Law Firm Leverages Cloud303’s Expertise for Global Data Access

Microsoft Workloads

Migration

  • 2 October 2023
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AWS Funding Secured by Cloud303
  • Well-Architected
  • Migration Acceleration Program 2.0

About the Customer

FarMar Law Group is a California-based legal firm with a global footprint, having offices in multiple countries including Mexico and India. The firm specializes in various aspects of law and was grappling with challenges in data accessibility and operational continuity due to its reliance on on-premises servers located in Los Angeles.

Executive Summary

FarMar Law Group is a California-based law firm that was using their on-premises servers to serve an application for data processing and to store all their data from offices in multiple countries. This made it difficult for their offshore employees to seamlessly access the information they needed on a day-to-day basis. Cloud303 migrated FarMar to the cloud, and leveraged AWS services to get them set up to run a successful worldwide business.

The Challenge

FarMar Law Group was using their on premises servers to store all of their data and to serve their data processing application. This was making it difficult for employees from their offices in Mexico and India to seamlessly access the data they needed. If there was any problem at all with the Los Angeles servers, or with the VPN they used to access them, the offshore employees would lose access to the data that was critical to day-to-day operations.

Why Cloud303?

  • Microsoft Workload Expertise Cloud303 has deep-rooted expertise in handling Microsoft workloads. Whether it's deploying, scaling or managing Windows Server, SQL Server, or Active Directory, Cloud303 ensures optimized performance and security.
  • Seamless Migrations Migrating to or between Microsoft platforms can be a complex task that Cloud303 simplifies. By using proven methodologies and tools, Cloud303 ensures that migrations are seamless, efficient, and completed with minimal downtime.
  • Robust Disaster Recovery Solutions Having a reliable disaster recovery plan is essential. Cloud303 offers robust disaster recovery solutions specifically designed for Microsoft platforms, ensuring business continuity even in the most challenging situations.
  • Proven Track Record Cloud303 has a strong history of successful partnerships within the Microsoft industry. Our commitment to excellence, reliability, and client-focused solutions have made us a trusted partner.

Engagement Overview

Cloud303's engagements follow a streamlined five-phase lifecycle: Requirements, Design, Implementation, Testing, and Maintenance. Initially, a comprehensive assessment is conducted through a Well-Architected Review to identify client needs. This is followed by a scoping call to fine-tune the architectural design, upon which a Statement of Work (SoW) is agreed and signed.

The implementation phase kicks in next, closely adhering to the approved designs. Rigorous testing ensures that all components meet the client's specifications and industry standards. Finally, clients have the option to either manage the deployed solutions themselves or to enroll in Cloud303's Managed Services for ongoing maintenance, an option many choose due to their high satisfaction with the services provided.

The Solution

The migration process kicked off with the establishment of an Amazon Site-to-Site VPN tunnel to enable communication between FarMar’s on-premises Microsoft Active Directory (AD) to two Windows EC2 servers (in private subnets across two availability zones) that had been promoted to domain controllers.

Using the Site-to-Site VPN, the AD was replicated to the cloud. Another server was deployed for the purpose of file sharing. All on-prem data was synched to AWS using the utility FreeFileSync. Each of the numerous on-prem drives was duplicated in the cloud (1 EBS volume per drive). An application server was also deployed (Linux this time) and once the infrastructure had been built out.

Cloud303 also deployed Amazon WorkSpaces for FarMar Law. First, an AD Connector was deployed via Directory Service in order to connect the cloud AD replication servers to WorkSpaces. A custom golden image was then configured. An application called Collection Master was installed as well as Slack and Adobe PDF products. Active Directory group policies were used to deploy the shared drives to the individual WorkSpaces.

Engineer Quote

The true success of this project came down to meticulous planning and implementation. From setting up the Site-to-Site VPN to deploying Amazon WorkSpaces, every step was designed to support FarMar Law Group's global operations.

Jesse Wiener Senior Solutions Architect, Cloud303

Outcomes

Cloud303’s work allowed FarMar to manage their worldwide workforce with far greater ease. Any technical issue could now be managed from the AWS console. Any issue with server availability and file sharing were completely solved by using the cloud. The new deployment also helped to mitigate any issue with power outages or natural disasters, which often posed a problem when dealing with employees across many countries.

Cloud303’s work allowed FarMar to manage their worldwide workforce with far greater ease.