Effortlessly modernize your legacy systems in 10 steps

If your daily business operations rely on outdated IT systems, it can be difficult to meet the high demands of today. Modernization becomes necessary, but in practice, there is sometimes hesitation to tackle these systems. It’s a large process that takes time and money. Additionally, change management is involved, and there is a fear of (temporary) downtime during the modernization process. So how can you best modernize your legacy systems?

Legacy systems that need modernization hide many dangers that may not be visible at first, but will eventually cause significant problems within the organization. A legacy environment often runs on-premise on outdated hardware that is no longer reliable or fast enough, leading to performance issues. Connecting with modern (SaaS) systems is difficult or impossible to implement, and security is often lacking as well. Documentation for these systems is typically absent, and the knowledge is only stored in the minds of IT staff. When these valuable employees leave for another employer or retire, it creates a serious problem for the organization. Of course, you can seek external specialists, but you’ll quickly realize that certain knowledge is scarce and comes at a high price.

All of these are reasons to say goodbye to your outdated environment and choose a solution that meets the current requirements for reliability, speed, scalability, and security. By following the steps in the plan below, you can easily modernize and migrate an existing legacy environment to a modern platform.

1. Analyze the existing legacy environment

The first step in the process is to analyze the existing legacy environment. This largely involves answering a few key questions: What architecture is in place? Which other systems and processes are connected? What has been documented, and which individuals within the organization have in-depth knowledge of the current systems and software? Organizations that don’t have the time to figure this out can opt for a third-party audit. NetRom offers a comprehensive audit that provides detailed insight into the current state of your IT infrastructure. This information provides an excellent foundation for further development of your organization.

2. Define objectives and requirements

When modernizing a legacy environment, it’s not just about renewing existing functionality. It’s also a moment to explore whether the functionality needs to be expanded. At this stage, it’s important to sit down with all stakeholders to determine if and where there is a need for additional functionality. Additionally, the new environment must meet requirements in terms of reliability, scalability, and security. Many legacy systems are not always accessible via mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets. Given the need for continuous 24/7 system accessibility, it is desirable to enable this. If the legacy platform processes personal data, the organization must also consider the legal requirements related to GDPR.

3. Define tech stack and development method

Once the objectives and requirements are clear, you can start thinking about the necessary tech stack and development method. The tech stack consists of a set of technologies, such as software, frameworks, and programming languages, used to build software applications. When it comes to the development method, you can choose between rearchitect, rebuild, or replace.

• In rearchitect, the existing software is partially reused, but also improved and extended with new, advanced components. The core of the application, including data and business logic, remains mostly intact but can be migrated to modern infrastructure such as cloud platforms. New functionalities are integrated into the existing core.

• Rebuild involves fully redesigning and rewriting the application, while largely maintaining the original scope and specifications. The goal is to reconstruct the application using modern technologies, while preserving similar functionality. This results in a refreshed version of the software that better aligns with current technological standards.

• In replace, the application or essential parts of it are completely replaced with ready-made software solutions. This process offers the opportunity to integrate new functionalities. If you choose this approach, your organization will need to adapt its business processes to the new software solution.

4. Choose the right cloud platform

If you decide to transform an existing legacy environment into a SaaS solution, you will need to host it on a specific type of cloud platform. You can choose between a private, public, or hybrid cloud. When processing personal data, it is advisable, in the context of privacy regulations, to choose a Dutch cloud provider. This ensures that the storage of personal data is subject to the strict Dutch privacy laws. When designing a new IT infrastructure, we must also look to the future. The solution should offer sufficient capabilities to scale and add functionalities.

5. Create a migration plan

Once the solution has been chosen, it is essential to create a migration plan. What resources and expertise are needed to implement everything within an acceptable timeframe? If new hardware is required, you must also take delivery times into account, which can sometimes be lengthy. When creating a migration plan, it is advisable to make a realistic timeline with some buffer, so unforeseen circumstances and unexpected setbacks do not interfere with the intended delivery date. This ensures the smooth migration of your legacy environment.

6. Setting up the new environment

When setting up a new environment, it is important that all business processes continue to function. Therefore, the new environment should initially be disconnected from the existing business network. This ensures that existing and new processes do not interfere with each other.

For certain specialties, expert IT personnel can be scarce, and this needs to be taken into account. You may not have the right expertise in-house, and it may be necessary to rely on a skilled IT service provider for support. NetRom can fully assist and relieve organizations in modernizing and migrating legacy systems to a new environment.

7. Testing the new environment

To ensure a successful go-live, it is essential to thoroughly and extensively test the new environment. Test all possible scenarios and also stress-test the platform under heavy conditions. Does everything continue to function? Of course, all integrations with other systems must also be tested. Can data be exchanged between the new environment and other systems? Additionally, the cybersecurity of the new environment should be evaluated. Is it resilient to cyberattacks and hacks? Specialists can perform penetration tests to identify security vulnerabilities. Quality assurance and testing are critical aspects of ensuring a smooth go-live for the new environment.

It may also be beneficial to allow several users to work with the new environment beforehand. They may not be fully aware of all the features, but they can start using it and possibly encounter bugs or gaps, giving you the opportunity to resolve them before go-live.

8. Training staff

Your organization’s staff is used to working with the legacy environment, often for many years, and some resistance can be expected when they have to learn to work with a new environment. Therefore, it is recommended to organize training sessions for staff before the go-live. This way, they can become familiar with the new interfaces, making the acceptance process much smoother.

A new environment also means the implementation of a new tech stack. Your IT staff must be aware of all the technical details. Therefore, it is also advisable to train these employees so they can provide optimal support and easily resolve any issues that may arise.

9. Go-live of new environment

The go-live is the moment when the legacy environment is decommissioned. This can only happen after extensive testing has shown that the new environment is functioning reliably. In some cases, it may be wise to keep the legacy environment accessible for emergencies. If a failure occurs during the go-live, the legacy environment can be used as a backup, ensuring that essential business processes are not interrupted.

Alternatively, you can choose a phased go-live. Instead of migrating all legacy applications at once, you carry out the process in phases. It’s smart to start with the least critical business applications to minimize the risk of failure and downtime. The knowledge and experience gained during the first phase can be used to smoothly and error-free migrate more business-critical legacy applications in later stages.

10. Evaluation and implementing improvements

After the go-live, multiple people within the organization will be working with the new environment. In practice, it is likely that bugs may still be discovered or issues may arise. Ensure that enough skilled IT personnel are available to quickly resolve these problems. If you’re working with an external software development partner like NetRom, this post-go-live support is typically included as part of the service offering.

A well-functioning infrastructure ensures that the new environment is accepted by all your employees. It’s also beneficial to evaluate the new environment together with the staff. Input from users is extremely valuable. They often come up with ideas for improvements to the new system.

Need help modernizing your legacy systems?

The above 10 steps will provide you with a solid guide for modernizing your legacy environment. However, if you don’t have all the knowledge, people, and experience in-house to achieve this within a realistic and acceptable timeline,

NetRom Software has over 25 years of experience in modernizing legacy software. The highly skilled IT specialists at NetRom Software stand out due to their high level of expertise combined with in-depth domain knowledge across various sectors.

Curious about what NetRom Software can do for your organization in terms of legacy modernization and migration? Then contact us through the contact form, or check out our client cases to discover how our clients have experienced their legacy modernization with NetRom.

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