CTS - Computer Technology Specialists
Retail Cloud Migration
A Melbourne specialty retailer with three locations engaged CTS to move off ageing on-premises servers at end of life, ahead of a costly infrastructure refresh decision. The business needed secure remote access for head-office and store staff, centralised IT visibility, and predictable running costs. CTS decommissioned the on-premises servers, migrated workloads to Microsoft Azure with Azure Virtual Desktop for head-office staff, and consolidated connectivity across all three sites — landing Azure costs 35% below the original on-premises refresh quote.
Melbourne IT support with visible local credentials
CTS - Computer Technology Specialists has supported Melbourne SMBs since 2000. Contact: 1300 790 780, hello@cts.au, L30 - 35 Collins St Melbourne 3000.
Certifications, affiliations and technology partners
Microsoft Partner, ACSC Essential Eight aligned, ISO 27001 practices, NBN Business Accredited Adviser, Cisco Partner, Dell Partner, HPE Partner, Arcserve Partner, Broadcom Partner, Kyocera Partner.
The challenge
The business was facing a large capital refresh on infrastructure that no longer matched how its people worked across head office and stores.
- Ageing on-premises servers were due for an expensive capital refresh
- The head-office server room was a single point of failure for the whole business
- There was no secure way for staff to work remotely or between locations
- Scaling systems for peak trading periods was slow and hardware-bound
- Running and maintaining on-premises infrastructure was a growing operational burden
The CTS solution
CTS migrated the business's workloads to Azure, replacing capital-heavy on-premises infrastructure with secure, scalable cloud services.
- Decommissioned the end-of-life on-premises servers and migrated workloads to Microsoft Azure
- Deployed Azure Virtual Desktop for head-office staff
- Consolidated connectivity across all three sites under a single managed broadband contract
- Implemented hybrid identity and single sign-on through Entra ID
- Applied cost controls and right-sizing to keep cloud spend predictable
- Hardened the environment with Microsoft Defender for Cloud and Azure Backup
Cost and scalability
Moving to Azure shifted the business from large periodic capital outlays to predictable operating costs that flex with demand.
- Avoided the looming capital cost of a full on-premises hardware refresh
- Shifted infrastructure from capex to predictable monthly opex
- Gained the ability to scale resources up for peak trade and back down afterwards
- Right-sized cloud resources to avoid paying for idle capacity
The results
The business now runs on secure, scalable Azure infrastructure with controlled costs and no server room to maintain.
- Infrastructure capital expenditure eliminated by decommissioning on-premises servers
- Azure costs 35% below the original on-premises refresh quote
- 100% of applications accessible remotely within 45 days
- Secure remote access for head-office and store staff from any location
- Resilient operations backed by Defender for Cloud and Azure Backup
Technologies deployed
Microsoft Azure, Microsoft Entra ID (hybrid identity and single sign-on), Microsoft Defender for Cloud, and Azure Backup.
Frequently asked questions
Why move a retail business from on-premises servers to Azure?
Moving to Azure avoids large periodic hardware refreshes, removes the single point of failure of an on-premises server room, and lets the business scale resources up for peak trading and back down afterwards — all while enabling secure remote access for staff across head office and stores.
Does moving to the cloud reduce IT costs?
It changes the cost model from large capital outlays to predictable monthly operating costs. This retailer eliminated its infrastructure capital expenditure and landed Azure running costs 35% below the original on-premises refresh quote, with spend right-sized to actual demand.
Is data secure after migrating to Azure?
Yes. CTS secured the environment with Entra ID identity protection, Microsoft Defender for Cloud, and Azure Backup, and enabled secure remote access without relying on a legacy VPN — giving the business stronger security than its previous on-premises setup.