability Gains

• Reduced network latency by 40%, ensuring faster ticket validation and real-time updates across regions.
  
• Achieved sub-100ms P95 API throughput, enhancing end-user experience during high-traffic hours.
  
• Implemented auto-scaling AKS clusters to handle peak loads dynamically without service degradation.
  
• Optimized resource utilization through right-sized infrastructure and managed Azure services, resulting in lower operational costs.

Why They Partnered With Us:

The client chose Transcloud for our deep Azure migration expertise, proven ability to deliver zero-downtime transformations, and focus on resilient, enterprise-scale architectures.

• Azure Modernization Expertise: Successful track record in large-scale AKS and Azure SQL migrations.
  
• Zero-Downtime Strategy: Advanced replication and cutover orchestration with rollback safety.
  
• End-to-End Automation: CI/CD pipelines and monitoring across all Azure-native tools.
  
• Security-First Design: Implementation of Entra ID, Key Vault, and WAF for compliance and control.
  
• High Availability Focus: Multi-region setup ensuring uninterrupted public operations.
  
• SLA-Driven Delivery: Enterprise-grade reliability, proactive support, and 24×7 monitoring.