Support and maintenance · take-over and modernization
We take over the system nobody wants to touch
The developer left, the agency closed, or the system simply got old while it kept making you money. We take it over: backups first, then monitoring, then the fixes in order of risk, with a monthly plan and a response time in writing. When a rewrite is truly needed, we do it by stages, never with a big bang.
Basic: 20 hours a month: $1,800/mo
Software maintenance services keep a system that is already in production running, secure and improving: backups, monitoring, security updates, bug fixes and small features, with a defined response time. We take over systems we did not build, starting with a one-week review, then a monthly plan from $1,800 for twenty hours, and modernize by stages when the code has reached its limit.
How systems become orphans
Typical situations (not client quotes)
- The one developer who understood it left, and the documentation is his memory.
- It works, but every change is a risk and nobody will touch it.
- The agency that built it does not answer anymore, and the hosting bill keeps arriving.
- A vendor quoted a full rewrite. We cannot stop the business for a year.
Most companies run on at least one system that nobody owns anymore. It processes orders, bookings or invoices every day, and every day it goes without a backup, a security update or a person who can read its logs, the eventual failure gets more expensive. The usual offers are a full rewrite, which stops the business and restarts the risk, or a freelancer who becomes the next single point of failure.
Taking over a system is a discipline: understand it before changing it, protect the data first, make releases boring, and only then improve.
How a take-over works
We start with a one-week architecture review to understand the code, the infrastructure and the risks. Then, in the first month, we do the unglamorous work that prevents disasters: verified backups with a restore test, monitoring and alerts, access cleanup, and a release process that can be rolled back. After that, the monthly plan covers fixes, security updates and the small features that keep piling up, in order of risk and value, with a written response time.
This is how we run our own platform: every Guiadalajara release backs up the database before anything changes, releases go out blue/green so a bad one can be reversed in minutes, and the infrastructure is written as code. When the code has truly reached its limit, we modernize by stages, moving one module at a time while the old system keeps running, rather than betting the business on a rewrite.
- One-week review: code, infrastructure, risks, costs
- Verified backups with a restore test in the first month
- Monitoring, alerts and an incident channel
- Access and secrets cleanup; credentials in your name
- Release process with rollback
- Monthly hours for fixes, updates and small features, prioritized with you
- Modernization by stages when the review calls for it
What you get · Support and maintenance
Protected system
Backups verified by an actual restore, monitoring, alerts and clean access, documented.
Monthly plan
A fixed number of hours, a response time in writing and a monthly report of what was done and what is next.
Documentation that did not exist
Runbooks, architecture notes and a map of where everything runs and what it costs.
Staged modernization
A plan to replace the riskiest module first, with the old system running until the new one is proven.
Cost review
Hosting and tooling you pay for and do not need. When we did this for ourselves, {{claim:sc-nube-ahorro}}.
How we work · Support and maintenance
Architecture review
One week with read-only access under NDA. Written report with risks ranked by impact and a fixed price for the take-over.
1 week, $2,500
Stabilize
Backups, monitoring, access, release process. Nothing new ships until the system can be restored and rolled back.
Month 1
Maintain
Monthly hours on fixes, updates and features, prioritized with you, with a report each month.
ongoing
Modernize by stages
When warranted: one module at a time, old and new running side by side until the new one is proven.
as the review recommends
Proof · Support and maintenance
The platform we operate ourselves is maintained with the same rules we apply to yours: a backup before every release, blue/green deploys and infrastructure as code.
- every Guiadalajara release backs up the database before anything changes — Source: Our own platform (Guiadalajara), in production, checked October 16, 2026
- in September 2026 we cut our own cloud bill by about two thirds — Source: Our cloud provider’s invoices, checked September 25, 2026
- no PayPal charge is ever left without its booking: the booking is saved before the charge and an automatic reconciliation closes the gaps — Source: Client case, published with permission, checked October 16, 2026
Own platform
Guiadalajara
Our own platform for local businesses in Guadalajara: marketplace and directory, appointment booking by business type, point of sale and CFDI e-invoicing, on web and mobile apps.
See the case →
Transportation
VIP Transportation
Luxury private transport in Puerto Vallarta, booked in 6 steps with not a single payment ever falling through the cracks.
See the case →
Pricing · Support and maintenance
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Basic: 20 hours a month | $1,800/mo |
| Growth: 60 hours a month | $4,800/mo |
| Critical: 120 hours a month, 4-hour response SLA | $9,000/mo |
| Legacy modernization, scoped after the review | from $25,000 |
Plans are month to month with thirty days' notice. The $2,500 review comes first. Invoices in US dollars, net 15, by wire transfer. Full rate card on the pricing page.
What we build with
- TypeScript / Node
- Next.js
- Python
- PHP
- PostgreSQL
- MySQL
- MongoDB
- Docker
- Terraform
- AWS / Google Cloud / Linode
Questions · Support and maintenance
Will you take over a system you did not build?
Yes; that is most of this work. We start with a one-week review to understand it, then protect it (backups, monitoring, access) before changing anything.
What do software maintenance services cost?
Our plans are published: $1,800 a month for twenty hours, $4,800 for sixty, and $9,000 for one hundred twenty hours with a four-hour response SLA. Modernization projects start at $25,000 after the review.
Which technologies can you maintain?
Mostly TypeScript and Node, Next.js, Python, PHP, PostgreSQL, MySQL and MongoDB, on AWS, Google Cloud, Linode, Docker or bare servers. If your stack is unusual, say so on the call and we will tell you whether we are the right team.
What is your response time?
In writing, per plan: the Critical plan commits to a four-hour response, the others to the next business day. Incidents that threaten data are handled first regardless of plan.
Do we need a full rewrite?
Usually not. The review says whether the system can be stabilized and improved in place, which is the common case, or whether a module has reached its limit. When it has, we replace that module first while the rest keeps running.
What happens to our credentials and hosting?
They move into accounts in your name, documented, with us as an operator you can revoke. You never depend on us for access to your own system.
Can you also build new features?
Yes, within the monthly hours or as a separate fixed-scope project when the feature is large. The plan covers both.
Related
When was the last time someone tested a restore of your database?
Start with a one-week review. You get the risks ranked, a fixed price for the take-over, and a plan you can act on with or without us.