With the global economy increasingly digitized, the enterprise collaboration software market is now slated to get bigger. Synergy Research Group estimates that the Enterprise communications market is expected to grow to around $22.3 billion in 2011.
A web application platform launched in 2001, Sharepoint is an increasingly popular platform for intranets. IBM has not conveyed the product platform adequately, so Microsoft platforms are increasingly popular. The Gartner 2010 Magic Quadrant for Horizontal Portals puts Microsoft as the most preferred vendor. Analysts estimate more applications being built for the platform by 2015.
Lotus Notes and Domino are gradually losing market share as more customers move away. When transitioning away from Lotus Notes/Domino platform, clients choose SharePoint as a Portal and collaboration platform for migration. Migration is an intricate process, and we cover the process of taking application databases to the SharePoint framework, along with tools and ideas available to accelerate the process.
Lotus Workflow Applications
Lotus Workflow applications are hosted on Domino severs.
Most are accessible with either a client or a web browser. Consider the different types of databases that exist on a server; some of them are Domino Directory, System Databases, mailboxes, business applications, and notes templates.
A brief synopsis of functionalities is as follows; the Domino directory maintains server configuration, user accounts and messaging information. System Databases are a set of supporting structures needed to support server and administrative functions.
In the Microsoft world, mailboxes are on the Exchange server and databases are equivalent to the mail-enabled libraries in SharePoint.
Business applications such as document libraries, discussion forums, employee self-service or workflow applications are characterized as databases. Lotus Notes templates can be saved as a template. A similar equivalent in SharePoint is the List and Site framework.
High-Level Migration Dynamics
Migrating the Lotus Notes and Domino platform to the Microsoft Platform requires: 1.Mailboxes to Microsoft Exchange server 2.Applications to Microsoft Sharepoint server
The Lotus Notes client is replaced with a Microsoft Office Outlook client to access mailboxes and offline SharePoint content. Users generally access SharePoint sites and applications with a web browser. Messaging and Directory services are standards-based so a radically different approach is possible.Tools are available from Microsoft and third-party vendors.
The first step in any migration exercise is to build an inventory of existing databases. Dealing with multiplicity is difficult.
An Application Analysis Envisioning Process (AAEP) for Lotus Domino Applications discusses intricacies for the setup. This helps classify infrastructure, understand components and functionality, and provide sustained guidance for a recommended solution.
Migration paths usually follow these steps; data collection& analysis, target solution mapping, architecting and proof of concept. Application inventory data throws up a slew of statistics that assist the effort. Identify databases, archive legacy data, and drive standardization. By intricate analysis, you can understand criteria in detail.
There are specific Lotus Notes applications and Target SharePoint solutions. When the current Microsoft technology environment and applications are analyzed, a complex Notes application can possibly migrate to an ASP.Net framework. The Buy vs Build decision works after reviewing current aesthetics. Proof of Concept is needed for a workable migration.
The Lotus Notes applications have three intrinsic features: application logic, user interfaces and data. Despite the architecture of Lotus Notes and the APIs they provide, only the data in databases can effectively migrate. Migration tool options include the Microsoft Transporter Suite, IBM LotusNotes SQL etc. Since the process is driven by numerous constraints, holistic change management is essential in planning effective migrations, as well as defining and documenting workflows and information artifacts.
