Maintainable Codebase Case Study

The Business Problem

Some projects were running on older versions of .NET and still used outdated libraries. Testing calls to webCRM, Xero, Freshdesk and Princity relied on scattered request files kept in an older tool. The pricing wizard had grown a new set of screens for each year, and the old ones were still there. Moving PDF quote generation to a new server showed that the setup depended on file locations on one particular machine. Without attention, each change would take longer and carry more risk.

The Solution

wildesoft.net carried out a programme of steady improvements:

• Upgrades: the projects were moved to .NET Framework 4.8 and a newer C# version, and an unnecessary database library was removed.
• Code checks: automated code-quality checks were added, and the issues they found were fixed.
• API testing: all the requests used to test the external systems were collected into Bruno, an API testing tool, organised by system, and kept up to date as those systems changed.
• Wizard tidy-up: the pricing wizard's controllers and screens were reorganised, and the old years were removed.
• PDF generation: this was set up so it works on the new development machine and on the live server alike.
• Coding conventions: the conventions were written down, so every change follows the same style.

The Result

iTS's systems are easier and safer to change. wildesoft.net now maintains about 65,000 lines of code for iTS, and over the last two years the codebase has become around 7,400 lines smaller even as 70+ features were added. Developers can test integrations quickly, new pricing years start from a clean base, and moving to new servers no longer causes surprises.

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