ColdFusion & CFML Migration
for businesses in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the US.
ColdFusion is still sold by Adobe. The versions actually running Australian business applications are usually 9, 10 or 11, all long out of support, on licences nobody wants to renew.
- Independent No licence commission, no reseller agenda
- 18+ yrs Building business software
- Fixed Price scopes, no surprises
- AU NZ UK US Perth-based, working remotely
Still sold, still expensive, still nobody to hire
ColdFusion made database-driven websites straightforward years before that was normal, and a lot of intranets, member portals and booking systems were built with it. The applications are typically .cfm pages with .cfc components, and they usually still work.
What brings people to us is a combination of three things: the licence renewal is substantial, the version in production stopped receiving security updates years ago, and CFML developers are increasingly hard to find at any price.
Your ColdFusion project, end to end
Three stages. Scoped and fixed-price before anything starts, delivered by the founder, and your existing system stays running until cutover.
-
Week 0
Read the system as it is
We go through the existing application and record what it actually does, including the parts nobody documented. You get a written inventory and a fixed price before any build starts.
-
Weeks 1-N
Rebuild and run in parallel
The replacement runs beside the original until the numbers reconcile. The old system stays untouched and switched on the whole time.
-
Cutover
Go live and hand over
Cutover on a date you choose, then thirty days of support. Source code, documentation and credentials are handed to you, in your name.
What the work actually is
Rebuild it somewhere you can hire for, or move to Lucee
There are two honest options and they suit different situations. Lucee is an open-source CFML engine that removes the licence while keeping the code. A rebuild removes the language problem entirely. We will tell you which fits.
What you have now
- .cfm pages and .cfc components
- An unsupported ColdFusion 9, 10 or 11 server
- A significant annual licence
- SQL Server or Oracle behind it
Rebuild it somewhere you can hire for, or move to Lucee
There are two honest options and they suit different situations. Lucee is an open-source CFML engine that removes the licence while keeping the code. A rebuild removes the language problem entirely. We will tell you which fits.
See how a project runsWhat you end up with
- The application rebuilt on a stack you can hire for
- No per-server licence to renew
- Security patches available again
The 5 pieces of ColdFusion work we are asked for
Most engagements are some combination of these, and most start with the first.
Assess the application
How much CFML there is, how much sits in .cfc components, and how much is tangled into the pages. That ratio decides the approach.
Consider Lucee first
An open-source CFML engine can remove the licence cost while keeping the code running. It is the cheapest option when it works, and we check it before proposing a rebuild.
Rebuild where that is right
Where the real problem is hiring rather than licensing, the application is rebuilt on a mainstream stack.
Keep the database
SQL Server or Oracle behind it usually stays, which keeps the reconciliation simple.
Clear the security debt
Unsupported ColdFusion versions have known published vulnerabilities. If the application is internet-facing this is the urgent part, not the licence.
Where you are now
It works, and nobody will touch it
- Running on ColdFusion 9, 10 or 11 with no security updates
- A substantial licence to renew every year
- CFML developers increasingly hard to find
- Internet-facing on a version with published vulnerabilities
After
Supported, documented and yours
- No proprietary licence, or no CFML at all
- A stack with a normal hiring market
- Security patches available again
- The same database and the same data
Scoped and quoted before you commit. You own the code, the documentation and the credentials at the end of it.
Get a fixed-price scopeColdFusion questions
Is Lucee a real alternative to Adobe ColdFusion?
For many applications, yes. It is an open-source CFML engine, and moving to it can remove the licence cost without rewriting the application. It is not identical, so compatibility gets tested before anything is promised.
Should we rebuild or move to Lucee?
If the problem is licence cost, Lucee. If the problem is that nobody will maintain CFML, a rebuild. If both, rebuild. We would rather propose the cheaper one when it genuinely solves the problem.
Is an old ColdFusion server a security risk?
Yes, and this is the part worth acting on quickly. Unsupported versions have published vulnerabilities, and if the application is reachable from the internet the licence is not your most pressing problem.
Can it be migrated in stages?
Yes. Page by page behind the same address is normal, so you are not running a single high-risk cutover on an application the business depends on.
What happens to our database?
It generally stays. Changing the application and the database at once makes verification much harder, so we separate them.
Sending your details…
You can stay on this page while we send it.
Tell us what you are running
What the system does, roughly how old it is, and what is forcing the question. We will come back with a straight answer and a fixed-price scope, even if the answer is to leave it alone.
Prefer a quick chat? Call 0425 531 127. We answer the phone in Perth.
