THE MIGRATION MATH

Most AWS database migrations carry a hidden licensing risk

Three structural patterns show up in nearly every Oracle and SQL Server estate we encounter.

1

Non-production databases consuming premium entitlements

Dev, QA, DR, and reporting databases default to Enterprise Edition, RAC, Database Vault, and Advanced Security because that is what the production template ships with. The licensing model never gets reviewed and costs skyrocket.

2

On-prem configurations ported into AWS

Lifting and shifting databases without reconsidering the resources and configurations leads to wasted licenses. Instance sizes, resource allocation, HA, and DR configurations all need a fresh evaluation to limit license risk.
3

Forgotten entitlements buried in misunderstood agreements

Shelf licenses, mismatched metrics, and misapplied agreement terms inflate license cost risk in a migration. An expert review of license agreements, available entitlement and how they are applied can eliminate risk and reduce cost.
When the migration budget hits the licensing math, the typical reaction is to cancel the migration or buy more licenses. That changes nothing about the structural problems, and can cost millions more than it should.
THE SOLUTION

Live target-state models, not just a spreadsheet

An OLA from House of Brick is a structured inventory of your current Oracle and SQL Server estate, a current-state compliance assessment, target-state models mapped to AWS instance shapes, and ongoing usage drift monitoring. This active migration blueprint is optimized for AWS, funded by AWS, and delivered by House of Brick.

Current-state license compliance

Current database usage profile is mapped against available license entitlement. License risks are actively identified.

Total cost of ownership

On-prem versus AWS, by workload tier.

Right-sizing recommendations

Based on actual usage, not allocated capacity.

Licensing strategy

BYOL, License Included, Cloud Policy, License Mobility. Comparative TCO for multiple deployment scenarios.

Architectural target-state

Amazon RDS, EC2, Dedicated Hosts, Database@AWS, Managed vs DIY. Models compare pros and cons.

License optimization opportunities

Dormant entitlement reclamation, redundant feature retirement, zombie workload elimination.

One year Opscompass monitoring included

Oracle feature usage monitoring, On-premises and cloud inventory tracking, Drift detection & notification.

Audit readiness checkpoint

While not a full audit-ready compliance check, an OLA will flag potential audit readiness risk vectors and identify areas for follow up.

AGENTIC OLA · POWERED BY OPSCOMPASS

A traditional OLA takes 30 to 45 days. From data submission, ours gives validated results in just a few.

An OLA from House of Brick is powered by our cutting-edge Opscompass software. Opscompass leverages the power of AI that is trained on our 25+ years of experience, and has metadata access to all the database and platform resources and configurations.
TRADITIONAL ASSESSMENT

30 to 45 days. Agent install required.

30 to 45 days to blueprint

New data gathering software installed in your environment

Output stops at recommendations. No continuous monitoring.

Generic systems integrator delivery

HOUSE OF BRICK AGENTIC OLA

Under a week. No new data gathering software installations.

Under one business week from customer data delivery to target environment models

Streamlined data gathering. Ingests read-only resource metadata from lightweight scripts, hypervisor interconnects, and cloud APIs.

Continuous monitoring carries forward post-migration

25+ years of Oracle and SQL Server consulting weight. 500+ audits defended.

How it works under the hood

STEP 1
Opscompass ingests your data.

Lightweight read-only metadata gathering scripts, hypervisors (VMware, Nutanix, IBM), cloud APIs (AWS, Azure, OCI, GCP), license entitlement PDFs. No new infrastructure.

STEP 2
AI processes your data & generates target scenarios.
Opscompass agents act as trained optimization architects to produce optimized models, an action report, and a summary presentation.
STEP 3
House of Brick consultants review.
Pressure-test the AI output, surface architectural decisions the AI cannot make alone, translate findings into a target-state blueprint.
STEP 4
You get Opscompass

Continuous inventory tracking (on-prem & cloud), Oracle feature usage monitoring, SQL Server sprawl detection. The next tipping point gets surfaced before it becomes a deficit.

CREDIBILITY

Oracle and SQL Server licensing is what we do.

House of Brick has been the Oracle and SQL Server consulting practice for enterprise IT since 1998. We are not a SAM reseller, a cloud cost tool, or a generic systems integrator with a database practice on the side. Oracle and SQL Server licensing is what we do, across every major cloud and on-prem.
500+

audits defended

$5.7B+

cumulative license claims eliminated

25+

organizational years of database expert leadership

AWS Parter

within the Marketplace OLA listing

FAQ

Common questions.

Is the OLA really free?
For qualified customer environments, AWS provides funding to House of Brick to cover the cost of an OLA. We can help you determine if you qualify.
Do I need to install anything in my environment?
That depends. We have lightweight scripts and a small aggregating application that sends the data to Opscompass that is an option to facilitate ease of data gathering. If your data is already available in an acceptable format, then no new tools are required.
How long does it take?
Once we receive all the required data from the customer, most engagements deliver a full blueprint in under one business week, depending on scope. The agentic data ingest and AI parse runs quickly; House of Brick expert review and report production layer on top of that. We will set the actual SLA when we scope your estate.
What about my existing SAM tool?
Reports from SAM tools like Flexera, Snow, ServiceNow, Erecent, BigFix, and MS Intune may provide the necessary information without gathering more data
What happens to the data?

It stays under your control. Opscompass processes it under the same governance terms as any AWS Partner-led assessment. Specifics available on request before kickoff.

What databases do you support?
We support AWS OLAs for Oracle and SQL Server databases, running on-premises in VMware, Nutanix, IBM (AIX), Oracle (hardware & hypervisors), and unvirtualized hardware environments.
Will I have to buy more licenses?
We hope not, but that depends entirely on your current usage and entitlement profile.
What about Oracle or Microsoft audits?
House of Brick has defended over 500 Oracle and Microsoft audits, and saved customers $5.7B+ in unreasonable deficiency claims. While the OLA is not an audit-ready compliance assessment, it is a good first step. We will flag potential audit readiness risk vectors and identify areas for follow up.