Utility loyalty platform re-platformed from WordPress to Next.js
- 300K+
- user records migrated with no forced password resets
Legacy Software Modernisation Services
Legacy Software Modernisation
Replace or incrementally migrate aging systems, monolithic codebases, end-of-life frameworks, on-prem infrastructure, without losing business logic or causing operational disruption. Planned modernisation at a pace the business controls, not a crisis response to a system failure.
We audit the existing system before writing a line of code, plan the data migration before cutover, and replace only what needs replacing. Fixed cost agreed before development starts.
Full code and data audit before a line is written
Data migration planned and tested before cutover, no surprises on go-live day
Replace only what needs replacing, not a forced rewrite of working components
Fixed cost, no discovering problems mid-project
Recent outcomes
Voice AI · Research
6× deeper insights
Text-based interviews converted to automated phone calls
AI Automation · Ops
20k+ txns day one
Manual invoice OCR across 40+ gas stations
Loyalty · Retail
1,062 users in 4 weeks
SuperValu & Centra loyalty platform with receipt validation
SaaS · Logistics
2,000+ shipments yr 1
Multi-carrier shipping hub for Indonesian eCommerce
4.9
on ClutchThe problem
Sound familiar?
Running a business-critical system on software the original vendor stopped supporting, one server failure away from losing years of operational data?
Paying developers to maintain a legacy codebase that takes longer to understand than to rewrite, while new features are impossible to add without breaking something?
Short answer
RaftLabs modernises legacy software: monolithic codebases, end-of-life frameworks, and on-prem systems migrated to modern architecture without disrupting operations. We audit the existing system first, then replace it incrementally with the strangler fig pattern and a tested rollback plan, not a big-bang rewrite. A focused first phase runs $30,000 to $80,000; a full multi-module platform migration grows to $80,000 to $200,000+ across phased delivery.
Key takeaways
- RaftLabs audits the existing system before writing a single line of code, so cost and scope are fixed before development starts
- The strangler fig pattern replaces the legacy system incrementally, keeping the business running throughout migration
- Data migration is planned and rehearsed before cutover, with a tested rollback plan in place
- A focused first phase runs $30,000 to $80,000; a full multi-module platform migration grows to $80,000 to $200,000+ across phased delivery
- Only components that need replacing are replaced, preserving business logic built over years
Trusted by
Legacy systems don't fail on a schedule. They fail when the server hardware dies, when the operating system reaches end of support, or when the one engineer who understood the codebase leaves. The risk compounds quietly until a single event turns it into an emergency.
Modernisation is not a rewrite for its own sake. The job is to replace a risk-carrying system on a schedule you control, using an approach that preserves the business logic built over years.
Stripe's Developer Coefficient study found developers spend about 13.5 hours a week, nearly a third of their time, dealing with technical debt and maintaining bad legacy code. That is the real cost of an aging system: not the licence line, but the compounding drag on the people who keep it running. For most teams the barrier to fixing it is not ambition. The barrier is the operational risk of touching a system that daily operations depend on, with no clear plan to do it without downtime.
- 300K+
- user records migrated WordPress to Next.js, no forced password resets
- Energia Rewards rebuild
- 200+
- live accounts migrated with zero shipments interrupted at cutover
- UrShipper rebuild
- 11
- data remediation scripts run before a single record moved to production
- Energia Rewards rebuild
Services
What we do
- 01Monolith-to-microservices migration
Incremental decomposition of monolithic applications into independently deployable services, so the business keeps operating instead of pausing for a 12-month big-bang rewrite. Service boundaries are drawn by business ownership, the highest-friction component is extracted first, and database decomposition is phased separately from service extraction, with each service validated under real production traffic before the next.
- Built with
- Strangler fig pattern · Domain-driven design · API contracts
- 02Framework and language migration
Migration from end-of-life frameworks and languages to supported modern equivalents that receive security patches. A codebase audit scopes the migration before any estimate, and feature-by-feature conversion adds regression tests as it goes, so the business logic that took years to build is preserved while the runtime that blocks maintenance is replaced.
- Built with
- PHP 5 · AngularJS · Classic ASP · .NET Framework 4.x
- 03Database modernisation
Migration from legacy databases to managed infrastructure with automated backups and patching. Schema redesign fixes data models shaped by old platform constraints, index and query strategy are rebuilt for today's data volumes, and migration scripts run several dress rehearsals against copies of production data, validating row counts and integrity before cutover.
- Built with
- SQL Server 2008, Oracle, DB2 · AWS RDS · Azure SQL
- 04API wrapper strategy
Where a full replacement isn't feasible in one engagement, an API wrapper isolates the legacy system behind a clean, modern interface so consuming applications can be updated independently of the legacy internals. Modern endpoints translate to the legacy services, new features accumulate in the modern layer while internals are replaced module by module, and a 5-year replacement becomes annual increments instead of one high-risk cutover.
