646-558-2225Client Need
An MSP supporting a growing professional services firm was dealing with constantly increasing and unpredictable cloud bills from AWS and Azure.
The firm relied on several core workloads, including:
- PBX server for voice and telephony
- File server for shared documents and collaboration
- Custom dedicated application server for a line-of-business app
- Domain Controller (DC) for identity and access
- RDP server cluster for remote access
Performance was non-negotiable. What the client needed was high performance and consistent, predictable billing—without being penalized for normal growth, usage spikes, or traffic.
Project Overview
The MSP partnered with CaaB to move all production workloads off AWS and Azure onto a single, high-performance cloud platform with no surprise fees.
Objectives:
- Keep or improve performance across all critical services
- Stabilize and simplify monthly cloud costs
- Eliminate complex overage, IOPS, and traffic-based charges
- Consolidate onto one environment that’s easier to manage and explain to the client
Challenges
- Unpredictable Invoices: AWS/Azure costs were impacted by a mix of compute, storage, bandwidth, and usage-driven fees, making bills difficult to forecast.
- Growth Penalties: As usage increased—more sessions, more traffic, more activity—costs climbed in ways that were hard to map back to business value.
- Multi-Cloud Overhead: Running workloads across both AWS and Azure added operational complexity for the MSP.
- Business-Critical Workloads: PBX, RDP, and DC services had to remain stable; any disruption would directly affect daily operations.
Solution
CaaB and the MSP designed a consolidated hosting model for all workloads on CaaB’s high-performance cloud:
- PBX server for reliable, consistent call quality
- File server with performant, durable storage
- Custom dedicated application server tuned for the firm’s business app
- Domain Controller for secure authentication and policy enforcement
- RDP server cluster to provide smooth remote access for users
The key difference was CaaB’s billing model:
- No IOPS-based billing
- No surprise overage or traffic fees
- Transparent, predictable monthly costs tied to clearly defined resources
Performance was top-tier from day one, and in many workloads the client experienced better responsiveness compared to the previous AWS/Azure setup.
Migration Strategy
- Assessment: The MSP and CaaB reviewed all workloads and dependencies across AWS and Azure, including resource consumption and traffic patterns.
- Planning: A phased migration plan was built to reduce risk, with maintenance windows agreed upon with the client.
- Execution:
- Migrated PBX, file, DC, app, and RDP workloads into CaaB’s environment
- Synchronized data and validated application and voice services
- Cut over DNS and user access during low-impact windows
- Optimization: After migration, resource allocations were fine-tuned based on real usage while keeping costs predictable.
Results
- More Than 50% Cost Reduction: Shifting from AWS/Azure to CaaB reduced the client’s cloud bill by over 50%, driven by the elimination of unpredictable usage and traffic fees.
- Predictable, Clean Billing: Simple, transparent invoices made it easier for the MSP to budget and to have clear conversations with the client.
- High (and Often Better) Performance: PBX, RDP, and application workloads ran on consistently strong infrastructure, with many users reporting equal or better performance than before.
- Operational Simplicity: Consolidating onto CaaB removed multi-cloud overhead and gave the MSP a single, coherent environment to manage.
Key Takeaways
This project shows that cost effectiveness doesn’t have to come at the expense of performance.
By moving PBX, file services, custom apps, DC, and RDP off AWS and Azure and onto CaaB, the MSP delivered:
- Top-tier performance for business-critical workloads
- Over 50% reduction in monthly cloud spend
- Predictable, no-surprise billing—without IOPS, overusage, or traffic-driven penalties
The result is a cloud foundation that supports high performance and clear economics, strengthening both the MSP’s service offering and the client relationship.
