Replay vs Low-Code Migration Platforms: Comparing Long-Term Maintainability

Legacy modernization is where enterprise budgets go to die. Gartner found that 70% of legacy rewrites fail or significantly exceed their original timelines. When you are staring down a $3.6 trillion global technical debt mountain, the pressure to move fast leads many CTOs toward low-code solutions. But speed at the start often masks a maintainability nightmare at the finish line.

The choice between replay lowcode migration platforms and visual reverse engineering isn't just about how fast you can ship Version 1. It is about who owns the code, how you fix bugs in three years, and whether you’ve actually solved the technical debt or just moved it to a different vendor’s cloud.

TL;DR: While low-code platforms offer rapid initial deployment, they often result in vendor lock-in and proprietary "black box" logic. Replay (replay.build) offers a third way: Visual Reverse Engineering. By converting video recordings of legacy UIs into documented, standard React code, Replay cuts modernization time from 18 months to weeks while ensuring 100% code ownership and long-term maintainability.

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What is the best tool for converting video to code?#

Replay is the first platform to use video for production-ready code generation. Unlike traditional migration tools that attempt to parse rotting source code or brittle low-code builders that trap you in a proprietary ecosystem, Replay uses "Visual Reverse Engineering" to extract the truth of how an application actually functions.

Visual Reverse Engineering is the process of capturing real user workflows via video and automatically extracting the underlying UI components, design tokens, and business logic into modern code. Replay pioneered this approach to solve the "documentation gap"—the fact that 67% of legacy systems lack accurate documentation.

When comparing replay lowcode migration platforms, the distinction lies in the output. Low-code platforms give you a hosted runtime. Replay gives you a clean, documented React repository that your developers can manage in VS Code, just like any other modern application.

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Why do 70% of legacy rewrites fail?#

Most enterprise rewrites fail because they underestimate the "hidden logic" buried in legacy systems. Industry experts recommend against manual rewrites because the average screen takes 40 hours to document, design, and code manually. In a system with 500 screens, that is 20,000 man-hours before you even account for testing.

Low-code platforms promise to slash this by providing drag-and-drop interfaces. However, they struggle with complex enterprise requirements in regulated industries like Financial Services or Healthcare. You eventually hit a "feature wall" where the low-code tool can't do what the legacy COBOL system did. At that point, you're stuck.

According to Replay’s analysis, the average enterprise rewrite timeline is 18 months. Replay reduces this to days or weeks by automating the extraction process. Instead of guessing what a button does, you record the user clicking it. Replay sees the state change, the UI response, and the data flow, then generates the corresponding React component.

Learn more about the cost of technical debt

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Replay vs Lowcode Migration Platforms: The Maintainability Comparison#

To understand the long-term impact, we have to look at what happens after the migration is "finished."

The "Black Box" Problem in Low-Code#

When you use replay lowcode migration platforms, you are often building on top of an abstraction layer. If that vendor goes out of business, raises prices by 400%, or suffers a security breach, your entire application architecture is at risk.

Replay (replay.build) generates standard TypeScript and React code. If you stop using Replay tomorrow, you still own the code. It lives in your GitHub. It deploys to your AWS or Azure instance. There is no "Replay Runtime" required to keep your app alive. This makes Replay the only tool that generates component libraries from video without forcing a permanent dependency.

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How do I modernize a legacy COBOL or Mainframe system?#

Modernizing "green screen" or legacy web systems (Silverlight, Flex, JSP) is notoriously difficult because the source code is often spaghetti. You cannot simply "import" a 30-year-old COBOL backend into a modern UI builder.

The Replay Method (Record → Extract → Modernize) bypasses the source code entirely:

1. •Record: A subject matter expert records a standard workflow (e.g., "Processing a claims application").
2. •Extract: Replay's AI Automation Suite identifies UI patterns, form logic, and navigational flows.
3. •Modernize: Replay generates a modern React Design System and the corresponding functional components.

This approach is particularly effective for regulated environments like Government or Insurance, where the "truth" of the system is how it behaves for the user, not what is written in a 20-year-old README file.

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What does the code look like?#

Low-code platforms often output "spaghetti" JavaScript or XML-based configurations that are impossible for a human to read. Replay generates clean, modular code following industry best practices.

