How to Migrate from AEM On-Premise to AEM as a Cloud Service

Adobe Experience Manager as a Cloud Service (AEMaaCS) offers scalability, automatic updates, and CI/CD capabilities by default, but migrating from on-premise AEM is not a straightforward lift-and-shift process. It requires careful planning, refactoring, and validation.

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🧱 1. Assess Your Current Setup

• Inventory custom code, content, workflows, and integrations.

• Identify deprecated APIs or legacy features.

• Check dispatcher configs, replication agents, and user groups.

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🧹 2. Clean Up and Modernize

• Remove unused components, templates, and content.

• Refactor Classic UI to Touch UI.

• Replace deprecated APIs with Cloud Service–compliant alternatives.

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🧱 3. Align with AEMaaCS Architecture

• Modularize your codebase (use Core Components, Sling Models).

• Organize folders by best practice (/apps, /content, /conf).

• Use editable templates and content fragments.

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⚙️ 4. Set Up Cloud Manager

• Onboard your program via Adobe Admin Console.

• Set up Git repo, branches, and environments (Dev, Stage, Prod).

• Configure pipelines for build and deployment.

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📦 5. Prepare Code & Deploy

• Update Maven project structure to follow AEMaaCS archetype.

• Run code scans using Adobe's Best Practices Analyzer (BPA).

• Fix critical blockers and deploy via Cloud Manager.

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📤 6. Content Migration

• Use Content Transfer Tool (CTT) from Adobe.

• Migrate content from source (On-Prem) to Cloud.

• Run dry-runs before final migration.

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✅ 7. Test & Validate

• Test all functionality and workflows.

• Validate integrations (authentication, APIs, analytics).

• Monitor logs and performance post-migration.

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🌟 Final Thoughts

Migrating to AEMaaCS isn’t just about moving servers — it's an opportunity to modernize. Plan early, involve both developers and content authors, and take full advantage of Adobe’s tools and guidelines.

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