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by on April 13, 2021
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Why may be a question about VB6 to .NET migration so timely? Visual Basic (VB) was created by Microsoft in 1991 and have become very fashionable . tons of in-house applications for enterprises were implemented along side an ecosystem of third-party components.
But later, Microsoft abandoned Visual Basic in favour of the fashionable .NET Framework. The ultimate VB release was version 6 in 1998. Visual Basic 6.0 IDE isn't supported anymore. consistent with Microsoft, Windows supports core VB6 functionality which is “used within the majority of application scenarios” under the so-called “It Just Works” commitment.
Why migrate from VB?
Most importantly, Visual Basic might unexpectedly stop running. As a coffee priority process, VB6 support isn't verified extensively in Windows updates, which results in the expansion of VB6 security vulnerabilities.
A closer check out Microsoft’s pledge to support VB core reveals that they never promised to uphold everything. Users might experience strange behaviours of applications, cryptic error messages, and crashes leading to data loss. The core VB might work, but third-party components written in VB6, like OCX/ActiveX controls, might pack up .
Customers are advised to contact original vendors. The thing is, tons of those vendors also don’t provide support for his or her old programs. Sometimes, they even aren't present within the business anymore. All this makes the necessity for VB6 to .NET migration quite obvious.
Eventually, all companies will face no choice but to rewrite their applications. Take as an example the recent 2020 case with the United States government systems performing on COBOL. It shows that the longer the matter is postponed, the more costly it's to resolve.
Ancient languages like COBOL and Visual Basic don’t attract current students. As a result, the amount of experts is dwindling annually . Scarce programmers willing to figure therein field must be paid exorbitant salaries.
All companies must evolve to stay up with their competitors. Company software entails a change in processes, integration with new industry-standard applications. Business growth demands program scalability, and modern enterprises are going web, cloud, and mobile. These all are either very expensive or maybe impossible in Visual Basic.
How to choose VB6 to .NET migration strategy?
Now, what can we do when a corporation is prepared to start out a transition to the new technologies? There are three possible VB6 to .NET migration strategies:
  • Extension
  • Migration
  • Rewriting
  • Let’s discuss all of them in additional detail to convert VB6 to .NET with no problems.
    Extension
    The extension strategy is for your application if:
  • The application works fine;
  • Described above issues and risks are accepted;
  • You need to develop new features with fewer efforts and costs.
  • Additional .NET modules are often called from within old applications. you'll leave a legacy because it is but implement new stuff with some modern framework. Eventually, old modules that are still relevant to the business are often also migrated to .NET. This approach is well-known as a “strangler” pattern.
    Advantages of the Extension approach:
  • It might be the most cost effective way within the short term.
  • The system is converted gradually. Clients immediately enjoy investments in modernization.
  • Disadvantages of the Extension approach:
    Business continuity risk. Visual Basic Parts are going to be susceptible to VB6-related issues until they're fully rewritten.
    Migration
    A good choice in case:
  • An old application works unstably;
  • It annoying users with frequent errors, sometimes even causing work loss;
  • The number of users is comparatively constant;
  • Business processes are attuned to the desktop experience.
  • This VB6 to .NET migration strategy could be started with automated converters that take Visual Basic code and translate them to C# .NET. The resulting code requires manual adjustments for specific parts that are conceptually different in those languages, for replacing OCX/ActiveX controls. Also, upgrading from default for converters Windows Forms to the newer WPF is desirable.
    Abto has good experience in implementing the Migration strategy. for instance, we convert VB6 to .NET for a charity platform for a world company. Also, our team provided VB6 to WPF migration for a number one manufacturer.
    Advantages of the Migration approach:
  • That is the second cheapest way after the Extension approach.
  • The similarity of platforms allows preserving the standard user experience. Also, it lowers the probabilities of incorrect implementations.
  • The whole application is going to be free from VB6 security and stability issues.
  • Disadvantages of the Migration approach:
    The base application must be developed before the new functionality are often added.
  • Poor architecture choices could be inherited from the first code. Eliminating them will need
  • extra efforts.
  • Rewriting
    The third VB6 to .NET migration way may be a complete rewriting to the .NET Framework. This approach is required when:
  • The migration is completed from the legacy desktop VB6 application to a different platform. These transitions can support the extending base of users by scaling into the cloud;
  • The company want to increase market share by giving users simple access via the online and features at hand via mobile applications;
  • The original application is completely outdated. It doesn't satisfy business in significant areas thus major overhaul is anyway necessary.
  • As an example, Abto Software implemented the Rewriting approach for the US retail company. We modernized and migrated legacy ERP to the online.
    Advantages of the Rewriting approach:
  • Change of platform to web or mobile is that the only thanks to go;
  • Architecture written from scratch using modern approaches allows cheaper development of improvements. Also, it makes more reasonable ongoing support expenses within the future.
  • Disadvantages of the Rewriting approach:
  • It requires a much bigger initial investment than the previous two ways. However, it's still justified by the longer term benefits.
  • Rewritten functionality must be extensively tested to verify compliance with the old behaviour.
  • Conclusions
    VB6 to .NET migration is important for each business that desires to remain on the market and be compatible. But also as in the other business areas, it's crucial to entrust your software development to professionals.
    Want to seek out out more about our experience? inspect case studies about award-winning e-Procurement and e-Sourcing software used worldwide, a set of digital retail solutions for a Swiss retail software provider, and EMR & practice management software for our US customer.
    Discover how .NET development can benefit your business! Contact us by filling out the shape below.
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