- Built with
- REST · GraphQL · SOAP
- 05Cloud migration for legacy apps
Lift-and-shift migration of on-premises applications to the cloud, followed by targeted modernisation of whatever blocks cloud-native operation: hardcoded paths, local file dependencies, and hardware assumptions. Infrastructure-as-code replaces undocumented manual configuration, managed services take over the database, storage, and caching, and the end state is multi-AZ infrastructure with automated backups and auto-scaling.
- Built with
- AWS, Azure, GCP · Terraform · CI/CD
- 06Legacy codebase documentation and audit
Structured audit of a legacy codebase with no documentation: what the code actually does, the data model, the business rules embedded in application logic, and a dependency map. Static analysis surfaces dead code and undocumented entry points, business rules buried in stored procedures are documented in plain language, and the output is an assessment covering scope, maintenance cost, risks, and replacement sizing.
- Built with
- SonarQube · Static analysis
Benefits
What you get from a legacy modernisation engagement
01
A codebase engineers want to work in
After modernisation, your system runs on a stack that developers already know. Test coverage makes changes safe to ship. New engineers get productive in days, not months. Feature velocity returns to weeks per sprint instead of quarters.
02
Connects to every tool your business runs on
A modernised system integrates with Salesforce, SAP, Stripe, AWS, and every platform your business depends on. Manual handoffs that only exist because two systems couldn't talk get replaced by reliable automated flows.
03
Costs less to run, year after year
Legacy software costs more to maintain every year it stays running. Security patches require specialist knowledge you can't easily hire. Bugs compound in unfamiliar code. Modernisation reduces the operational overhead before a failure makes the decision for you.
Have a legacy system that needs replacing?
Tell us what the system does, how long it's been running, and what's driving the need to modernise. We'll audit it and give you a fixed cost.
Related custom software services
Custom Software Development, full custom software capability overview
Web Application Development, the modern replacement for legacy desktop and web systems
Enterprise Software Development, for organisations replacing complex enterprise platforms
MVP Development, validate the replacement before committing to the full build
What clients say
What our clients say
Three-year average engagement. Founders and operators describing the work in their own words. No marketing varnish.
Charles E.
USAEntrepreneur at Aggie Technologies
All of the sprints were completed on schedule and on budget. We highly recommend RaftLabs!
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Read moreFrequently asked questions
The right time is before a failure forces the decision. Indicators that modernisation is overdue include: the vendor no longer releasing security patches; the system runs on hardware that can't be replaced like-for-like; the team maintaining it is shrinking and the knowledge is leaving with them; new features take months because every change risks breaking something else; or the system can't integrate with tools the business now depends on. When any of these apply, the risk of staying on the legacy system is compounding. Modernisation planned on your schedule is materially cheaper than emergency recovery after a failure.
Cutover strategy is designed during the assessment phase, before development begins. For most systems we use a parallel running approach, both old and new systems operate simultaneously while the new system is validated against real data. Cutover happens in a planned window, typically outside business hours, with a tested rollback plan. For systems where parallel running isn't feasible, we use a phased cutover, moving one function or department at a time to reduce the risk of a single large transition. The business never faces a situation where the old system is decommissioned before the new one is verified.
The strangler fig pattern is an approach to legacy migration where you incrementally replace pieces of the old system with new components, rather than doing a big-bang rewrite. New functionality is built in the modern system; existing functionality is migrated piece by piece over time. The legacy system handles less and less over the migration period until it can be decommissioned entirely. This approach keeps the business running throughout the migration, reduces the risk of any single large transition failing, and lets the team validate each migrated component before moving to the next. It takes longer than a rewrite but carries significantly less operational risk.
Replacing a focused legacy system, a single application, clear scope, and manageable data migration, typically runs $30,000 to $80,000. Modernising a large legacy platform with multiple integrated modules, complex data migration, and a phased cutover strategy typically runs $80,000 to $200,000+. Fixed cost agreed before development starts. The assessment engagement that precedes the development quote is what makes that fixed price possible, we price based on what we find, not what we assume.
Work with us
Tell us what you need. We'll tell you what it would take.
We scope Legacy Software Modernisation in 30 minutes. You walk away with a clear cost, timeline, and approach. No commitment required.
- Scope and cost agreed before work starts. No surprises. No obligation.
- Working prototype within 3 weeks of kickoff.
- Pay by milestone. You see progress before each invoice.
- 60-day post-launch warranty. Bug fixes, UI tweaks, and deployment support. No retainer.
- All conversations are NDA-protected.