For everyone hauling an outdated legacy app into 2022, the strain is starting to show.
Legacy applications cost more, deliver less, and weigh down competitive innovation through buggy, cumbersome deployments.
So we decided to take the load off, and tell you:
- What is app modernisation?
- What are the benefits of modernising legacy applications?
- What are the ideal app modernisation strategies?
- And finally, what app modernisation services are out there?
What is application modernisation?
Application modernisation means modernising your cloud infrastructure. And there are options for every public cloud provider: AWS, Azure, Google Cloud Platform. The list goes on.
The key cloud-native technologies are:
And a modernisation project will mostly involve retuning your app’s infrastructure using these new and shiny parts.
For a free and focused explainer on app modernisation, just download our free report – A guide to application modernisation. Or keep reading for the Cliff Notes version.
What are the benefits of modernising a legacy application?
Giving your solution an infrastructure overhaul really help. In general, cloud-native services are:
- More reliableÂ
- More scalableÂ
- More secure
- Better suited to robust, rapid deploymentsÂ
- More ready for practices like DevOps and CI/CD
- Better launch pads for competitive innovation
Modernisation projects are carried out on an app-by-app basis, meaning you or your modernisation partner will build to ease your pain points and reach your objectives.
Example of an app modernisation challengeÂ
If you’re running a media processing workload on Azure, and you want to bring it in line with the rest of your AWS infra, as well as cut costs, you might modernise by transitioning to AWS Lambda for a serverless approach.
The benefits, and the technology you choose, all depend on your use case.
What are the recommended app modernisation strategies?
This is a question which can be answered by variously long pieces of string.
The strategy, speed and scope of a modernisation project all depend on the technology being introduced, and the legacy infrastructure being modernised.Â
However, there are some tried and tested strategies.
Example of an app modernisation strategy: strangler vineÂ
Going with a big-bang style modernisation (completely replacing your old infra) can be very risky.
A lot of modernisation strategies are designed to mitigate risk, ensure the innovation actually delivers, and leave space for U-turns.
One such is the strangler vine. Named after the proclivity of certain plants to encircle their hosts (and eventually steal their sunshine) this strategy involves slowly migrating the app to its new infrastructure piece by piece.
This could mean taking a monolithic app, and breaking it down slowly into a set of microservices, then seeing whether this delivers business value or not.Â
As in the case of which cloud-native technologies you adopt, it’s all about the use case.
What app modernisation services are available?
Application modernisation can be a project for the team or one to outsource.
Facing a lack of skills, time and resources, many turn to an app modernisation partner, and here, we’d certainly be remiss not to mention yours truly.
As a cloud-native MSP, we’ve helped brands across the globe access the benefits of cloud-native technologies.
And as application modernisation veterans, we’ll be able to help match the right tech and strategy to your objectives.
Read more about our work here.
Any further questions?
Think of this article as a taste tester. The key difference being the main course is free, too!Â
Fill out the form below and sink your teeth into our latest in-depth report on application modernisation.
Download the report – A guide to application modernisation
