Redesigning Legacy Systems using Hybrid Re-engineering

Traditional re-engineering applies reverse engineering to existing system code to extract design and requirements. Forward engineering is then used to develop the replacement system. Due to limited resources, many organizations are looking at the use of COTS software packages as a means of decreasing development time and costs. This paper looks at the generally accepted method for re-engineering. It briefly describes traditional re-engineering then discusses the emerging process of hybrid re-engineering. The paper also defines three "tracks" used in hybrid re-engineering by discussing each track in depth, looking at potential risks and how software metrics can be used to identify and mitigate these risks during the re-engineering process. Hybrid re-engineering uses a combination of translation of existing code, COTS, and custom code to produce the replacement system. This paper discusses the advantages, disadvantages, and metrics for each of these tracks in hybrid re-engineering