Sabis: Efficient packaging of legacy applications

Banking-IT Sector: 

Sabis

Sabis is a technological subsidiary of one of the main banking groups in the Spanish financial system, founded in 1881 and belonging to IBEX 3. Sabis was dedicated to IT services and consulting.

Initial situation

Sabis came to us with the following problem: Most of its legacy applications operated on an outdated infrastructure based on Windows Server 2003. This environment was not only expensive to maintain, but also presented significant security risks and compatibility issues with modern technologies. The need to upgrade and migrate these applications to a new, more robust and sustainable infrastructure was imperative to ensure business continuity and improve efficiency.

How we helped as Serban Group:

Serban Group was chosen to lead this modernization project due to our expertise in migrating and upgrading legacy systems. The approach taken included several key stages:

1. Assessment and Planning:
   • We took a comprehensive inventory of all legacy applications used by Sabis.
   • We classified the applications according to their complexity and criticality, prioritizing those that were essential for daily operations.
2. Use of Emulators and Packaging Technologies:
   • We implemented emulators such as DOSBox-X and vDosPlus to ensure DOS-based applications could run on 64-bit operating systems.
   • We use modern packaging technologies, such as APPV and MSIX, to encapsulate applications such as Access 97, Access 2003 and Visual Basic 6, facilitating their deployment in the new infrastructure.
3. Development and Testing:
   • We developed application-specific packaging sequences, ensuring that all dependencies and configurations were properly captured.
   • We conducted rigorous testing to ensure that packaged applications ran smoothly in the Citrix Windows 2016 environment.
4. Migration and Deployment:
   • We migrated the packaged applications to the new Citrix XD7 Windows 2016 farm.
   • We dismantled the old Windows 2003 infrastructure, reducing the operational and maintenance burden.

Results obtained

The modernization project led by Serban Group achieved significant results and tangible benefits for Sabis:

1. Cost Reduction:
   • The removal of outdated Windows 2003 infrastructure resulted in a significant reduction in operating and maintenance costs.
2. Performance Improvement:
   • The migrated applications showed remarkable improvements in performance, thanks to the optimization and updating of the execution environment.
3. Increased Security and Compatibility:
   • The new Windows 2016-based infrastructure offered a more secure and compliant environment, mitigating the risks associated with outdated technologies.
4. Ease of Management and Maintenance:
   • The use of modern packaging technologies facilitated the management and updating of applications, allowing for more efficient and centralized administration.
5. Business Continuity:
   • Ensured the operational continuity of Sabis, ensuring that critical applications were available and working properly at all times.

The collaboration with Serban Group enabled Sabis to transform its IT environment, migrating from an outdated and expensive infrastructure to a modern, secure and efficient platform. This project not only improved the operability and performance of legacy applications, but also prepared Sabis to face future technological challenges with a solid and scalable foundation.

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