When migrating is NOT worth it (so no one sells you smoke)
The most profitable migration is sometimes the one you decide not to do.
Migrating sounds like guaranteed savings, but it is not always so. There are cases where the cost of moving, the risk, or the technical dependency make staying put the cheapest decision. A good consultant tells you when not to migrate; the one who only sells projects never does. Here are the honest red flags.
01 When you depend on engine-specific features
If your application lives on very particular proprietary features, rewriting that can cost more than the license you were trying to save.
02 When the system has little life left
If that database is being retired in a year or two, migrating it is investing in something you are about to switch off. There the savings never catch up to the project.
03 When the savings are smaller than the cost to migrate
A small database with a modest license rarely justifies a full migration. The numbers have to close in your favor, not just the pitch.
04 When operational risk outweighs the savings
If it is a critical system with no reasonable maintenance window, sometimes the prudent answer is to wait for the right moment, not force it.
// A typical case (illustrative)
Picture a proprietary 4-core database the company plans to retire in 18 months when it changes systems. The remaining license totals ~USD $30,000 and support a little more. Migrating it would cost more than that and would tie up the team right before shutting it down. The honest recommendation was not to migrate and to wait for the natural replacement.
Illustrative example with typical market figures, not a specific client.
// next step
Before approving any migration, ask for an analysis that also treats not migrating as a valid option. At dba.mx we work at a fixed price with a firm cap, and if the numbers do not favor you, we tell you.