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Overview
A multi-site server migration required repeatable AWS Application Migration Service launch configuration across pilot, non-production and production waves. Manual creation would have increased inconsistency and slowed wave preparation.
Challenge
Each migrated server needed the correct launch settings, tags and encrypted EBS configuration. The process also had to support several sites and distinguish test launches from cutover activity.
My role
I developed and ran Python automation that generated MGN launch templates, applied the required tags and supported customer-managed-key configuration for EBS. I executed the template set for one site and the non-production estate, prepared template work for another site and supported pilot and later migration waves.
Architecture & approach
Key components: AWS Application Migration Service, Python, Amazon EC2, Amazon EBS, AWS KMS, AWS tagging.
What I implemented
- Created Python automation for AWS MGN launch templates.
- Applied consistent instance and migration metadata through tags.
- Integrated customer-managed encryption keys for EBS volumes.
- Ran the automation across site and environment groupings.
- Supported test migrations, pilot activity and wave execution.
- Marked servers for test or cutover according to the migration plan.
Key decisions
- Moved repeated template work into code so wave configuration could be reviewed and rerun.
- Kept pilot and production state explicit to reduce cutover ambiguity.
- Included encryption and tagging in the automation rather than treating them as manual post-launch steps.
Security & reliability
EBS encryption used customer-managed keys, and tags made ownership and migration state visible. Repeatable template generation reduced configuration drift between waves.
Technologies
Outcome
The migration team gained a repeatable template-generation process that supported multiple sites and waves with consistent launch settings, encryption and metadata.
Lessons & takeaways
Key takeaway
Migration automation is most useful when it captures governance requirements as well as compute settings. Encryption and tagging belonged in the same repeatable process as the launch template.