Software modernization of your legacy solution
Why generic.de?
Because we have mastered 70+ modernization projects
Software modernization is one of our most common projects – and in over 25 years, we have gained a wealth of experience in this field. Over 70 successful projects and approximately 75,000 satisfied business users are proof of this.
Because your software becomes maintainable again – for humans and AI
Software must be capable of constant adaptation. We bring your source code up to clean-code standards. This benefits more than just your developers: AI agents struggle with tangled legacy code. Only a clean codebase makes your system accessible to both.
Because we optimize your software for Enterprise UX
Outdated interfaces frustrate users and slow down processes. We also modernize your software in terms of user experience – specializing in complex business and industrial applications (Enterprise UX)
How future-proof is your legacy software?
In our software quality audits, we check your existing software for:
Which modernization packages we offer
We modernize existing applications through lift & shift migrations to the Microsoft Azure cloud. In doing so, we transfer your software to a scalable, secure cloud environment. As a result, you benefit from higher availability, reduced operating costs, and flexible scaling – a fast path to the cloud with minimal risk.
For an internationally active customer in mechanical and plant engineering, we have successfully migrated a complex service system from an Oracle database to the cloud (Azure PostgreSQL). Around 6,000 users worldwide use the solution without downtime. Our modernization team has developed the new system version, implemented the migration and provides 24/7 on-call service as 3rd level support. The result: higher reliability, lower latencies, faster global access, less maintenance and more flexibility.
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If the codebase allows, we modernize your software incrementally. By encapsulating the backend and optimizing the frontend and user interfaces, we not only improve the user experience but also boost performance and maintainability. This gives you a modern, future-proof solution without the need to redevelop the entire system.
When analyzing legacy code, we use AI-driven tools: agents visualize dependencies and generate missing tests and documentation – the tasks that typically take the longest in mature systems.
For an internationally active mechanical engineering company, we have partially modernized the HMI software of a laser cutting machine series on a modular basis. As part of this work, a company-wide machine library was created, which ensures a consistent look and feel across all systems.
At the same time, we have consistently decoupled the frontend from the backend. This separation reduces systemic dependencies and creates the basis for independent, scalable development. The result is a flexible, future-proof HMI framework that is optimally prepared for the requirements of a dynamic industrial environment.
With full modernization, we rebuild your legacy software from the ground up—using state-of-the-art architecture, an optimized user experience, and expanded functionality. We integrate new requirements, improve performance, and ensure your software remains scalable, maintainable, and future-proof in the long term.
Our AI-driven approach allows us to deliver increments up to 3x faster. This changes the math: a rebuild that would have been too costly two years ago may now be well within your budget.
For Schöck Bauteile GmbH, we have completely modernized the existing design software and developed it as a new modular cloud application. The result: Scalix®. A scalable, future-proof solution with a clear separation of frontend and backend, which enables flexible expansions. Thanks to modern architecture, optimized user experience and integrated freeform calculation, Scalix® sets new standards in digital construction planning.
Book a free discovery call for your software modernization project
The most common questions about software modernization
What is software modernization and why is it necessary?
Software modernization refers to the technical and functional renewal of legacy systems so that they meet current business requirements, cloud infrastructures, and security standards. Unresolved technical debt slows down innovation and increases maintenance costs – modernization makes your solution maintainable, high-performing, and future-proof again.
How do I decide whether lift & shift, partial, or full modernization is the right option?
The decisive factors are code quality, architecture status, business roadmap, and budget. If there is little legacy baggage, lift & shift is often sufficient. High technical debt but valuable core functions argue in favor of partial modernization. If the system is reaching its strategic limits, full modernization is recommended.
How does a software modernization project at generic.de work?
1. Kick-off & audit (current analysis, target vision)
2. Package selection & roadmap
3. Dual-track agile delivery (iterations every 2 to 4 weeks)
4. Go-live & hypercare
5. Operation / DevOps support.
What are the advantages of lift & shift to the cloud?
Higher availability, lower latency, and pay-per-use costs: For a mechanical engineering customer's service system, lift & shift to Azure PostgreSQL reduced maintenance costs and enabled worldwide access without downtime.
How does generic.de ensure that the modernized software remains maintainable and scalable?
We apply Clean Code rules, modular architecture (microservices/APIs), and automated testing. Refactorings are scheduled in every sprint; a separate frontend/backend layer increases future expandability.
In the age of AI, there is an additional factor: automated quality gates check every contribution against the same standards, regardless of whether it was written by a human or an agent. Anything that fails the check does not make it into the main branch.
What are the risks involved in modernizing legacy software and how do you minimize them?
The biggest risks in software modernization are data loss, downtime, or budget overruns. We minimize these risks as much as possible through CI/CD pipelines, blue-green deployments, and finely granulated migration steps.
How long does software modernization take?
This always depends on the project, of course. As a rule of thumb: a pure lift-and-shift MVP can often be realized in 8–12 weeks, AI-supported partial modernizations take about 3–6 months, while AI-supported full modernizations, including the refinement of the existing solution, take between 6 and 12 months. We bill on a time-and-materials basis with weekly budget reports.
Can my legacy software continue to operate during modernization?
Thanks to parallel operation and incremental releases, the legacy system remains productive until new services are fully validated. “Strangler fig patterns” and API gateways gradually redirect traffic – best practices that are also recommended by asset-based modernization models.
What happens after the modernization project?
On request, we take over DevOps operation, monitoring and feature development. SLAs cover performance, security patching, and incident response – so that your modernized system runs stably over the long term and continuously delivers added value.
We previously scrapped a modernization project due to the costs. Will that change now?
That may well be the case. The effort required to decipher legacy code, update tests, and create documentation has dropped significantly thanks to AI support, and we are up to three times faster at coding itself. This shifts the threshold at which a rebuild becomes cost-effective. What hasn't changed is that coordination, decision-making, and approvals still take time. Consequently, a project won't be shortened by that same factor, but in many cases, it becomes economically viable for the first time.
Our legacy system is barely documented. Can AI even work with that?
That is precisely where the greatest leverage lies. Agents excel at reading unfamiliar code, visualizing complex relationships, and generating missing documentation. The prerequisite is that they operate within clear boundaries: knowing which areas they are permitted to touch, which architectural rules apply, and where the checkpoints are. We define these guardrails together before we begin working with your existing codebase—without them, old chaos quickly turns into new chaos.