A global retail banking institution running core financial applications on SQL Server 2000 need to modernize its databases. Handling millions of transactions daily, even brief downtime carries major implications for business continuity, making precision and performance critical throughout the migration.

Business Challenges

Modernizing a core banking database meant balancing a full platform upgrade against near-zero tolerance for disruption.

Full-scope legacy migration

The core banking database required to move from SQL Server 2000 to 2017, along with all legacy data and ETL packages.

Near-zero downtime tolerance

As core banking software, extensive downtime was not an option, putting pressure on the migration timeline.

Large-scale data and packages

3.3 TB of data and 345 ETL packages need to move without loss or corruption.

Continuous banking operations

Millions of daily transactions meant the bank could not pause core operations for an extended window.

Project Objectives

Geopits partnered with the bank to modernize its SQL Server environment without disrupting core banking operations.

Key Goals:

Migrate SQL Server 2000 to 2017 along with all legacy data and ETL packages
Limit downtime to a narrow, planned window
Improve ETL performance without compromising accuracy

Solution Provided by Geopits

Geopits deployed a staged migration approach, completing the ETL process first, testing packages extensively in UAT, and optimizing the process to keep downtime to a minimum.

Staged migration approach

ETL migration, testing, and cutover were separated into distinct, controlled phases.

Extensive UAT testing

ETL packages were tested extensively in UAT before moving to production.

Optimized cutover

The migration process was tuned to minimize downtime during the final cutover.

Full-scale data migration

345 ETL packages and 3.3 TB of data were migrated from SQL Server 2000 to 2017.

Results & Business Impact

The migration modernized the bank's core database platform while keeping disruption to a two-hour planned window.

Capabilities

Before

After

Platform

SQL Server 2000

SQL Server 2017

SSIS Package Execution

SQL Server 2000

SQL Server 2017

Downtime

Risk of Unplanned Downtime on Legacy Platform

2 Hours, Fully Planned

Migration Duration

Not Applicable

Completed in 5 Months, On Schedule

Environment

Legacy Platform with Limited Long-Term Support

Modern, Secure, and Scalable Environment

Key outcomes

Minimal downtime

The migration was completed within just 2 hours of planned downtime, ensuring continuous banking operations.

Accelerated performance

SSIS package execution became 5× faster, significantly improving ETL processing efficiency.

On-time delivery

The enterprise-wide migration was completed in 5 months, meeting the planned schedule.

Future-ready platform

The environment was upgraded to a modern, secure, and scalable SQL Server platform designed to support long-term digital growth.

Conclusion

Geopits partnered with the retail bank to migrate its core banking database from SQL Server 2000 to 2017, moving 345 ETL packages and 3.3 TB of data with just 2 hours of downtime and a 5x improvement in ETL performance.

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