Navigating the Maturity of Applications: The Consequences of Technical Debt

Applications are essential components of any business ecosystem in today’s digital world. They help our (and your!) customers to manage their daily tasks, finances, and entertainment. As application providers, we have a primary duty to ensure the security, reliability, and user satisfaction of our products, which can only be achieved through regular maintenance by experts. A system that is not updated or improved will eventually cause issues or even pose a security threat to users. In this article, we will explain why application maintenance and upkeep are crucial for the IT strategy of anyone who owns such software.

What is technical debt?

Business decisions are often driven by market demands and time pressure, which can overshadow technical issues. This leads to solutions that are short-term and address immediate problems, but also entail risks on various levels. Technical debt is the term used to describe the actual implementation of such solutions, whose cost will increase as time goes by before it is paid off. For example, technical debt could result from unoptimized queries that become inefficient and slow down the application as more data is added. It could also result from code written in a monolithic way, with many interdependent elements, that makes it hard to maintain and modify such applications. Changing one part can affect the whole system. In fact, a monolith is easier to implement but harder to maintain and scale.

How to assess technical debt in your app

Technical debt is the cost of choosing a quick or easy solution over a better one that would take more time or resources. It can affect the performance, security, and maintainability of your app. To avoid accumulating technical debt, you should evaluate the impact of your design and coding decisions on the future of your app. Here are some questions to help you do that:

- How much traffic does your app handle now and how much do you expect in the future?

- What features do you plan to add or change in your app?

- Do you want to expand your app to new markets or platforms?

- How long do you intend to keep your app in the market?

- How easy is it to find and hire developers who can work on your app?

- How does the maintenance cost of your app change over time? How long will it take for the maintenance cost to exceed the cost of rewriting your app with newer technologies?

- Are the technologies you use in your app still supported and updated by their vendors?

If you answer YES to any of these questions, consider reducing your technical debt as soon as possible. It will benefit not only your users but also your developers who will have an easier time working on your app.

Ensuring IT security in your software projects

IT service security is no longer an optional feature, but a crucial component of successful software projects. Software developers and owners need to ensure that their applications are secure from potential threats and vulnerabilities. One way to do this is to update the frameworks used in the application, as older versions may have known weaknesses that can be exploited. Another way is to rewrite the application using newer technologies and frameworks, which can improve performance, security, and code quality.

Additionally, it is important to review the code and remove any traces of sensitive information, such as:

- authentication data

- API keys

- detailed system logs.

By prioritizing security in your applications, you can prevent incidents and protect your data and users.

Refactoring and optimization

It is not just about security that technologies and frameworks are being updated, but also about efficiency. Years ago, developers could use technologies that were utterly different from those available today. At the same time, writing code makes a world of difference when you already know all the solutions and have seen how the program works in practice than when designing a solution from scratch. Indeed, we can predict the number of users and the direction of the application, but choosing the right tool can be an evolving issue.

For instance, if the load on an application increases due to its popularity, the number of users, or the processing of more data, it is worth considering Kubernetes as a management and scaling tool to distribute traffic across multiple machines and relieve application workloads. Moreover, Kubernetes will enable smooth application updates on production servers through zero downtime deployment. This will prevent users from experiencing non-functional applications in a given period, instead maintaining constant access to their data.

It is worthwhile considering tools to assist in monitoring the performance and operation of applications with increasing requirements. Using Sentry as an example, the developer is alerted faster about errors and exceptions encountered in the application. In other words, the developer will be instantly informed when an error occurs on the production server. As a result, they will have a time advantage to prevent the error from occurring when other users run the application. Keeping the application up-to-date with new technologies or wrapping it in tools that enhance performance and support developers are critical steps in maintaining it.

Final Thoughts

The architecture of a technological solution should reflect the specific needs of the project, sector, or enterprise. Without consistent upkeep and evolution, even the most well-planned and executed application may demand significant modifications. Technological advancements occur at a dizzying pace, with superior alternatives appearing almost instantaneously. A widely adopted application will invariably require increased oversight. Therefore, it is prudent to engage in ongoing maintenance and enhancement of your applications — this proactive approach helps circumvent technical issues and security risks.

Are you looking to develop a mobile app, web application, or a tailor-made system and in search of a seasoned tech partner? Delve into our portfolio of custom software ventures we’ve realized for our clients. If you have a roadmap and description of the application ready, we can prepare a quote in as little as 24 hours from the time you send us the specifications. And if you’re not quite there yet, that’s perfectly fine too. Reach out for a free consultation, and we’ll collaboratively determine your forthcoming steps.