# Moving to AEM as a Cloud Service

> Moving from AEM 6.x or Adobe Managed Services to AEM as a Cloud Service changes how code is built, deployed and run. A successful move starts with knowing exactly what has to change. We assess the platform, size the effort and plan a migration that doesn’t surprise you halfway through.

- Canonical: https://www.source360group.com/problems/aem-cloud-migration/
- Publisher: Source 360 Group

## What it looks like

- AEM 6.5 nearing the end of its support window
- Pressure to move to the cloud without a clear estimate
- Custom code and integrations nobody has inventoried
- Dispatcher and caching rules built for on-premises
- AEM Forms or legacy LiveCycle forms that also need to move

## Why it happens

- AEM as a Cloud Service runs as an immutable, auto-updating platform, so some on-premises patterns no longer work
- Older code often uses deprecated APIs or writes to the repository at runtime
- Integrations and scheduled jobs are frequently undocumented

## How Source 360 diagnoses it

- Repository and code analysis with Adobe’s Best Practices Analyzer
- Deprecated API scan
- Dispatcher and CDN review
- Integration inventory
- Migration complexity score

## Adobe technologies involved

- Adobe Experience Manager as a Cloud Service
- Cloud Manager
- AEM 6.5
- Dispatcher
- AEM Forms
- Edge Delivery Services

## What we usually recommend

- A migration plan with phases, effort and risks
- Which code to refactor, retire or rebuild
- Whether some page families should move to Edge Delivery Services

## Supporting stories

- “Please wait…” The message that wouldn’t go away: https://www.source360group.com/stories/please-wait-pdf-forms-wont-open-in-browser/ (Markdown: https://www.source360group.com/stories/please-wait-pdf-forms-wont-open-in-browser.md)

## Best next engagement

- AEM Cloud Readiness: https://www.source360group.com/offers/aem-cloud-readiness/
- Forms Modernization: https://www.source360group.com/offers/forms-modernization/

## Common questions

### What is the first step in moving to AEM as a Cloud Service?

A readiness assessment: analyze the repository, code, dispatcher and integrations, then score how complex the move will be.

### What happens to our AEM Forms when we move to the cloud?

Adaptive Forms and Communications can move to AEM Forms as a Cloud Service. Legacy XFA and LiveCycle forms need their own plan, such as rendering as HTML5 or converting to Adaptive Forms.