Technology

VB.NET Windows Forms Support, Migration & Modernisation
supported where it is, with a clear road to current .NET.

For businesses running a desktop application written in VB.NET or C# with Windows Forms. We assess the code and what it depends on, keep it supported on .NET Framework, move it to current .NET where that is the better answer, and replace it in stages where it is not.

Request a VB.NET assessment Discuss a Windows Forms application
More about this service

We are an Australian team working remotely with businesses in the United States, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia. Every engagement starts with a scoped technical assessment, so the estimate that follows is based on your code and your data.

  • Assessment A scoped technical review before any estimate
  • 18+ yrs Building business software
  • Independent No licence commission, no reseller agenda
  • US UK NZ AU Australian team, working remotely
Australian owned and operated

Built here. Your data stays here.

  • No offshore development. Everything is written by our own team in Australia. Nothing is subcontracted overseas.
  • Your data stays onshore. Hosted in Australia, on infrastructure you own, under Australian law.
  • Every state, not just ours. Perth, Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and everywhere between.
VB.NET developers

Supported and stable, on a platform that has stopped growing

For most of two decades Windows Forms was the quickest way to build a business application for Windows, and Visual Basic was the language many in-house developers already knew. That is why so many job, stock, quoting and scheduling systems written this way still run every day. Microsoft still supports them: .NET Framework 4.8.1 is a part of Windows.

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The obstacles are practical. .NET Framework gets security fixes and no new features. The grid, chart and scheduling controls were bought from vendors years ago and the licences have lapsed. Crystal Reports does not run on current .NET. The installer was built by somebody who has left. None of that is urgent, and each has a known answer.

Our VB.NET developer service is for businesses in Perth, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. It covers three kinds of work: code fixes and updates, migration to a modern technology stack, and ongoing maintenance and support.

See legacy software modernisation

Three ways forward for a Windows Forms application

There is no deadline forcing the second or the third.

  • Keep it and support it

    The application stays on .NET Framework, moved up to 4.8 if it targets an older version. We get it building on a current Visual Studio, fix faults, make changes, and write down what it depends on. For an internal system this can be the right answer for years.

  • Move it to current .NET

    The same forms and code are moved from .NET Framework to current .NET, which Microsoft still develops. Third-party controls are upgraded or replaced, reports are given a new home, and the installer is rebuilt. It stays a Windows desktop program, in Visual Basic or C#.

  • Replace it in stages

    Where people need to work from a browser, from home or from a phone, modules are rebuilt as a web application one at a time against the same database, with old and new running side by side.

What we do with Windows Forms applications

Six kinds of work. Most engagements are two or three of them.

  • VB.NET and C# maintenance

    Faults fixed and changes made in the existing forms, modules and classes, from the solution source.

  • .NET Framework upgrades

    Projects that target an old .NET Framework, such as 4.0 or 4.5, moved to 4.8 so they build in a current Visual Studio and run on a supported version.

  • Control and component audit

    Every third-party grid, chart, report and scheduling control listed, with whether a current version exists and where the licence stands.

  • Migration to current .NET

    Forms and code moved to current .NET, with the parts that have no equivalent there found and redesigned first.

  • Reports and installers

    Crystal Reports output moved to a current reporting tool, and ClickOnce or Windows Installer (MSI) setups rebuilt so an update reaches every computer.

  • Staged replacement

    Modules rebuilt as a web application one at a time, where a desktop program no longer suits the work.

Supporting it, migrating it and replacing it are different projects

Each trades cost against how long the application has to last.

  • Stay on .NET Framework

    Lowest cost, and supported for as long as the Windows version it runs on. Right for an internal system with a known lifespan. It gets no new features from Microsoft, and it keeps the old controls and report components it has today.

  • Migrate to current .NET

    Most of the code is reused and staff keep the screens they know. The program ends up on a platform Microsoft is still developing. It then has to keep moving, because each .NET release is supported for two or three years.

  • Rebuild as a web application

    Nothing is installed on each computer afterwards, and the application can be used from anywhere. The screens are rebuilt, not converted. It takes longest, and is only worth it when remote use or outside users are a real need.

What a VB.NET Windows Forms assessment looks at

The language and the forms are supported. The risk is in the framework version, the controls and the reports. The support facts are from Microsoft, and the Crystal Reports position is from SAP.

  • Which .NET Framework

    .NET Framework 4.8.1 is the latest version and is supported as part of Windows. Support ended for 4.5.2, 4.6 and 4.6.1 on 26 April 2022, and ends for 4.6.2 on 12 January 2027. Visual Studio 2022 and later cannot build projects that target 4.0 to 4.5.1.

  • Whether the source is complete

    A solution file (.sln), project files (.vbproj or .csproj), and each form with its designer and .resx files. A site that holds only the installed program can run it but cannot safely change it.

  • Third-party controls

    Grid, chart, scheduler and ribbon controls bought from control vendors. Each needs a version built for current .NET, or a replacement. Controls from vendors that have closed are the hard cases, and they are found first.

  • What current .NET does not have

    Microsoft lists .NET Framework features that current .NET lacks, including .NET Remoting, application domains and Windows Workflow Foundation. Old controls such as DataGrid, MainMenu and ToolBar have newer replacements the forms must move to.

