{"id":12367,"date":"2023-06-16T06:00:09","date_gmt":"2023-06-16T06:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/?p=12367"},"modified":"2025-05-01T03:20:15","modified_gmt":"2025-05-01T03:20:15","slug":"filemaker-audit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/filemaker-audit\/","title":{"rendered":"FileMaker Audit"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Schedule a Holistic FileMaker Audit<\/h2><div class=\"wp-block-uagb-container uagb-block-fd1d0424 alignfull uagb-is-root-container\"><div class=\"uagb-container-inner-blocks-wrap\"><div class=\"wp-block-uagb-container uagb-block-0f8a881b\"><div class=\"wp-block-group is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\"><p>Are you unsure how to proceed with your current FileMaker legacy application? Maybe some features still work perfectly, but others are outdated and need new integrations. You may be wondering:<\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Should you keep your current FileMaker solution or consider an entirely new one? <\/li>\n\n<li>Are you taking advantage of what&#8217;s available in terms of AI? <\/li>\n\n<li>Is your FileMaker application secure and hosted in the cloud?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n<p>That&#8217;s where we come in! Our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/team\/\">team of Claris FileMaker experts<\/a> knows exactly what&#8217;s available and cutting edge, how to integrate other platforms, and how your team might benefit from adding artificial intelligence capabilities. In order to make informed recommendations, we need to conduct an audit to examine your application&#8217;s infrastructure, architecture, and features. We also take a close look at your solution&#8217;s security to make sure your data is safe from compromise.<\/p>\n\n<p>Our FileMaker Audit takes an in-depth look at your solution and determines what&#8217;s working and what could be changed to better meet your unique needs. Find more information below on factors to consider when modernizing a Claris legacy application.<\/p>\n\n<p>To find out more about our FileMaker Audit service, book a meeting below with our sales professionals to discuss the process, our team&#8217;s availability, pricing, and any other questions you may have.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-uagb-container uagb-block-defc591d\"><div class=\"pipedriveWebForms\" data-pd-webforms=\"https:\/\/webforms.pipedrive.com\/f\/2ZtqL69ozMjEiPNS1s9TXhm4xYY6Kc1icpU3C9isFFzUt3waJ9TiDCfC8AncJgRt9\"><script src=\"https:\/\/webforms.pipedrive.com\/f\/loader\"><\/script><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"height:80px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Learn More About Modernizing FileMaker Legacy Application(s)<\/h2><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"614\" src=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-1024x614.jpg\" alt=\"FileMaker Audit\" class=\"wp-image-19795\" style=\"width:600px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-1024x614.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-300x180.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-768x461.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-600x360.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482.jpg 1322w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><p><\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"what-is-a-legacy-app\">What is a Legacy App?<\/h3><p>There are a few factors that, when combined, constitute a legacy app. Apps carrying technical debt and using outdated technologies that are critical for day-to-day operations are what we call legacy apps. They cause pain for their users constantly and, for that reason, are the target of app modernization initiatives. This article aims to help you determine how you can identify and replace\/improve your legacy apps.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"what-is-technical-debt\">What is Technical Debt?<\/h3><p>You\u2019ve probably heard this buzzword thrown around for years, especially from people trying to sell you their services to help you \u201cget rid of your technical debt.\u201d But what exactly is technical debt, and how does it relate to legacy apps?<\/p><p>Technical debt is a metaphor describing what happens when app developers expedite the delivery of a feature or project at the expense of quality. In other words, when your development team tries to deliver something \u201cquick and dirty,\u201d it creates technical debt. Apps with technical debt then become obsolete or difficult to use.<\/p><p>Ward Cunningham, who coined this phrase\/metaphor, explained technical debt as follows:<\/p><blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>\u201cWith borrowed money, you can do something sooner than you might otherwise, but then until you pay back that money you\u2019ll be paying interest. I thought borrowing money was a good idea, I thought that rushing software out the door to get some experience with it was a good idea, but that of course, you would eventually go back and as you learned things about that software you would repay that loan by refactoring the program to reflect your experience as you acquired it.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"the-three-pillars-of-applications\">The 3 Pillars of Applications<\/h3><figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Triskelion-1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12660\" style=\"width:384px;height:384px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Triskelion-1.png 512w, https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Triskelion-1-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Triskelion-1-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Triskelion-1-100x100.png 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/><\/figure><p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color\">Nowadays, everything is code. To better understand the consequences of technical debt and potential solutions, I\u2019d like to introduce the three pillars of applications: platform <strong>infrastructure<\/strong>, internal <strong>architecture<\/strong>, and <strong>features<\/strong>. In the rest of the article, we will use colors indicate which pillar the problem\/solution is related to.