Updated October 25, 2026
· ~1 min read
Modernization programs fail when one strategy is applied to everything. Refactoring an estate of 300 applications takes a decade; rehosting all of them moves the problems along with the servers. The useful question is which strategy fits each application, based on how much it is worth and how often it changes.
AWS's seven Rs are the standard vocabulary. They are also a decision aid, because the cheapest options (retire and retain) are on the list and are usually underused.
Question 1 of 3
Has anyone used it in the last 90 days?
**Retire** anything unused. In most estates this is 10–20% of applications and the fastest saving there is. **Rehost or relocate** stable applications that rarely change, to get off old infrastructure quickly. **Replatform** where a managed service removes real work: self-managed SQL Server to RDS, Windows to Linux containers, cron boxes to scheduled tasks. **Refactor** the applications that change most often and matter most. That is where speed of delivery pays back. **Repurchase** commodity functions (email, HR, CRM) as SaaS. No strategy is the right one for a whole estate. A typical outcome is a mix, decided application by application.
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As of October 25, 2026. Provided as is, for general information, and accurate to the best of our knowledge on the date shown. Not legal, compliance, tax, financial or other professional advice. Prices, limits and vendor services change; check current vendor documentation before relying on anything here. Terms of use.