Legacy app rescue that keeps production running while we fix it.
We fix PHP apps, ERP systems, and end-of-life stacks that are breaking in production. No maintenance window. No big-bang rewrite. Your team commits 2 to 3 hours a week. We do the rest.
Live diagnostic output: your stack may look familiar
Rescue starts with a written plan
We read the codebase before we write a proposal. The rescue plan reflects what we find in your actual code. Template-based proposals generate scope creep and change orders. Ours does not.
These are your app's vital signs. Most rescues start at a score of 12 out of 100.
"It takes 3 engineers a full week to deploy a 3-line change. And even then, we hold our breath."
Heard on nearly every rescue intake call we take
You may be running one of these right now
- PHP 5.x running on Windows Server 2008 R2
- Dynamics NAV 2009 / NAV 2013 with no upgrade path
- jQuery 1.x / AngularJS / Knockout.js frontends
- MySQL 5.5 / SQL Server 2005 without active support
How most rescue agencies operate. How Redefine operates.
Six comparisons, all drawn from real projects Redefine took over when another agency left the job broken. Each one is a pattern, not a one-off.
Four phases. Every rescue. In this exact order, because skipping Phase 1 is how rescues fail.
"The rescue plan arrived before any code changes. We approved every phase before they started. That alone was different from every agency we'd worked with." — VP Operations, Chemical Manufacturing
- Full codebase and dependency audit with severity ratings
- Security scan and CVE inventory with patch roadmap
- Rescue sequence with rollback strategy per phase
- Cost and timeline estimate per rescue phase
- Target stack selection with documented rationale
- Data migration and transformation plan
- Zero-downtime execution sequence approved by your team
- Continuous integration/continuous deployment pipeline design for post-rescue operations
- Dependency upgrades validated against production traffic
- Security patches applied and CVE log updated per sprint
- Test suite written alongside each module rescue
- Rollback verified and tested before each production cutover
- Architecture decision log and upgrade history
- Maintenance runbooks for each rescued component
- Developer onboarding guide for the new stack
- 100% code ownership in your repository from day 1
50% less manual work at a chemical manufacturer. Production ran continuously during the entire rescue.
Transpek
Chemical Manufacturing
A chemical manufacturer running a non-integrated ERP. Every department entered data manually. Delivery delays mounted. Inventory was invisible. Production planning was guesswork.
The ERP did not connect any department to another. Staff entered every transaction by hand. Deliveries ran late because nobody had real inventory data. Management could not forecast production without calling the floor for manual counts.
Non-integrated ERP. Manual data entry at every stage. No inventory visibility. No production planning capability. Delivery delays affecting customers.
reduction in manual workload after upgrading to Dynamics NAV with SQL Server integration. Staff now track production daily. Inventory updates automatically. Nobody calls the floor for counts anymore.
Increased production capacity and delivery reliability
Compliance and traceability requirements met post-rescue
Five commitments in writing. Every rescue. Before we charge a dollar.
These are not promises. They are documented deliverables in the rescue plan you receive before Sprint 1. If we cannot meet any of them, we say so before we invoice a single hour.
Get A Free Rescue AssessmentWhat engineering teams ask before they start a legacy app rescue.
Every team asks the same three things before starting: what is the risk, how long will it take, and what happens if something breaks. We answer all three with specifics, not assurances.
The assessment is free. The plan shows you the cost before we start.
We run the diagnostic at no charge. The rescue plan breaks down cost and timeline by phase. You approve every phase before we invoice it. No surprises.
Select what describes your app right now. We'll tell you if it needs rescue.
Not every old app needs rescue. Some need maintenance. Some need a rewrite. We distinguish these in the assessment before proposing anything.
Not sure if your app needs rescue or routine maintenance? Describe what you're seeing and we'll give you a direct opinion.
Running PHP 5.x, PHP 7.x, or an end-of-life framework (Laravel 5.x, CodeIgniter 2)
Security patches are no longer available. Active CVEs are accumulating daily.
On Dynamics NAV 2009 / 2013 or a version without Business Central migration path
Upgrade complexity increases with every version skipped. The longer you wait, the more expensive it becomes.
Deploys take more than a day or require a maintenance window
Every deploy that requires a maintenance window is a deploy that could have gone wrong. That is the clearest sign this app needs rescue.
The original developer is gone and nobody fully understands the codebase
The documentation Redefine produces in the rescue is often more valuable to the next team than the technical fixes themselves.
Probably not rescue: may be routine maintenance if:
App is on a supported version with active patches and deploys cleanly in under 30 minutes
Ongoing maintenance rather than rescue is the right approach.
The primary issue is new feature development, not stability or security
Standard development engagement is faster and more cost-effective than framing this as rescue.
Tell us what's breaking. Get a written rescue plan in 3 days.
No commitment. No pitch. Submit your brief and we deliver a codebase assessment in 48 hours and a written rescue plan in 3 business days.
Submit your brief
Tell us what language, framework, and version you're running. Describe what's breaking or about to break.
Rescue assessment within 48 hours
We request read-only access to the repository and run the initial diagnostic scan. No code changes. No production access required.
Written rescue plan in 3 days
Severity inventory, rescue sequence, rollback strategy, and phase-by-phase cost estimate. You approve before Sprint 1.
Critical fixes in Sprint 1
The highest-severity issues ship in Sprint 1. Most clients see their first live fix within two weeks of sign-off.
No commitment. No pitch. · Free assessment within 48 hours · Written plan in 3 days