Azure migration services: on-premises and VMware workloads to Azure

For many organisations in the Gulf and Jordan, the question is no longer whether to move to the cloud. It is where the data will live and in what order systems should move. Microsoft runs Azure regions in the UAE and Qatar, has announced a Saudi Arabia East region and has stated its intent to establish a region in Kuwait.

An Azure migration, like most cloud migrations, is rarely one project. It is a series of decisions: which workloads move first, which are moved as they are and which are modernised, what must stay in a particular country and who runs the platform afterwards. We help you make those decisions with evidence from your own estate, then carry them out on the Microsoft platform.

The trigger is usually practical: a data centre contract or hardware refresh coming due; servers and databases approaching the end of support; a Dynamics 365 or data programme that needs a modern foundation.

Where your workloads run affects latency, resilience and often compliance. Not every Azure service is offered in every region, so we check each service you need against the region you choose before the design is fixed. Where a country has no Azure region, we plan around the nearest suitable region and your regulator’s rules, then revisit the choice as new regions open. Microsoft’s published region information shows:

• UAE North has three availability zones. Its paired region, UAE Central, is one where Microsoft restricts access to specific scenarios such as disaster recovery.
• Qatar Central has three availability zones and no paired region.
• Saudi Arabia East, in the Eastern Province, has three availability zones. In August 2026 Microsoft announced that it would be available to customers in November 2026; services reach a new region over time, so we confirm each one you need before relying on it.
• In Kuwait, Microsoft announced in March 2025 its intent to establish an Azure region. At the time of writing, Microsoft’s region list includes no region in Jordan, Kuwait or Oman.

Azure lets you choose the region where most services store and process your data. Microsoft also documents the exceptions: some services are non-regional (Microsoft Entra ID is one) and preview services typically store data in the United States. We map every service in the design against your residency rules. We work alongside your legal and compliance teams; we don’t replace their advice.

The rules differ by country and they change. Regulated sectors can add their own requirements, which we build in once your compliance team has identified them. The national frameworks we plan around include:

• Saudi Arabia: the Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL), regulated by the Saudi Data and AI Authority (SDAIA), which sets additional requirements for transfers outside the Kingdom; and the National Cybersecurity Authority’s Cloud Cybersecurity Controls (CCC-2:2024) for cloud providers and tenants.
• UAE: Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 regarding the Protection of Personal Data, which sets requirements for cross-border transfers.
• Qatar: Law No. 13 of 2016 on Protecting Personal Data Privacy.
• Jordan: Personal Data Protection Law No. 24 of 2023, in effect since 17 March 2024.
• Kuwait: the Data Privacy Protection Regulation issued in 2024 by the Communication and Information Technology Regulatory Authority (CITRA); we confirm with you whether and how it applies to your organisation.
• Oman: the Personal Data Protection Law issued by Royal Decree 6/2022.

We deliver migrations end to end or take on the stages you need, with one accountable team from the first assessment to the platform you run afterwards.

• Discovery and assessment: inventory, dependency mapping, right-sizing and cost comparison with Azure Migrate.
• Landing zone design: subscriptions, networking, identity with Microsoft Entra ID, policies and security baselines, following Microsoft’s Cloud Adoption Framework.
• Server migration from VMware, Hyper-V, physical servers and other clouds, moved as they are or modernised.
• Databases and applications: SQL Server to Azure SQL or to SQL Server on Azure virtual machines; web apps to Azure App Service where it fits.
• VMware estates that need to stay on vSphere for now: Azure VMware Solution, where it is offered in your chosen region.
• Cutover, testing and hand-over, with rollback plans agreed in advance.
• Operations after go-live: monitoring, security, cost reviews and 24/7 support through our managed services.

• Cloud & Security: Azure foundations, identity and governance
• Managed services for Azure and Dynamics 365

Azure Migrate’s tools carry no additional charge for discovery, assessment and migration. Microsoft’s pricing page adds two caveats: server migration is free for the first 180 days for each machine, and the storage and data transfer used during replication are billed as normal. Partner tools may carry their own charges. Azure Migrate’s assessments estimate readiness, sizing and running costs, and its business case compares the cost of staying on-premises with the cost of moving. It now also includes the Azure Copilot migration agent, in preview: a conversational way to explore the discovered inventory and compare strategies, while the migration itself still runs in Azure Migrate.

We use that evidence to group workloads into waves. Systems with few dependencies and clear owners usually go first. Tightly coupled systems move together. Some are better retired or replaced than moved.

Licensing matters too. Azure Hybrid Benefit lets you apply eligible Windows Server and SQL Server licences in Azure: those with active Software Assurance or qualifying subscription licences. Extended Security Updates for Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 ended on 13 October 2026, in Azure and elsewhere, so servers still on those versions no longer receive security updates; we plan their upgrade or replacement as part of the move.

Some migrations are really application decisions. Moving an on-premises Dynamics AX or NAV system to the cloud usually means moving to Dynamics 365. That is an application project rather than a server move and we plan it as one. Data platforms often move to Microsoft Fabric or Azure data services in the same programme, which gives analytics, data science and AI a sound foundation.

Because one team covers Dynamics 365, Power Platform, data and Azure, the dependencies between them are handled in one plan rather than discovered at cutover. Integrations with other systems, such as banks, e-invoicing platforms and government portals, are listed and tested in each wave.

• Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations, including AX upgrades
• Dynamics 365 Business Central, including NAV migration
• Data science and machine learning on Azure