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color\" id=\"infrastructure\">Infrastructure<\/h4><p>Infrastructure is the physical body of your application.<\/p><p>For a FileMaker application, the most notable components of its infrastructure are the:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Server hardware (whether on-premise or in the cloud)<\/li>\n\n<li>Operating system<\/li>\n\n<li>Claris\/FileMaker platform (Claris\/FileMaker Server, Claris\/FileMaker Pro, and other software that is part of the platform)<\/li><\/ul><p>Good infrastructure continuously provides a safe environment with enough resources for applications to run efficiently.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-red-color has-text-color\" id=\"architecture\">Architecture<\/h4><p>Architecture is the collection of all application design decisions, whether they govern low-level details or high-level decisions. All design decisions form a continuous fabric that defines the app&#8217;s shape; this is the architecture.<\/p><p>As mentioned above, architecture covers many, many decisions in various aspects. It\u2019s hard to pick just a few significant components. But if we have to, for a FileMaker application, here are some aspects we pay special attention to when trying to improve architecture:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Data schema<\/li>\n\n<li>Naming conventions and consistency<\/li>\n\n<li>Abstraction decisions (modularity, ease of reuse, level of redundancies)<\/li>\n\n<li>Code readability<\/li><\/ul><p>Good architecture keeps maintenance and development costs reasonable and enables the app to evolve continuously. In other words, good architecture keeps the software soft (easy to change).<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-green-cyan-color has-text-color\" id=\"features\">Features<\/h4><p>Features represent what an application can do for its users. Features describe how an app intends to generate value for a business.<\/p><p>A good feature set should be able to deliver what the business\/users currently need.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"do-i-have-a-legacy-application\" style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:400\">Do I Have a Legacy Application?<\/h2><p>We keep hearing from our clients that \u201cif it\u2019s not broken, don\u2019t fix it.\u201d However, often there are signs that your apps might be broken in ways you do not yet recognize.<\/p><p>All three pillars (infrastructure, architecture, features) can influence an app&#8217;s longevity. With any of the pillars falling short, your app becomes outdated and can no longer fulfill its responsibilities properly.<\/p><p>Here are some signs that this is happening to your application(s). The list is categorized based on the three pillars.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color\" id=\"infrastructure-issues\">Infrastructure Issues<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Losing support from your IT providers\/vendors<\/mark><\/strong> &#8211; <\/em>You are having an issue with FileMaker. After calling Claris, you learn that your version of FileMaker is not supported anymore, and they can\u2019t help you.<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Inability to update software\/hardware<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; Your current devices running FileMaker start to reach the end of their lives. When it\u2019s time to purchase new devices, you realize the version of FileMaker you are currently using can\u2019t be installed on the new devices\/OS.<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Personnel<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; Your computer guy is retiring. The new person coming in sees your devices\/OS and looks confused.<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Lack of disaster recovery capability<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; If a fire burns down your server room, all your data will be gone, with no way to restore it.<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Security concerns<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; The thought of your apps getting hacked scares you because you don\u2019t even know whether your app has a lock on it and who might be able to open it.<\/li><\/ul><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-red-color has-text-color\" id=\"architecture-issues\">Architecture Issues<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Performance issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; Your app is slow.<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Scalability issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; Your app can barely scale (by location, user count, or data volume).<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Stability\/robustness issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; Your app is buggy.<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">High maintenance and development costs<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; Changing your app costs way more than it used to.<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Low delivery velocity<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; New features take forever to make it to production.<\/li><\/ul><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-green-cyan-color has-text-color\" id=\"feature-issues\">Feature issues<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#00d084\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Cannot keep up with the latest needs<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; Your app doesn\u2019t keep up with the ever-changing demand of your business.