Dynamic

Rewriting From Scratch vs Strangler Pattern

Developers should consider rewriting from scratch when the current codebase is so brittle, poorly documented, or technologically obsolete that incremental improvements are impractical or too costly meets developers should use the strangler pattern when dealing with monolithic legacy systems that are difficult to maintain or scale, but where a complete rewrite is too risky or disruptive. Here's our take.

🧊Nice Pick

Rewriting From Scratch

Developers should consider rewriting from scratch when the current codebase is so brittle, poorly documented, or technologically obsolete that incremental improvements are impractical or too costly

Rewriting From Scratch

Nice Pick

Developers should consider rewriting from scratch when the current codebase is so brittle, poorly documented, or technologically obsolete that incremental improvements are impractical or too costly

Pros

  • +It is particularly useful for legacy systems with high maintenance costs, security vulnerabilities, or scalability limitations that hinder business growth
  • +Related to: refactoring, technical-debt-management

Cons

  • -Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

Strangler Pattern

Developers should use the Strangler Pattern when dealing with monolithic legacy systems that are difficult to maintain or scale, but where a complete rewrite is too risky or disruptive

Pros

  • +It is particularly useful in scenarios requiring modernization of enterprise applications, such as migrating from on-premises to cloud-based architectures or updating outdated technology stacks, as it allows for incremental changes without downtime
  • +Related to: microservices, legacy-system-migration

Cons

  • -Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

The Verdict

Use Rewriting From Scratch if: You want it is particularly useful for legacy systems with high maintenance costs, security vulnerabilities, or scalability limitations that hinder business growth and can live with specific tradeoffs depend on your use case.

Use Strangler Pattern if: You prioritize it is particularly useful in scenarios requiring modernization of enterprise applications, such as migrating from on-premises to cloud-based architectures or updating outdated technology stacks, as it allows for incremental changes without downtime over what Rewriting From Scratch offers.

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The Bottom Line
Rewriting From Scratch wins

Developers should consider rewriting from scratch when the current codebase is so brittle, poorly documented, or technologically obsolete that incremental improvements are impractical or too costly

Disagree with our pick? nice@nicepick.dev