Decommission legacy systems and still open the records inside them
You already know why the old system is still running.
It's heavily customized, someone paid a lot for it, three processes still depend on it. Nobody wants to be the person who switched it off and lost 15 years of records. Those are all good reasons, and they're why decommissioning projects keep sliding down the priority list.
But leaving the system running has its own costs: licenses, infrastructure, support contracts and admin time just to keep old files reachable. The longer it runs, the greater the risk: hardware ages, patches stop, and file formats become unreadable.
The real question isn't whether to decommission, it's what happens to the records once the system is gone.
In reality, most decommissioning solves only half the problem.
Plenty of tools will move your data out of a legacy system and keep it retrievable - for short retention periods, that's often enough.
Long-term records are different, though. When you have to keep something for 10, 20 or 50 years, getting the file back isn't enough. You need it to still open, and you need to prove it hasn't changed. A document stored in 2010 isn't much use in 2040 if nothing can open it and nobody can show it's authentic.
That's the gap between archiving and preservation.
Switch it off, and still open it in 20 years
Preservica keeps long-term records usable and trustworthy for as long as you need them, long after the source system is gone. Active Digital Preservation™ works continuously in the background:
- Keeps files readable. Preservica migrates obsolete formats to current, readable versions, and can bring previously unreadable records back into use.
- Proves files haven't changed. Automated fixity checks confirm integrity over time, backed by full audit trails.
- Keeps the context. Source, file and custom metadata move with the records, so meaning isn't lost with the system.
- Makes records findable. Standardized metadata and full-text search replace dark archives that only one person knew how to navigate.
With Preserve365®, all of this happens inside Microsoft 365. It underlines your existing Microsoft investment rather than replacing it.
What it means for IT
- Retire the system for good. No more running a platform, or old software, just to open archived files.
- Cut the hidden costs. Stop paying for legacy infrastructure, licenses and support, and take long-term content off expensive operational storage.
- Shrink the attack surface. End-of-life systems that no longer get patched come out of the estate.
- Automate at scale. Power Automate workflows and Microsoft 365 retention labels drive transfer and disposition, and a SharePoint connector on the Microsoft Power Platform moves content in bulk.
- Stay inside your security model. Preserve365 is Azure-hosted, with encryption at rest and in transit, and access controls based on Microsoft 365 permissions.
- Get a cleaner estate for AI. Governed, authoritative records give Copilot and analytics something they can trust.
What it means for records managers
- Keep retention defensible. Your obligations outlast any single platform, and your compliance no longer depends on one.
- Prove authenticity. Fixity checks and audit trails show chain of custody whenever you're asked.
- Keep records usable, not just stored. Preserve365 renders hundreds of formats directly in SharePoint, including documents, images, email, audio-visual and 3D.
- Work where your teams already are. Records stay accessible inside Microsoft 365, not locked in a separate archive only IT can open.
- Respond faster. Claims, audits and information requests become a search, not a restore project.
Actions from organizations with the most to lose:
Bank of England.
The Bank moved 1 million records, spanning more than 80 file formats, out of its legacy EDRMS. That system didn't monitor format obsolescence, and the records had to stay readable ahead of a publicly committed 20-year release timeline. “We needed a modern and efficient platform that would ensure the integrity, accessibility and discoverability of critical Bank records permanently.” - Senior Archivist, Bank of England
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC).
DHSC used Preserve365 to decommission 58,000,000 files over 613 file collections in Lotus Notes. It stayed compliant with public information mandates, achieved major cost and risk savings, and can now search and render records instantly.
A leading US multinational engineering firm.
The firm consolidated records from 11 business units and preserved more than 15 years of project data in a format-safe, auditable and legally defensible state.
These organizations have to keep records for decades, or permanently. When the records have to last, this is the approach they chose.
Five questions to ask any decommissioning partner:
- Will these files still open in 20 years, and how do you make sure of it?
- Do you migrate obsolete formats, or just store them?
- How do you prove a record hasn't changed since it left the source system?
- Do our Microsoft 365 retention labels and metadata come across?
- Can our teams reach archived records without going through IT?
Frequently asked questions about decommissioning
What's the difference between application retirement and digital preservation?
Application retirement moves data out of a legacy system so you can switch the system off and still retrieve what you need. Digital preservation goes further and keeps those files readable and provably unchanged for decades. Retirement solves the system problem. Preservation solves the records problem.
What happens to records after a legacy system is switched off?
It depends on where they go. In a standard archive, records are stored as they were, in whatever format the old system used. In a digital preservation archive, formats are monitored and migrated as they age, integrity is checked automatically, and the records stay usable long after the source system is gone.
Do I need to keep old software running to open archived files?
Not if the files are preserved properly. Preservica migrates obsolete formats to current, readable versions and renders hundreds of formats directly in SharePoint. You can retire the application and the old software you kept only to open its files.
How long do archived files need to stay readable?
As long as your retention obligations last. That's often 7–10 years for general business records, and much longer for construction projects, financial institutions and public bodies. Some records are permanent. The longer the retention period, the more likely it is that a file format will become obsolete before the retention ends.
Can I decommission a system without losing metadata?
Yes. Preserve365 keeps source, file and custom metadata with each record, and works with Microsoft 365 retention labels. The context that explains what a record is and why it matters moves with it.
How do I prove a record hasn't changed since it left the old system?
Automated fixity checks confirm each file's integrity over time, and a full audit trail records every action taken on it. When an auditor, regulator or court asks, you have the evidence rather than an assurance.
Does decommissioning into Preserve365 mean replacing our Microsoft 365 setup?
No. Preserve365 works inside Microsoft 365, using SharePoint, retention labels and Power Automate. It adds long-term preservation to the investment you've already made, rather than replacing it.
Where to start
Decommissioning starts with classification: deciding what to migrate, what to keep long-term, and which redundant, obsolete and trivial (ROT) content you can defensibly delete. Once you know which records have to last, give them a home built to keep them usable.