<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#00d084\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Losing confidence from users<\/mark><\/strong><\/em> &#8211; You keep hearing people recommending new off-the-shelf apps, and the flavor changes every other week.<\/li><\/ul><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"what-are-my-options-for-modernizing-my-legacy-file-maker-app-s\" style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:400\">Options for Modernizing Legacy FileMaker App(s)<\/h2><p>Perhaps some of the scenarios listed above are happening to you right now. But man, rebuilding an app sounds like it will tear a hole in the company\u2019s already tight budget<sub>1<\/sub>.<\/p><p>The good news is that rebuilding is one of, but not the only, option for you. Let me list your options first, then discuss how to make a choice in the next section.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color\" id=\"upgrading-claris-file-maker-infrastructure\">Upgrading Claris\/FileMaker (Infrastructure)<\/h3><p>Upgrading to the latest version of Claris FileMaker is mostly an infrastructure approach.<\/p><p>Doing so allows your app to benefit from the latest security features, bug fixes, stability and performance improvements, and support from Claris.<\/p><p>It also <strong>enables<\/strong> developers to leverage new features from the latest FileMaker to improve the application\u2019s architecture or build new features.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"what-issues-does-this-approach-help-address\">Which Issues Does this Address?<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Security concerns<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Losing support from your IT providers\/vendors<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Inability to update software\/hardware<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li><\/ul><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-cyan-blue-color has-text-color\" id=\"rehosting-to-the-cloud-infrastructure\">Rehosting to the Cloud (Infrastructure)<\/h3><p>This entails moving the complete application to a new home to benefit from new hardware and\/or <strong>cloud<\/strong> technology.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"what-issues-does-this-approach-help-address-1\">Which Issues Does this Address?<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Lack of disaster recovery capability<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Security concerns<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li><\/ul><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-red-color has-text-color\" id=\"refactoring-re-architecting-architecture\">Refactoring\/Re-Architecting (Architecture)<\/h3><p>This involves restructuring existing code to remove technical debt and improve the application. The app will look and behave mostly the same.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"what-issues-does-this-approach-help-address-2\">Which Issues Does this Address?<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">High maintenance and development costs<\/mark> (Do note the refactoring project has its own cost)<\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Low delivery velocity<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Performance issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Scalability issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Stability\/robustness issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li><\/ul><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-0-color has-text-color\" id=\"rebuilding-mark-style-background-color-rgba-0-0-0-0-color-0693-e-3-class-has-inline-color-infrastructure-mark-mark-style-background-color-rgba-0-0-0-0-color-cf-2-e-2-e-class-has-inline-color-architecture-mark\">Rebuilding (<mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Infrastructure<\/mark>, <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Architecture<\/mark>)<\/h3><p>This entails rebuilding and rewriting from scratch, but keeps the original scope and project specifications. The rebuilt app will have new UIs, backend logic and integrations that help deliver the same features as the original app.<\/p><p>Without a doubt, this approach should be combined with upgrading your Claris\/FileMaker platform to the latest version to leverage the latest development tools available.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"what-issues-does-this-approach-help-address-3\">Which Issues Does this Address?<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">High maintenance and development costs<\/mark><\/strong> <\/em>(Note that the refactoring project has its own cost)<\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Low delivery velocity<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Performance issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Scalability issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><strong>Stability\/robustness issues<\/strong><\/mark><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Security concerns<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Losing support from your IT providers\/vendors<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Inability to update software\/hardware<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li><\/ul><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-vivid-green-cyan-color has-text-color\" id=\"encapsulation-features\">Encapsulation (Features)<\/h3><p>Encapsulation means leaving the application in place, adding services and an API layer, building a new UI, and connecting to the legacy application\u2019s database.<\/p><p>This approach does not change the original app much, but it allows for extending the original app\u2019s functionality on a relatively clean slate.