Fanatics migrates 1,800 servers to AWS
Fanatics says it migrated 1,800 servers to AWS using MAP/EBA/OLA programs and reported about 48% cost savings while gaining flexibility and the ability to refocus engineering teams. The company framed the move as both a cost and operational improvement. (x.com)
Fanatics Commerce said it is moving 1,800 servers from five data centers to Amazon Web Services, with the migration slated to finish by December 2026. (aws.amazon.com) Amazon Web Services said the project covers Windows and Linux systems spread across five global sites, and Fanatics projects about 48% lower infrastructure costs after the move. (aws.amazon.com) Fanatics had already been running its front-end websites and data analytics on Amazon Web Services, while corporate systems and fulfillment-center infrastructure stayed in on-premises colocation facilities. Ron Artinger, senior director of infrastructure at Fanatics Commerce, said the company needed to modernize “backend systems, corporate systems, and warehouse fulfillment systems.” (aws.amazon.com) The shift is aimed at the parts of Fanatics that keep orders moving after fans click buy. Fanatics says it operates more than 900 online and mobile stores for more than 100 million fans, and its systems can process thousands of orders per minute during events such as the Super Bowl and World Series. (fanaticsinc.com) That scale has made older infrastructure harder to justify. Amazon Web Services said Fanatics was facing rising operating costs, hardware refresh cycles, legacy backup systems, and complex networks that required constant patching and maintenance. (aws.amazon.com) Amazon Web Services said Fanatics used three Amazon programs for the migration. The Migration Acceleration Program provides a three-phase plan called Assess, Mobilize, and Migrate and Modernize; Experience-Based Acceleration is a workshop model for hands-on cloud projects; and the Optimization and Licensing Assessment analyzes actual server use, software licenses, and application dependencies before a move. (aws.amazon.com 1) (aws.amazon.com 2) (aws.amazon.com 3) The technical sticking points were not minor. Amazon Web Services said Fanatics had concerns about moving Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle database workloads, and each data center had its own setup, which required a different migration plan. (aws.amazon.com) Fanatics has been expanding well beyond jerseys and hats while overhauling the systems underneath. The company says it began with a single e-commerce deal in 2002 and now runs businesses across commerce, collectibles, betting and gaming, and live events. (fanaticsinc.com) Artinger said Fanatics does not want to “run data centers” because that is “not our core business.” If the migration lands on schedule in December 2026, the company will have pushed more of its back-end operations onto the same cloud platform that already runs its storefronts and analytics. (aws.amazon.com)
