Someone to look after the software you depend on.
A large part of my client work since 2017 has been changing, fixing and supporting software that has to keep running, long after its first release. That is a service in its own right, and a small business rarely has anyone to do it.
First step A paid review of the system: what is fragile, what to fix first and what it would cost to look after.
What this looks like
- Diagnosing a failure from logs, reproducing it and fixing it without changing what the system is supposed to do.
- Adding the alerts and health checks that tell you something stopped, before a customer does.
- Taking over a system whose original developer is gone: reading it, documenting it, then making it safe to change.
- A monthly arrangement for small changes, updates and fixes, with a written log of what was done.
A good fit if
- Something important breaks now and then and nobody is sure why.
- The person who wrote it has moved on.
- You find out about failures from your users or customers.
- You want changes made carefully, without breaking what works.
Probably not a fit if
- You need guaranteed 24/7 on-call response. I work in one time zone, alone, and will not promise what one person cannot deliver.
How I approach it
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Reproduce before fixing
Every incident is reproduced from logs or a test first, so the fix addresses the cause, not a symptom.
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Change without changing behaviour
Careful refactoring, release notes and a way back, so a fix does not create the next problem.
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Make it visible
Health checks, alerts and a short runbook, so problems are noticed early and handled calmly.
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Write it down
What the system does, how to run it and what changed. It should depend on documentation, not on me.
Evidence
- Supporting client systems in live markets since 2017 client work, trading
- Monitoring as code on Aim Duel own project, live
He offers outstanding after sales service and support, and any issues or reworking requirements that arise are promptly attended to.
Questions
Will you work on code someone else wrote?
Yes, after a short paid review so we both know what we are dealing with: how it works, what is fragile and what it would take to make it safe to change.
How does ongoing care work?
Usually a small monthly arrangement for fixes and changes, with a log of what was done. The scope and response times are written into the proposal.