Cloud engineering

The right cloud for each workload, built and migrated from Harare.

We design, build and migrate cloud platforms on AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, Oracle Cloud, Hetzner, DigitalOcean and bare metal. We are not tied to any vendor, so the recommendation is about your workload, your data and your budget.

Cloud engineering
The problem

What this solves

You do not know which cloud fits

Each provider has strengths. We compare them for your workloads, data protection position and budget, and put the recommendation in writing.

You are still on a server room or a VPS

Power cuts and ageing hardware make on-premises servers costly to keep up. We plan and run the move around your business hours.

Your hosting is scattered

Apps spread across several providers after years of quick fixes. We consolidate them into an estate someone can actually run.

You need a second site

We design hybrid setups where one platform carries production and another stands by as failover, joined by private VPNs.

Deliverables

What you get

  • A platform recommendation with costs, risks and trade-offs
  • Account and subscription structure, identity, networking and guardrails
  • Migration plans and execution with tested rollback
  • Private connectivity: site-to-site VPN, Transit Gateway or equivalent, client VPN
  • Hybrid and failover designs across providers, including primary and secondary sites with a written switch-over procedure
  • Internal tools moved off the public internet: VPN-only access, with a separate internal ingress for Kubernetes platforms
  • Architecture diagrams leadership can follow, plus a handover pack
Engagements

Ways to work with us

  • Cloud platform assessment and selection
  • Landing zone or foundation build
  • Migration from on-premises, VPS or another cloud
  • Hybrid and failover design
  • In-country hosting design for data residency

Scope this with us

Platforms

The right cloud for each workload

We are vendor-independent. We recommend the platform that fits your data, your team and your budget, and we often combine more than one.

PlatformWhen we recommend itTypical workloads
AWSOur primary platform. Broadest range of managed services; the Cape Town region (af-south-1) is the nearest AWS region to Zimbabwe; Amazon Bedrock for AI.Production systems with personal data, managed databases, serverless, AI workloads
Microsoft AzureOrganisations standardised on Microsoft 365 and Entra ID. Often bought locally through a Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider such as Liquid C2.Windows and .NET estates, Microsoft identity, hybrid with on-premises Active Directory
Google CloudData and analytics workloads and Google Workspace organisations. Econet has moved its operations onto Google Cloud and plans to offer cloud services to local enterprises.Analytics, data pipelines, Workspace-centred businesses
Oracle Cloud (OCI)Oracle databases and applications. The Always Free tier includes a small Arm server (2 OCPUs, 12 GB) that suits labs and demos.Oracle Database and Oracle application workloads
HetznerLow-cost servers in Europe, and a long-standing part of our toolkit.Development, staging, internal tools, self-run Kubernetes, warm standby for production
DigitalOceanSimple pricing with managed Kubernetes and databases for small teams.Startups and small apps that want simplicity over breadth
Bare metal and on-premisesServers you own or rent in a local data centre, such as TelOne's, when data must stay in Zimbabwe or hardware already exists.In-country data residency, existing VMware estates, Kubernetes on bare metal
Process

How the work runs

  1. Assess

    We read your current estate, bills and data, and list what exists, what is at risk and what it costs.

  2. Choose

    We compare platforms for each workload and recommend in writing.

  3. Build and migrate

    Foundations first, then workloads in stages, each with a rollback plan.

  4. Hand over or run

    Documentation and training, or managed operations.

Results from the field

What changed when we did this work

~30applications on one shared platformPlatform build

Designed, built and run with container services, Terraform, single sign-on and automated pipelines, for users in several countries.

3 → 1hosting providers consolidated into one estateRecovery

Systems spread across several providers recovered and rebuilt after the people who built them had left.

Cross-cloudmove of a production systemMigration

Rebuilt on the new provider, DNS cut over, then the old estate dismantled with a final database snapshot kept.

1 hubjoining office, cloud and standby sites privatelyNetworking

A Transit Gateway with site-to-site VPNs from an office firewall and a second provider, so internal tools need no public address.

Stack

Tools we work with

  • AWS
  • Microsoft Azure
  • Google Cloud
  • Oracle Cloud Infrastructure
  • Hetzner
  • DigitalOcean
  • Terraform
  • Transit Gateway
  • Client VPN
  • strongSwan
  • Cloudflare
FAQ

Questions buyers ask us

Still unsure? Ask us directly; you will get an answer from an engineer.

Which cloud should a Zimbabwean company use?

There is no single answer. AWS is our default for production systems that need managed services, Azure suits Microsoft-centred organisations, Google Cloud suits data-heavy and Workspace teams, and Hetzner or bare metal suit cost-sensitive or in-country workloads. We recommend per workload.

Can our data stay in Zimbabwe?

Yes, if needed, by hosting on bare metal in a local data centre or on your own premises. We are not aware of any major public cloud running a region in Zimbabwe today; the nearest AWS region is Cape Town.

We buy Azure through a reseller. Can you still help?

Yes. We can design and build on Azure. Cost optimisation is easier when you have billing console access, so we will tell you what your reseller arrangement allows.

Are you a partner of any cloud provider?

Lekkahub is independent and not currently a tiered partner of any cloud provider. That keeps our recommendations neutral. We will say plainly if a project needs a tiered partner.

Who owns the accounts and code?

You do. Accounts and subscriptions are in your name and code lives in your repository.

Harare city skyline

Tell us what you are running today.

Send a short note about your systems and what is getting in the way. You will hear back from the engineer who would do the work.