Project Name
How Ksolves Migrated Apache NiFi 1.27 to Kubernetes-Native 2.7 in 6 Weeks for a Financial Services Firm
When a financial services firm’s Apache NiFi 1.27 platform started showing end-of-life signs, every live data pipeline was at risk. The business had zero tolerance for downtime. And the team had just six weeks to complete the migration.
Getting this wrong would have stopped mission-critical data flows across the organization. Getting it right required careful planning, parallel execution, and a delivery partner who had done this before.
Ksolves was brought in to move fast. Using an AI-first delivery approach, the team completed the full migration to NiFi 2.7 on Kubernetes, with OneLogin SSO integrated, on schedule and without a single hour of disruption to live pipelines.
The client came to Ksolves with five challenges that made this migration more complex than a straightforward upgrade:
- The Existing Platform Was End-of-Life: Apache NiFi 1.27 was approaching end-of-support. This meant no more security patches and no vendor help if something went wrong. Every day on the old platform increased the firm's exposure to unpatched vulnerabilities.
- No Downtime Was Permitted: Every production pipeline was handling live transactional data that fed into financial reporting and compliance workflows. Even a short outage would have had serious downstream consequences. The migration had to happen around the live system, not in place of it.
- No Kubernetes Experience in the Existing Setup: The current NiFi deployment had no Kubernetes integration at all. Moving to a cloud-native, container-orchestrated deployment model required redesigning the infrastructure from the ground up, not just upgrading the application.
- SSO to Be Reconnected: The firm used OneLogin for identity management across all systems. Migrating to NiFi 2.7 meant re-integrating OneLogin with NiFi's new authentication model while keeping all existing role-based access controls in place for every team.
- NiFi 2.x Changed How Flows Work: NiFi 2.x removed ZooKeeper, changed the processor lifecycle APIs, and introduced breaking changes that affected how existing flows operated. Every flow had to be reviewed and adjusted before it could be moved to the new platform.
Ksolves treated this as a phased engineering programme rather than a one-step upgrade. The key principle was simple: keep production running at all times while building and testing the new environment in parallel.
- Full Flow Audit Before Touching Anything: Before a single migration step began, the team conducted a complete audit of all NiFi 1.27 flows. Every processor API change, deprecated component, and compatibility risk was identified and documented. This meant there were no surprises mid-migration.
- Kubernetes Cluster Built to Production Standards: A new Kubernetes cluster was provisioned to host NiFi 2.7 with proper namespace isolation, resource limits, and persistent storage configured from day one. The cluster was designed to enterprise reliability standards, not as a quick setup.
- New Environment Built and Tested in Parallel: While production on NiFi 1.27 continued running normally, the NiFi 2.7 environment was built, configured, and tested separately. Every flow was validated in the new environment before it was cut over. If anything failed, there was always a rollback path.
- OneLogin SSO Re-Integrated Cleanly: SSO authentication was re-established using OneLogin against NiFi 2.7's OIDC configuration. All existing roles and access controls were maintained. No user had to re-provision credentials or change how they logged in.
- Phased Cutover Managed by Apache Airflow: Flows were migrated in prioritised batches rather than all at once. Apache Airflow managed the dependencies between flows and ensured that no downstream process was left waiting during the six-week cutover window. Higher-priority flows moved first. Lower-risk flows followed.
Technology Stack
| Category | Technology | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Processing | Apache NiFi 2.7 | Target data flow platform replacing NiFi 1.27 on a Kubernetes-native deployment |
| Infrastructure | Kubernetes | Container orchestration with auto-scaling, health checks, and rolling update support |
| Identity | OneLogin SSO | Re-integrated with NiFi 2.7's OIDC model to maintain role-based access controls |
| Orchestration | Apache Airflow | Managed phased cutover dependencies and validated pipeline continuity throughout migration |
| Architecture | ZooKeeper Removed | NiFi 2.x eliminated ZooKeeper; cluster coordination redesigned using NiFi's built-in state management |
The migration delivered confirmed results across timeline, availability, security, and scalability:
- Full Migration Completed Within the 6-Week Window: Every pipeline was successfully migrated and live on NiFi 2.7 on Kubernetes within the committed timeline. The firm met its deadline with no extensions and no partial delivery.
- Zero Hours of Production Downtime: The parallel environment strategy and phased cutover approach meant the live system was never interrupted. Every pipeline kept processing throughout the entire six-week migration period.
- Security Posture Modernised: The firm moved from an unpatched, end-of-life platform to NiFi 2.7 with active vendor support, patched dependencies, and OneLogin SSO enforcing enterprise-grade access controls across all pipeline operators.
- 3x Scalability Headroom Unlocked: The new Kubernetes-native NiFi 2.7 cluster can scale horizontally on demand. The estimated throughput headroom is three times the previous static on-premise deployment, with no re-architecture needed to absorb growing data volumes.
“The team delivered exactly what was promised. A full migration to NiFi 2.7 on Kubernetes, on time and without a single hour of downtime. Our pipelines are faster, more secure, and ready to scale.”
– VP of Data Engineering, Financial Services Firm, India
The gap between where this firm started and where it is today is significant. Six weeks ago, they were running an unsupported platform with no Kubernetes capability, growing security exposure, and no clear path to modernisation without taking their pipelines offline.
Today, they run NiFi 2.7 on a fully cloud-native Kubernetes cluster with enterprise identity management, zero unpatched vulnerabilities, and the headroom to triple their data throughput without rebuilding anything. The migration was delivered on time, with no downtime, and with every flow running cleanly from day one on the new platform.
With NiFi 2.7 on Kubernetes now in place, the firm is well-positioned to expand into real-time streaming and machine learning pipeline orchestration as its data engineering practice grows.
For financial services organizations still running Apache NiFi 1.x on legacy infrastructure, explore Ksolves Big Data Services and Kubernetes Consulting Services to find out how a zero-downtime migration can be delivered for your organization.
Still Running Apache NiFi 1.x on Legacy Infrastructure? We’re Here to Help!
