Start here for existing software

Know what state your software is in before anyone takes it over

A fixed-scope review of software you already run: the code, the hosting, the dependencies and the risks. You get a written report with prioritised recommendations, and a clear basis for deciding whether to support it, stabilise it or replace it.

Request a software assessmentSee a sample report
Price
Fixed fee, quoted after a short intake call
Turnaround
Agreed before we start
You get
Written report + walkthrough session

Who it is for

For organisations about to hand over responsibility

Most assessments start with one of these situations. In every case, the question is the same: what are we dealing with?

  • Our developer has left

    The person who built and maintained your software is gone, and so is most of what they knew.
    Read more

  • Our app keeps failing

    Errors, outages or slowdowns keep coming back, and fixing the symptom never seems to fix the problem.
    Read more

  • Our supplier no longer supports our software

    The company that built your software has stopped supporting it, disappeared or ended the relationship.
    Read more

What we look at

Areas the assessment can cover

The exact scope is agreed and documented before we start. These are the areas we choose from.

  • Code and structure

    How the repository is organised, how readable and consistent the code is, and how hard it will be to change.

  • Architecture

    The main parts of the system, how they talk to each other and where the weak points are.

  • Build and deployment

    How the software gets from code to production, and whether that can be done safely and repeatably.

  • Dependencies

    Frameworks, libraries and services the software relies on, and which are outdated or no longer supported.

  • Tests

    What is covered by automated tests, and what would break silently.

  • Errors and logging

    Whether failures are caught and recorded, so that problems can be diagnosed when they happen.

  • Security, within the agreed scope

    Common weaknesses such as exposed secrets, outdated components with known vulnerabilities and weak access control.

  • Infrastructure and operations

    Hosting, backups, certificates, accounts and the single points of failure around them.

  • Documentation and known problems

    What is written down, what is missing, and the production problems you already know about.

The offer

Price, deliverables and scope

Price
Fixed fee, quoted after a short intake call
Turnaround
Agreed before we start
You get
Written report + walkthrough session

What you get

  • An executive summary in plain language
  • Technical findings, each with the evidence behind it
  • A risk classification for every finding
  • Prioritised recommendations
  • Areas that need further investigation
  • A suggested stabilisation plan
  • A walkthrough session with your team

What we need from you

  • Read access to the code repository
  • Read access to hosting, or a call with whoever manages it
  • Any documentation, however incomplete
  • A list of known problems and what worries you most
  • One contact person who knows how the software is used

Scope limits

  • Not a penetration test or full security audit: security is reviewed within the agreed scope only
  • Not a guarantee that every defect has been found
  • No changes are made to your software during the assessment
  • The exact scope is agreed and documented before we start

After delivery

  • The report is yours to keep, whatever you decide
  • Continue with a support plan based on the findings
  • Or a stabilisation project first, then support
  • Or a rebuild, if the report shows that is the better option
See a sample assessment reportA complete example based on a fictional company, so you know what you will receive.

How it runs

Four steps, no surprises

  1. Intake call

    We agree what is in scope, what access is needed and what questions the report must answer.

  2. Agreement and access

    You confirm the scope and price. Only then do you grant read access, and nothing is changed.

  3. Review

    We work through the areas in scope and record every finding with the evidence behind it.

  4. Report and walkthrough

    You receive the written report and we walk your team through it, including the recommended next steps.

FAQ

Questions about the assessment

Do we have to sign up for support afterwards?

No. The report is yours, and it is written so that any competent team, ours or another, can act on it.

Is this a security audit?

No. Security is one of the areas we review, within the agreed scope, but the assessment is not a penetration test or a full security audit. If the findings call for one, we will recommend it.

Will you change anything in our software?

No. The assessment only needs read access. Changes come afterwards, once you have decided what to do.

How is this different from the code review?

The code review looks at the code of a product a team is still actively building. The software assessment looks at a system already in production, including its hosting, operations and handover risks, as preparation for someone new taking responsibility for it.

Find out what you are dealing with

Request a software assessmentAbout software support