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"what-issues-does-this-approach-help-address-4\">Which Issues Does this Address?<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#00d084\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Cannot keep up with the latest needs<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#00d084\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Losing confidence from users<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li><\/ul><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"replacement-mark-style-background-color-rgba-0-0-0-0-color-0693-e-3-class-has-inline-color-infrastructure-mark-mark-style-background-color-rgba-0-0-0-0-color-cf-2-e-2-e-class-has-inline-color-architecture-mark-mark-style-background-color-rgba-0-0-0-0-color-00-d-084-class-has-inline-color-features-mark\">Replacement (<mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Infrastructure<\/mark>, <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Architecture<\/mark>, <mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#00d084\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Features<\/mark>)<\/h3><p>Rebuild and re-envision new applications based on <strong>new<\/strong> requirements. The replacement can be done using the latest version of the Claris\/FileMaker platform or other technologies that suit your needs, like a custom web app using Laravel, or using another low-code platform like OutSystems or Toca.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"what-issues-does-this-approach-help-address-5\">Which Issues Does this Address?<\/h4><ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Losing support from your IT providers\/vendors<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Inability to update software\/hardware<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Lack of disaster recovery capability<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#0693e3\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Security concerns<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Performance issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Scalability issues<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\"><strong>Stability\/robustness issues<\/strong><\/mark><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">High maintenance and development costs<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#cf2e2e\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Low delivery velocity<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#00d084\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Cannot keep up with the latest needs<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li>\n\n<li><em><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0);color:#00d084\" class=\"has-inline-color\">Losing confidence from users<\/mark><\/strong><\/em><\/li><\/ul><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"what-option-s-should-i-choose\" style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:400\">Which Option(s) Should I Choose?<\/h2><p>Now that you understand all of the options available for modernizing a legacy application and the implications of those decisions, let\u2019s look at how to choose the best fit for your organization.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"first-get-current-upgrade-your-claris-file-maker-platform\">Get Current: Upgrade Your Claris\/FileMaker Platform<\/h3><p>Suppose you are using an unsupported version of the Claris\/FileMaker platform<sub>2. <\/sub>In that case, you should <strong>upgrade Claris\/FileMaker<\/strong> to a supported version, preferably the latest release or one release behind, depending on the current release&#8217;s stability.<\/p><p>I can write an entire article talking about why you should upgrade, but I won\u2019t do it here. Know that it\u2019s almost meaningless to discuss other options (aside from replacement if you decide to leave the Claris\/FileMaker platform) without getting current first. It is the bare minimum requirement if you are serious about modernizing your app.<\/p><p>If the budget is tight, at least consider this option.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"consider-rehosting-to-the-cloud\">Consider Rehosting to the Cloud<\/h3><p>Sometimes, you&#8217;d need to upgrade your hardware to install the latest version of the Claris\/FileMaker platform. If this is the case, consider <strong>rehosting to the cloud<\/strong>. Hosting in the cloud completely frees you from managing your hardware, with the added benefit of convenient backup options and easy-to-implement disaster recovery solutions. The cost of cloud computing is dropping every year.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"determine-if-your-apps-feature-set-still-delivers\">Determine if Your Features Still Deliver<\/h3><p>I don\u2019t know why, but every time I say, \u201cSoftware is supposed to be soft,\u201d people laugh. But it is. Software is created to cater to users&#8217; needs, which might (and tend to) evolve.<\/p><p>Most legacy apps have some years on them. So you need to figure out if your app still delivers the value it\u2019s meant to. Does your app still meet users&#8217; needs?<\/p><p>Before answering your own question, interview, observe, or send out surveys to your users to see what they say and gather feedback.<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"current-features-are-sufficient\">If Your Current Features are Sufficient:<\/h4><p>Congratulations, you have a timeless design if your app still delivers features its users\/the business needs. This also means the issues that drive you to modernize your app do not lie with its features, but rather in the infrastructure and architecture. In this case, <strong>refactoring<\/strong> or <strong>rebuilding<\/strong> your app will be your best option.