Estimating Costs for SAP Migration to AWS: A Practical Guide for Executives

Introduction: SAP Migration to AWS — The Need for Cost Estimates

Migrating SAP workloads to AWS is an increasingly popular move for enterprises looking to leverage cloud scalability, flexibility, and cost savings. However, executives and decision-makers require accurate cost estimates before embarking on such an important journey. Understanding the financial impact of migration is crucial for budget approval, project planning, and stakeholder buy-in. In this guide, we’ll break down the process of estimating SAP migration costs to AWS and how to craft an executive-ready presentation that visualizes the financial aspects of the move.

Solution Components: Mapping On-Premise Infrastructure to AWS Services

The first step in estimating SAP migration costs is to map your existing on-premise infrastructure to AWS services. This includes translating your current compute, storage, and networking requirements into equivalent AWS services such as EC2 instances, S3 storage, RDS databases, and VPC networking. You’ll also need to factor in additional AWS services that might be required, such as backup, monitoring, and disaster recovery solutions.

Compute: On-premise servers are replaced by EC2 instances tailored for SAP workloads.
Storage: High-performance storage solutions like Amazon EBS or S3 buckets.
Databases: Migrating your SAP HANA or other databases to AWS-managed databases like Amazon RDS or EC2-based SAP HANA deployments.
Networking: AWS Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) for secure and scalable network infrastructure.

Beyond One-to-One Conversion: Accounting for Network Traffic and Additional Services

SAP migrations are rarely a direct one-to-one mapping of on-premise resources to AWS. You must account for additional factors such as data transfer, network traffic, integrated AWS services like AWS Backup and CloudWatch for monitoring, and security services like AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM). These services, while optional, can add significant value and improve the operational efficiency of your SAP environment. However, they may also influence cost estimates, so it is critical to include them in your migration cost analysis.

Data Transfer Costs: AWS charges for data that moves in and out of its services. Predicting the volume of data transfer is critical to preventing cost surprises.
Security and Compliance: Costs for implementing and managing security protocols via AWS Shield, WAF, or IAM.
Backup and Monitoring: Continuous monitoring (CloudWatch) and backup services add resilience to your deployment but also add to your costs.

AWS Pricing Calculator: The Star of the Show

The AWS Pricing Calculator is a vital tool for estimating the costs of migrating SAP workloads to AWS. This interactive tool allows you to model and calculate the fees for AWS services based on your specific use case and requirements. It provides detailed computing, storage, data transfer, and additional service breakdowns, offering a granular view of your projected expenses.

Creating Estimates: Navigating the AWS Pricing Calculator Interface

To create accurate cost estimates using the AWS Pricing Calculator, follow these steps:

Select Services: Select the AWS services, such as EC2, S3, and RDS, you will use for your SAP environment.
Input Usage Metrics: Input the expected usage metrics, such as compute hours, storage volumes, and data transfer amounts.
Adjust Pricing Models: Based on your organization’s financial strategy, choose between on-demand, reserved instances, or savings plans.
Review Cost Breakdown: The calculator will provide a detailed breakdown of monthly and annual costs, helping you understand which components contribute the most to your overall expenditure.

Exporting and Sharing Estimates: Options for Further Analysis and Collaboration

Once you’ve completed your cost estimation in the AWS Pricing Calculator, the next step is exporting and sharing the results. AWS allows you to export cost estimates as CSV or PDF files, which can be shared with team members, financial analysts, or executives for further analysis. This step is crucial for collaboration and ensuring that all stakeholders clearly understand the estimated migration costs.

CSV Export: Ideal for more detailed analysis and custom financial modeling.
PDF Export: Best for presentations and sharing high-level overviews with executives.

Crafting the Presentation: Visualizing Monthly and Annual Costs

When preparing an executive presentation, focus on clear and concise visuals to explain your migration cost estimates. Use charts and graphs to illustrate monthly vs. annual costs and provide context on how AWS services map to current on-premise infrastructure. Highlight potential savings through Reserved Instances or Savings Plans, and emphasize any strategic advantages, such as enhanced scalability and flexibility.

Cost Projections: Compare projected monthly and yearly costs with AWS services to current on-premise costs.
Cost Breakdown by Service: Use pie charts or bar graphs to visualize how much each AWS service (compute, storage, data transfer) will cost.
Scalability and Flexibility: Include future growth projections to show how AWS costs scale over time compared to static on-premise investments.

Disclaimer: The Importance of Setting Expectations

When presenting your cost estimates, it’s essential to set realistic expectations. While the AWS Pricing Calculator provides a solid foundation for understanding costs, actual expenses may vary based on changes in usage patterns, unanticipated services, or adjustments in pricing structures. Be transparent about the potential for fluctuation and explain that continuous monitoring and optimization are necessary to keep AWS costs in check over time.