  • Reports

    Crystal Reports is the usual one. SAP states that Crystal Reports for Visual Studio depends on .NET Framework and that it has no plans to go beyond version 4.8. On current .NET the reports are rebuilt, or kept in a separate .NET Framework program.

  • The database

    SQL Server, Access or something older, reached through typed datasets or queries written in the forms. A shared Access file on a network drive is often the weakest part, and it can be moved to SQL Server on its own.

  • Links to other software

    Excel and Word driven from the program, older Windows components, label printers, scales and serial devices. A program built as 32-bit because of one old component stays 32-bit until that component is replaced.

  • How it is installed

    ClickOnce from a network share, an MSI package, or files copied by hand. ClickOnce still exists for current .NET, with different tools and fewer update settings. Expired signing certificates are a common finding.

A VB.NET application that works, and nobody keen to change it?

Call 0425 531 127 or Request a VB.NET assessment

What the assessment needs from you

A fixed-scope piece of work with a written result: the options, the risks of each, and a staged estimate. No production data is sent by email. We agree a secure way to share it first.

  • Versions

    The .NET Framework version, the Visual Studio it was built with, and the Windows versions it runs on.

  • The source

    Whether the full solution exists, where it is kept, and whether anybody has built it recently.

  • Controls

    Any third-party control suites you know of, and whether you hold their installers and licences.

  • The database

    SQL Server, Access or something else, its size and where it lives.

  • Reports

    How reports are produced, and which ones the business cannot do without.

  • Users and machines

    How many people use it, and how a new version reaches each computer today.

  • Integrations

    Files in and out, Excel or Word output, devices, and other systems that share the database.

  • What is hurting

    The two or three problems that started the conversation.

  • The way back

    How long the business can run on the old system if a cutover has to be reversed.

How it runs

From assessment to a supported application

Done remotely, with meeting times agreed to suit your time zone.

  1. Technical assessment

    We establish the .NET Framework version, what source you hold, every control and component the program needs and how it reaches its data. You get a written list of options with the risks of each and a staged estimate.

  2. A working build

    The solution is made to build on a current Visual Studio, and the result is compared with what you run today. Until that works, no change is safe.

  3. Proof of concept

    One representative piece, usually a few forms moved to current .NET, one report rebuilt or one screen rebuilt for the browser, is taken end to end.

  4. Staged work

    The work is done in stages agreed from the assessment, each with its own scope and estimate, starting with whatever is hurting the business most.

  5. Comparison and user testing

    Old and new are run side by side on the same data, and your staff test the work they do every day.

  6. Cutover and support

    Each switch is planned with a way back. We watch the first days of live use, then maintain the application for as long as it stays in service.

What people ask us about VB.NET

Is VB.NET still supported?

Yes. Microsoft supports Visual Basic and Windows Forms on .NET Framework and on current .NET. Its stated strategy is a stable language that will not be extended to new kinds of application. Existing VB.NET code is safe to keep. The language will not gain much that is new.

Is .NET Framework being retired?

No. Microsoft treats .NET Framework as a component of Windows, and supports version 4.8.1 for as long as the Windows version it is installed on. It gets security fixes, not new features. Older versions have ended, and 4.6.2 follows on 12 January 2027.

Do we have to move to current .NET?

Not on any deadline. If the application runs on .NET Framework 4.8 and nobody needs it to do anything new, supporting it where it is can be the right answer, and we will say so. The usual triggers are a control or report component with no future, or nobody left who can change it.

Can a Windows Forms application be converted automatically?

Partly. Microsoft provides upgrade tools in Visual Studio that convert project files and fix common code changes. They do not replace third-party controls or Crystal Reports, and the result is still tested screen by screen. We try them on a copy during the assessment.

Should we convert the VB.NET code to C#?

Not for its own sake. Visual Basic runs on current .NET, and converting adds risk without changing what the program does. C# makes sense for parts that are being rebuilt anyway, such as a web front end, where Microsoft says Visual Basic support is unlikely to be added.

What happens to our Crystal Reports?

They keep working while the application stays on .NET Framework. SAP states that it has no plans to take Crystal Reports for Visual Studio beyond .NET Framework 4.8. On a move to current .NET, reports are rebuilt in another tool, or left running in a small .NET Framework program.

Do you provide VB.NET developers in Perth, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane?

Yes. We are an Australian team and we take on VB.NET work for businesses in Perth, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, and elsewhere in Australia. Most of the work is done remotely, by video call and screen share, with secure access to a copy of your system. The service is the same in every city: code fixes and updates, migration to a modern technology stack, and ongoing maintenance and support.

How does this work from the United States, the United Kingdom or New Zealand?

Remotely. We are based in Australia and do not have offices elsewhere. Discovery is done by video call and screen share, with meeting times agreed to suit your time zone. Confidentiality, who can reach your systems and where your data is held are agreed in writing before work starts.

What does it cost?

The assessment is a fixed-scope piece of work with an agreed fee. The estimate for anything after it comes from what the assessment finds, in stages, so you are not asked to commit to a whole project on a guess.

Tell us about your VB.NET application

What the application does, the .NET Framework version, whether you hold the source, and what is forcing the question. Include your country so we can suggest meeting times. Please do not send production data.

Prefer a quick chat? Call 0425 531 127. We answer the phone in Perth.

Kasun Wijayamanna, founder of HELLO PEOPLE

Kasun Wijayamanna, founderYou deal with Kasun from scope to delivery. No account managers and no offshore handoff.