Cisco ACI Migration Strategy & Step-by-Step Overview

Migrating to Cisco ACI is a major milestone for any data center. But without a clear ACI migration strategy, it can quickly become complex.

In this video-based article, I explore a high-level roadmap for moving to ACI, compare Greenfield and Brownfield approaches, and help you decide between a Network-Centric and Application-Centric design. This is the foundation of a successful migration playbook.

Summary

  • ACI Migration is moving workloads, policies, and connectivity from a legacy network to the ACI fabric.
  • In Greenfield ACI deployment, we build a new data center fabric with no dependency on an existing network.
  • In Brownfield ACI deployment, we move an existing active data center to the ACI fabric.
  • In most migrations, the ‘Network-Centric’ approach is the safest way to quickly bring your workloads onto the ACI fabric. You can always optimize for ‘Application-Centric’ features once the migration risk is gone.

Looking for Comprehensive Cisco Data Center Training?

Take your data center skills to the next level with my deep-dive courses, designed for real-world application.

Modern DC Architecture & Automation:


Core Protocols & CCIE Prep:


Need Personalized Guidance?

Additional Resources:
Migrating Existing Networks to Cisco ACI
What and Why Cisco ACI? (The Easy Way)

author avatar
Salman Alhiary Expert Network Consultant
In the networking field since 2010, 2× CCIE (ENT & DC), and founder of LearnWithSalman—specializes in Cisco Data Center networking and automation. A former Cisco TAC engineer and now an Expert Professional Services consultant, he delivers lab-first tutorials, deep templates, and repeatable playbooks through his courses and technical blog, all built from real enterprise projects.
5 1 vote
Article Rating
Subscribe
Notify of
guest

2 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Sandeep
Sandeep
1 day ago

Hey Salman,
It was a nice video on the legacy to fabric migration thanks for this.Please can you also post a video of how to migrate from existing fabric to new fabric.

Scroll to Top