AWS Transform, the service that uses agentic AI to accelerate cloud migrations, now supports Amazon FSx for NetApp ONTAP as a storage target for block storage migration to the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Cloud. It introduces a direct migration path, eliminating the multi-step workarounds that previously added cost, time, and risk.
In this post we cover:
- Background: migrating block-based workloads before AWS Transform
- How AWS Transform simplifies migration
- Unified migration flow for compute and block storage
- How FSx for ONTAP supports day-2 operations
- Impact on modernization projects
- Summary and next steps
Background: migrating block-based workloads before AWS Transform
Enterprise workloads that utilize block storage typically have well‑defined requirements around performance consistency, data protection, security, and rich data management capabilities. In on‑premises environments, these expectations are met through enterprise storage platforms that provide capabilities such as fast backup and recovery, data replication, and security controls.
As organizations move enterprise workloads to AWS, preserving the storage capabilities those workloads depend on becomes an increasingly important consideration.
This is where FSx for ONTAP comes in. FSx for ONTAP is a fully managed storage service that’s built on NetApp’s popular ONTAP storage software to deliver enterprise‑grade storage capabilities that enterprise workloads need to operate effectively on AWS.
Despite the strong fit, moving data to FSx for ONTAP often required migration teams to plan storage separately from compute, relying on a two-step migration flow, or using third-party tools.
How AWS Transform simplifies migration
AWS Transform is designed to help organizations plan and execute complete resource migration to the AWS Cloud using AI‑assisted workflows. AWS Transform applies intelligence to analyze environments, generate migration insights, and orchestrate execution across large-scale modernization initiatives.
AWS Transform brings together the following two distinct but related capabilities under a single service:
Assessment capabilities
The assessment functionality analyzes existing environments to identify application dependencies, infrastructure characteristics, and modernization readiness. This AI‑powered assessment helps teams prioritize workloads and build informed migration plans.
Migration capabilities
AWS Transform coordinates workload migration to AWS through automated workflows that now support FSx for ONTAP as a storage target. Customers familiar with AWS Application Migration Service (MGN), now part of AWS Transform, can replicate block storage data directly to FSx for ONTAP as well.
Unified migration flow for compute and block storage
The migration flow is streamlined into a single migration motion, eliminating the need for separate migration steps or tools:
Source workloads → AWS Transform migration → Amazon EC2 with FSx for ONTAP
AWS Transform handles more than replication. After a migration wave is configured and FSx for ONTAP is selected as the storage target, AWS Transform continuously replicates block storage data to FSx for ONTAP LUNs while source applications remain online.
For testing and cutover, AWS Transform launches the target Amazon EC2 instances, connects the migrated FSx for ONTAP LUNs over iSCSI, and enables validation before final cutover. This creates a more unified motion for migration teams and a cleaner path to production.
This is particularly relevant for VMware environments, where virtual machines run on Virtual Machine File System (VMFS) datastores backed by block LUNs or on NFS datastores. Because AWS Transform replicates from an agent inside each virtual machine at the guest operating system level, the source array and protocol don't constrain the target. Whether vSphere sits on NetApp® or on a third-party array, data volumes can land on FSx for ONTAP as iSCSI LUNs, with the OS boot volume on Amazon EBS.
AWS Transform also provides flexibility. Teams can define a default storage target for a migration wave and override that choice at the individual server level. This supports workloads to continue landing on Amazon Elastic Block Store (Amazon EBS), while workloads that benefit from ONTAP‑specific capabilities can land directly on FSx for ONTAP.
The following diagram illustrates the AWS Transform VMware migration with FSx for ONTAP as the storage target:
How FSx for ONTAP supports day-2 operations
After migration, the focus shifts from moving workloads to operating them in AWS. For block-based VMware and database workloads, that includes backup and restore, recovery testing, DevTest refreshes, replication, and business continuity planning. The storage layer influences how much of that operating model can remain consistent.
FSx for ONTAP can help teams maintain familiar storage operations in AWS by providing ONTAP capabilities such as snapshot based protection, efficient data copies, replication, encryption, and ransomware protection.
Because AWS Transform can now migrate data directly to FSx for ONTAP, teams can continue using ONTAP-based storage workflows after cutover instead of redesigning those processes separately. This is especially valuable for organizations already using ONTAP, where existing operational practices can carry forward into AWS with less change.
Impact on modernization projects
For infrastructure managers and IT professionals, this release simplifies migration planning. When compute, network, and block storage move together in one coordinated workflow, there are fewer moving parts to align across teams and fewer opportunities for storage to become a late‑stage bottleneck.
For modernization project leads, it reduces architectural compromise. Teams no longer need to choose between using AWS Transform for the primary migration workflow and using a separate approach to land block workloads on FSx for ONTAP. The migration process can better reflect the intended steady‑state architecture from day one.
For VMware administrators, this creates a cleaner route to move workloads to Amazon EC2, while preserving the block storage semantics that environments depend on. At a time when many organizations are reexamining their VMware strategy, this can help reduce friction between planning and execution.
For database and application owners, it means fewer tool transitions and a more consistent operational model after cutover. Business‑critical block workloads such as Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, and IBM DB2 can move to AWS while continuing to benefit from the data management, storage efficiency, and protection capabilities available in ONTAP.
For teams with mixed storage environments, AWS Transform provides the migration for block-based workloads, while AWS DataSync remains the recommended service for file storage migrations. Together, these services provide a complete migration strategy for complex enterprise estates.
Summary and next steps
With support for FSx for ONTAP as a storage target, AWS Transform now offers a more complete path for enterprise block workload migrations. Customers can move block workloads to Amazon EC2 with direct access to managed ONTAP storage in the AWS Cloud, without intermediate steps or third-party tooling.
For organizations migrating block‑based applications, this release simplifies migration design, broadens storage destination choice, and supports day-2 operations in AWS.
Next, read the AWS Transform announcement and review the AWS storage blog for practical guidance on Migrating VMware Storage to FSx for ONTAP using AWS Transform.