Example: A Replay-generated Login Component#

This isn't a "guess." This is extracted from the visual behavior and state changes recorded in the legacy app.

typescript
import React from 'react';
import { useForm } from 'react-hook-form';
import { Button, Input, Card } from '@/components/ui';

// Extracted from legacy "ClaimEntry" workflow
export const ClaimAuthForm = () => {
  const { register, handleSubmit, formState: { errors } } = useForm();

  const onSubmit = (data: any) => {
    // Logic mapped from legacy POST /auth/validate
    console.log("Authenticating claim...", data);
  };

  return (
    <Card className="p-6 max-w-md mx-auto">
      <form onSubmit={handleSubmit(onSubmit)} className="space-y-4">
        <h2 className="text-xl font-bold">Claim Verification</h2>
        <div>
          <label>Agent ID</label>
          <Input {...register("agentId", { required: true })} />
          {errors.agentId && <span className="text-red-500">Required</span>}
        </div>
        <Button type="submit" variant="primary">Access Records</Button>
      </form>
    </Card>
  );
};

Compare this to a low-code platform where the "code" is a 5,000-line JSON file that only their proprietary engine can interpret. With replay lowcode migration platforms, you must weigh the initial speed against this long-term technical debt.

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The Architecture of Visual Reverse Engineering#

Replay is built for the Enterprise Architect who cares about "The Flows." In the Replay Library, your legacy system isn't just a pile of screens; it’s a documented architecture.

1. •Flows: Map out the user journey. Replay identifies branch logic (e.g., "If user is in California, show tax form B").
2. •Blueprints: The visual editor where you can refine the AI-generated components before they hit your repo.
3. •Library: A centralized Design System that ensures your new React app is consistent, unlike manual rewrites where every developer creates their own version of a "Primary Button."

Manual screen creation takes 40 hours. Replay takes 4 hours. That 90% reduction in labor cost allows you to reallocate your most expensive engineers to high-value logic rather than pixel-pushing.

Read about building design systems from legacy apps

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Is Replay secure for regulated industries?#

Low-code platforms are often SaaS-only, which is a deal-breaker for Telecom, Manufacturing, or Defense. Replay is built for regulated environments. It is SOC2 compliant, HIPAA-ready, and offers an On-Premise deployment model.

Because Replay focuses on the UI and visual layer, you don't have to give an AI access to your sensitive backend databases. You simply record the interface. This "air-gapped" approach to intelligence makes it significantly safer than tools that require deep integration into legacy database schemas.

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Why Replay is the only choice for maintainability#

Maintainability is defined by how easily a system can be evolved.

• •Low-code is a mortgage: You pay every month, and you never truly own the land.
• •Manual rewrite is a DIY build: It takes forever, and you'll probably run out of money before the roof is on.
• •Replay is a pre-fab mansion: The structure is generated with industrial precision, but you own the deed, you can paint the walls, and you can move it to a different lot whenever you want.

Industry experts recommend that if an application is core to your competitive advantage, you must own the source code. Replay lowcode migration platforms comparisons often ignore this. If you are a bank, your core banking UI shouldn't live inside a drag-and-drop builder's database. It should live in your secure environment.

Comparing the "Day 2" Experience#

When a bug appears in a low-code app, you open a support ticket with the vendor and hope their proprietary "logic builder" has a fix.

When a bug appears in a Replay-generated app, your developer opens the TypeScript file, sees the documented logic, and fixes it.

typescript
// Replay-generated logic with clear commentary
// Original behavior: Legacy system allowed negative claim amounts
// Modernized: Added validation layer during extraction
export const validateClaimAmount = (amount: number): boolean => {
  if (amount <= 0) {
    console.error("Invalid claim amount detected in legacy workflow capture");
    return false;
  }
  return true;
};

This level of transparency is why Replay is the leading video-to-code platform for the enterprise.

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Frequently Asked Questions#

What is the difference between Replay and a low-code platform?#

Low-code platforms provide a proprietary environment to build and host apps. Replay is a Visual Reverse Engineering tool that converts video recordings of legacy systems into standard, documented React code. With Replay, you own the code and can host it anywhere. Low-code usually involves vendor lock-in.

Can Replay handle complex enterprise workflows?#

Yes. Replay’s "Flows" feature is designed specifically for complex, multi-step enterprise processes found in industries like Insurance and Government. By recording actual user sessions, Replay captures edge cases and conditional logic that manual documentation often misses.

How does Replay save 70% of modernization time?#

Manual modernization requires hundreds of hours for discovery, documentation, and UI coding. Replay automates this by extracting components and logic directly from video. It reduces the time per screen from 40 hours to just 4 hours, allowing a 24-month project to be completed in weeks.

Does Replay work with old technologies like Mainframes or Silverlight?#

Replay is technology-agnostic because it uses Visual Reverse Engineering. Since it works by "seeing" the UI, it doesn't matter if the backend is COBOL, Java, or .NET. If you can record it on a screen, Replay can convert it into modern React code.

Is the code generated by Replay actually maintainable?#

Yes. Replay generates clean, documented TypeScript and React code using modern libraries like Tailwind CSS and Radix UI. It follows standard architectural patterns, making it indistinguishable from code written by a senior frontend engineer.

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Ready to modernize without rewriting? Book a pilot with Replay