<\/p><p>Refactoring tends to be more appropriate between the two if your app is small and not very complex (as an <em>extremely<\/em> simplified rule of thumb, let\u2019s say small means your app has less than ten tables). Otherwise, <strong>rebuilding<\/strong> might be cheaper, considering it doesn\u2019t require developers to learn previous developers&#8217; habits + intentions (wearing other people\u2019s shoes is always hard).<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"current-features-are-insufficient\">If Your Current Features are Insufficient:<\/h4><p>If your app&#8217;s feature set no longer delivers, then <strong>encapsulation <\/strong>or <strong>replacement <\/strong>are your best options.<\/p><p>Between the two, consider <strong>encapsulation<\/strong> if your existing app can still <em>competently<\/em> deliver what it used to deliver (meaning no stability, performance, or scalability issues), but adding new features to its code base is too hard. Otherwise, a <strong>replacement<\/strong> is the best solution if your app is broken<em>&#8211;<\/em>broken (it ticks off the majority of issues in our checklist).<\/p><h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"decision-tree\">Decision Tree<\/h4><div class=\"wp-block-uagb-image uagb-block-e9eeb3c9 wp-block-uagb-image--layout-default wp-block-uagb-image--effect-static wp-block-uagb-image--align-none\"><figure class=\"wp-block-uagb-image__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/modernize_fm_app.png \" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 150px\" src=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/modernize_fm_app.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"uag-image-12370\" width=\"812\" height=\"913\" title=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" role=\"img\"\/><\/figure><\/div><div style=\"height:50px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"still-not-sure-what-to-do\">Unsure What to Do?<\/h3><p>If you want a modernization solution tailored to your needs, please get in touch with us. We have business analysts and technical experts who can help you identify your pain points and needs, strategize and formulate solutions, and implement and deliver those solutions.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-ast-global-color-2-color has-text-color\" id=\"note\">Note:<\/h3><ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>For future readers, to provide some context, as of the writing of this article (2023 April), the world is in the aftermath of COVID; wars are still actively ongoing; the economy is pretty bad all around the globe; and people are getting laid off left and right, and budget is tight, everywhere, all the time.<\/li>\n\n<li>Check out <a href=\"https:\/\/support.claris.com\/s\/article\/Claris-support-policy?language=en_US\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ClarisPKB<\/a> to find out whether your version is still supported<\/li><\/ol><div class=\"wp-block-uagb-image uagb-block-dad02094 wp-block-uagb-image--layout-default wp-block-uagb-image--effect-static wp-block-uagb-image--align-none\"><figure class=\"wp-block-uagb-image__figure\"><img decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/modernizing_legacy_app.png \" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 480px) 150px\" src=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/modernizing_legacy_app.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"uag-image-12376\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" title=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" role=\"img\"\/><\/figure><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Schedule a Holistic FileMaker Audit Are you unsure how to proceed with your current FileMaker legacy application? Maybe some features still work perfectly, but others are outdated and need new integrations. You may be wondering: That&#8217;s where we come in! Our team of Claris FileMaker experts knows exactly what&#8217;s available and cutting edge, how to &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/filemaker-audit\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">FileMaker Audit<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":19795,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[39,363,279],"class_list":["post-12367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-low-code","tag-filemaker","tag-filemaker-audit","tag-legacy-app"],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482.jpg",1322,793,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-300x180.jpg",300,180,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-768x461.jpg",768,461,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-1024x614.jpg",1024,614,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482.jpg",1322,793,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482.jpg",1322,793,false],"woocommerce_thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-300x300.jpg",300,300,true],"woocommerce_single":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-600x360.jpg",600,360,true],"woocommerce_gallery_thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/iStock-1424122482-100x100.jpg",100,100,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Weihao Ding","author_link":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/author\/weihao-dingdirectimpactsolutions-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Schedule a Holistic FileMaker Audit Are you unsure how to proceed with your current FileMaker legacy application? Maybe some features still work perfectly, but others are outdated and need new integrations. You may be wondering: That&#8217;s where we come in! Our team of Claris FileMaker experts knows exactly what&#8217;s available and cutting edge, how to&hellip;","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12367"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12367\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19996,"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12367\/revisions\/19996"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.directimpactsolutions.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}