Software Rescue and Project Takeover UK

First, secure what you own

In a rescue, the most valuable thing is often not code but access. Before anything else, we work through a checklist with you:

• Domain registrar and DNS: who controls the domain, and is it registered to your business?
• Hosting and servers: control panel, SSH, cloud console and billing
• Source code: repository on GitHub, GitLab or Bitbucket, or only on the server?
• Database access and existing backups
• Third-party services: payment gateways such as Stripe, email sending, SMS, maps, accounting APIs, app store accounts
• API keys and secrets: where they are stored and who knows them

Anything in a former supplier's name gets moved to yours. Keys that may have been shared are rotated. Then we take a full backup of code, database and uploaded files, and put the code into a Git repository you own. Only then do we start changing things.

Stabilise before you improve

If the system is live and failing, the priority is to stop the damage. We look at error logs, server resources, slow database queries and recent changes, and fix the causes of outages, data loss and security exposure first. Common culprits include missing database indexes, runaway background jobs, full disks, expired SSL certificates, broken scheduled tasks and dependencies with known vulnerabilities.

We add basic monitoring and alerting straight away, so the next problem shows up on a dashboard before a customer phones. New features wait until the system is steady.

An honest assessment

Once things are stable, we write up what we have found. The assessment covers:

• What is finished, what is half-built and what is missing compared with what you were promised
• Security issues, ranked by severity
• Code quality and how hard it will be to maintain
• Hosting, deployment and backup arrangements
• Our recommendation: carry on with the existing code, refactor it, or rebuild parts in stages

We do not recommend a rebuild by default. Often the existing code is reasonable and the real problems were process: no version control, no testing, no staging site. Sometimes it really is beyond saving, and we will say so with reasons you can check.

Taking over a failing project mid-build

When a project is late rather than abandoned, the picture is different. We compare what has been built with the original specification and what you actually need now, which have often drifted apart. We then propose a reset: a clear, smaller scope that gets a working version live, with the remaining features in later phases, each with a fixed-price quote. Where the existing team is staying involved, we can work alongside them, review their code and set up the testing and deployment process the project was missing.

Putting basic engineering practice in place

Most rescues share the same root causes, whatever the language or framework, so the fixes are similar too. Alongside the code itself, we set up the things that stop a project sliding back into trouble:

• Version control: every change goes through Git with a clear history and meaningful commit messages
• A staging site that mirrors live, so changes are checked before customers see them
• Repeatable deployment: a scripted or automated release instead of copying files over FTP
• Automated tests around the most important flows, such as login, checkout, invoicing and integrations
• Error tracking and uptime monitoring with alerts to the right people
• Tested backups, with a restore actually tried rather than assumed

None of this is exotic. It is the normal working practice that was missing, and it is usually what makes the lasting difference between a system that keeps breaking and one that can be safely changed.

Never in this position again

The point of a rescue is not to swap one dependency for another. At the end you will have every account in your name, the code in your repository, a documented deployment process, and enough written explanation that another competent developer could pick it up. If you want ongoing care afterwards, see software maintenance. If the system is old as well as neglected, legacy modernisation is the next step. Start with a free chat.

What we deliver

• An access and ownership checklist completed and transferred into your name
• Full backups of code, database and uploaded files, stored securely
• The code in a Git repository you own
• A rescue assessment covering stability, security, code quality and completeness
• Urgent fixes for outages, security holes and data risks
• A recommended plan: stabilise and continue, refactor, or rebuild in stages
• Documentation so you are never dependent on one person again

How it works and what it costs

Every project gets a fixed-price quote after a free initial chat and a short scoping stage. You own the code and the data.

1. Free chat

   Tell us the problem in plain English: what you do now, what goes wrong and what "better" looks like. No charge, no obligation.

2. Scoping

   We map the processes, systems and data involved, agree what is in and out, and write it down so there are no surprises.

3. Fixed-price quote

   You get a fixed price for the agreed scope, or a phased plan for bigger builds, so you can start small and prove it works.

4. Build and test

   We build in short stages you can see and try, test against real data, then go live carefully with a rollback plan.

5. Hand over and look after

   You own the code and the data. We can host it, support it and keep improving it, or hand it to your own team.

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