In the world of business legacy system integration is the new black. The basic processes information systems structure of many enterprises is managed via legacy software, a mixed blessing as most managers would put it. Based on technology that has long since passed the modern stage, legacy software can be quite a challenge to deal with. Unlike other technology that can probably be upgraded without much fuss an organizations legacy system is that one integral pillar in its IT infrastructure that can not be moved lest the whole structure fall apart. This is a source of dilemma for many a manager.
Aside from catering to their consumer’s immediate basic needs, businesses also need to keep in mind their future desires. As IT evolves so do the technological needs of the masses a fact that organizations can not ignore. Thus comes in the managers dilemma, how to reconcile the information needs of the customer with the technological capabilities of the business. You are basically running an organization whose processes are run by software that might be older than your first child yet you need to furnish your tech-savvy customers with data compatible with their modern systems. Legacy system integration is one way to ensure that you can keep your integral system in tact while incorporating the use of modern applications.
The discovery of the benefits of legacy system integration has led to a significant rise in organizational spending in this sector. Though legacy system integration could possibly cost the organization millions of dollars, in the current environment of flat-lining IT budgets it maintains a steady top five position in the company’s “shopping list”.
To ensure that you get the most out of your legacy system integration, there are a few check-points that you should go through:
- Ensure that you need legacy system integration – Though legacy systems applications are important, in some situations scrapping the old for the new is entirely justifiable. Secondly, examine the costs involved and whether the cost-benefit-analysis lies in favor of legacy system integration or not.
- Determine what level of integration your business requires – There are a variety of legacy system integration all at different cost and different operational capacity. E.g. There are those models that integrate data as soon as it becomes available, this is the most expensive and complex legacy system integration model.
- Ensure that your data is clean – This basically means that your term definitions should be clear and congruent (with those in the other system) and that your data should free of redundant records and typos. This will ensure the legacy system integration works efficiently.
- Monitor for systems overlaps – Sometimes new applications will have the same functionality as that of the legacy system. In such a situation an executive decision needs to be made as to which one to use for the issue at hand.
eminq�rb��[�U_ciated with upgrading legacy software recent developments have made it possible for legacy migration to take place. This is done by virtual migration, where old software is run on modern systems. The beauty of this new system is that it deals rather effectively with the hardware problem. Rather than re-writing the legacy software in a modern programming language, the modern hardware is adapted to the old software.