Case study · Application modernisation
Modernising a Rails 2/Merb application to Rails 7.1 without a full rewrite
A staged modernisation across framework, runtime, data layer and infrastructure designed to reduce technical risk while preserving valuable business behaviour.
- Engagement
- Founder experience
- Framework
- Rails 2/Merb → Rails 7.1
- Runtime
- Ruby 1.9 → Ruby 3.3
- Data layer
- DataMapper → ActiveRecord
The problem
Legacy software can become difficult to change long before it stops working. The challenge is to remove obsolete dependencies and infrastructure without throwing away years of business logic or introducing unnecessary migration risk.
Work completed
- Rails 2/Merb to Rails 7.1.
- Ruby 1.9 to Ruby 3.3.
- DataMapper to ActiveRecord.
- Ubuntu 10 to Ubuntu 22.04.
Rewrite is not the default. The business logic was an asset. The route that kept it was staged modernisation.
Outcome
The programme de-risked an ageing software estate, cleared major technical debt and restored a current foundation for continued delivery.
What this demonstrates
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