|
|
What
is a Legacy Device? |
| |
| A legacy system is an existing computer system or application
program which continues to be used because the user (typically
an organization) does not want to replace or redesign
it. |
| |
| Legacy systems are considered to be potentially problematic
by many software engineers for several reasons. Legacy
systems often run on obsolete (and usually slow) hardware,
and sometimes spare parts for such computers become increasingly
difficult to obtain. These systems are often hard to maintain,
improve, and expand because there is a general lack of
understanding of the system. The designers of the system
may have left the organization, leaving no one left to
explain how it works. Integration with newer systems may
also be difficult because new software may use completely
different technologies. |
| |
| If legacy software runs on only older hardware, the
cost of maintaining the system may eventually outweigh
the cost of replacing both the software and hardware unless
some form of emulation or backward compatibility allows
the software to run on new hardware. However, many of
these systems do still meet the basic needs of the organization.
The systems to handle customers' accounts in banks are
one example. Therefore the organization cannot afford
to stop them and yet some cannot afford to update them. |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|
|
