Technology

Progress OpenEdge & ABL Modernisation
for businesses in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the US.

Progress OpenEdge is still developed and the 4GL is now called ABL. The applications we are asked about are usually character-mode systems from the 1990s, running on licences that grow with headcount.

Book a 20-min scoping call
  • 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
Where we fit

A live platform carrying very old applications

Progress ran a great deal of ERP, distribution and manufacturing software, often as the engine beneath a vendor package rather than something the business chose. The database and the 4GL are tightly coupled, which made development fast and makes leaving harder than it looks.

Two things bring people to us: green-screen applications that new staff refuse to learn, and a licensing model that charges by user and never gets cheaper.

How it runs

Your Progress OpenEdge 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.

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

Founder profile

Kasun Wijayamanna

Founder · Perth, WA · Started HELLO PEOPLE in 2008

18+ Years running HELLO PEOPLE

Founded in 2008. Two decades of technology-driven business transformation across Australia.

100+ Projects delivered

Startups to government agencies across mining, healthcare, legal, education and more.

HDR Researcher · Curtin University

Postgraduate research in Artificial Intelligence and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG).

MBA Oil & Gas

Deep technical expertise combined with strong business and financial acumen.

Perth Based in WA

Serving businesses across Western Australia and nationally.

AU+TH International experience

Professional background in Bangkok, Thailand before migrating to Perth.

PHF Paul Harris Fellow · Rotary

Former President of Rotary Club of Booragoon. Over a decade of community service.

Read the full bio, research, career, community involvement and how HELLO PEOPLE runs projects.

See full founder page

What the work actually is

Separate the data from the 4GL, then choose

Progress couples the database and the language tightly, so the first useful step is establishing what the data looks like independently of the ABL code. After that, replacing the front end or the whole platform becomes a real choice.

What you have now

  • .p and .w ABL procedure files
  • A Progress database with per-user licensing
  • Character-mode or early GUI screens
  • A vendor package nobody supports any more
What we build

Separate the data from the 4GL, then choose

Progress couples the database and the language tightly, so the first useful step is establishing what the data looks like independently of the ABL code. After that, replacing the front end or the whole platform becomes a real choice.

See how a project runs

What you end up with

  • Data migrated to SQL Server or PostgreSQL with relationships intact
  • A web application replacing the green screens
  • Licensing that does not rise with headcount
What we do

The 5 pieces of Progress OpenEdge work we are asked for

Most engagements are some combination of these, and most start with the first.

  1. Document the schema

    The Progress database schema extracted and documented independently of the ABL code, which is what makes every later option possible.

  2. Read the ABL

    .p and .w procedures hold the business rules. They are readable and worth documenting even if the platform stays.

  3. Migrate the data

    Into SQL Server or PostgreSQL with relationships and constraints rebuilt, then reconciled against the source.

  4. Replace the screens

    A web application in place of character-mode or early GUI screens, so new staff do not need training on a terminal.

  5. Stage it sensibly

    Front end first while Progress still holds the data is a common and low-risk sequence.

Where you are now

It works, and nobody will touch it

  • Character-mode screens that new staff will not learn
  • Per-user database licensing that rises as you hire
  • Business logic in ABL that few developers read
  • A vendor package with no remaining support

After

Supported, documented and yours

  • Data in a mainstream database with no per-user licence
  • A browser interface staff can use without training
  • Business rules documented rather than assumed
  • Integration with other systems finally straightforward

Scoped and quoted before you commit. You own the code, the documentation and the credentials at the end of it.

Get a fixed-price scope
Common questions

Progress OpenEdge questions

Progress is still supported. Why move?

Usually licensing and hiring rather than support. If the licence rises every time you hire and nobody on the market reads ABL, being supported does not solve your actual problem.

Can Progress data go into SQL Server?

Yes. The schema is extractable and the migration is well understood. The care goes into reconciling the result, particularly around date and decimal handling.

Can we replace the screens but keep the database?

Yes, and it is often the best first step. A web front end over the existing Progress database delivers the visible benefit quickly and defers the bigger decision.

Our system is a vendor package on Progress. Does that change things?

It usually means less freedom to modify and more reason to get your data independently documented, especially if the vendor is no longer active.

Is ABL hard to read?

No, it is quite readable, which helps. The difficulty is the shortage of people who have seen it, not the language itself.

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.