Scaled Agile for Legacy (SAFe): Integrating Visual Discovery into Big Room Planning

Big Room Planning is where legacy modernization projects go to die. You enter the two-day PI Planning session with a vision for a "modernized customer portal," only to realize by lunch on Day 1 that nobody actually knows how the legacy COBOL-backed terminal or the 20-year-old JSP frontend handles edge-case logic for mid-term insurance endorsements. The "wall of yarn" becomes a tangled mess of dependencies, and the "Scaled Agile for Legacy (SAFe)" framework—intended to provide structure—instead highlights the massive documentation gap that exists in 67% of legacy systems.

The problem isn't the framework; it's the input. You are trying to plan a 10-week Program Increment (PI) using tribal knowledge and "best guesses" for systems that carry a portion of the $3.6 trillion global technical debt. To succeed, enterprise architects must shift from manual discovery to Visual Discovery.

TL;DR: Traditional PI Planning fails in legacy environments because of undocumented dependencies. By integrating Replay into the SAFe workflow, teams can use visual reverse engineering to convert recordings of legacy UIs into documented React code and architectural "Flows." This reduces discovery time from 40 hours per screen to just 4 hours, ensuring that Big Room Planning is based on technical reality rather than historical assumptions.

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The Legacy Bottleneck in Scaled Agile#

When applying SAFe to modern greenfield development, the "Features" and "Enablers" are relatively straightforward. However, in a scaled agile legacy safe environment, the "Enabler" is often a black box. Industry experts recommend that at least 30% of a PI's capacity be dedicated to architectural runway, but for legacy systems, that runway is often blocked by "The Discovery Tax."

According to Replay’s analysis, 70% of legacy rewrites fail or exceed their timeline because the discovery phase is treated as a one-time event rather than a continuous, automated process. When your Agile Release Train (ART) hits a legacy dependency that wasn't mapped during Big Room Planning, the sprint velocity doesn't just slow down—it grinds to a halt.

Visual Discovery is the process of using automated tools to record, analyze, and document existing system behaviors to create a high-fidelity blueprint for modernization.

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Integrating Visual Discovery into the SAFe Lifecycle#

To make scaled agile legacy safe actually work, you need to inject high-fidelity data into the "Pre-PI Planning" and "Innovation and Planning (IP)" iterations. This is where Replay transforms the workflow. Instead of having business analysts write 50-page requirements documents that developers won't read, you record the actual legacy workflows.

The Comparison: Traditional vs. Visual Discovery-Led SAFe#

Video-to-code is the process of capturing user interactions within a legacy application and automatically generating documented, functional React components and architectural diagrams that represent the underlying logic.

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How Replay Powers the "Architectural Runway"#

In a scaled agile legacy safe model, the System Architect is responsible for the architectural runway. Without a tool like Replay, this architect is often a bottleneck. By using the Replay "Library" (Design System) and "Flows" (Architecture) features, the architect can provide the ART with a "Source of Truth" before the first sprint begins.

Step 1: Capturing the "As-Is" State#

Before the Big Room Planning event, Product Owners and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) record their daily workflows using Replay. This captures every edge case, validation rule, and hidden UI state that has been buried in the legacy code for decades.

Step 2: Generating the "To-Be" Components#

Replay's AI Automation Suite takes these recordings and performs visual reverse engineering. It doesn't just take a screenshot; it understands the hierarchy of the UI. It generates clean, modular React code that mirrors the legacy functionality but follows modern design patterns.

Example: Legacy UI State Mapping to React Props When Replay analyzes a legacy insurance claim form, it might generate a TypeScript interface that captures the complex conditional logic previously hidden in a

copybook or a spaghetti mess.

typescript
// Generated by Replay Visual Reverse Engineering
// Source: Legacy ClaimPortal v4.2 - "Policy Endorsement Workflow"

interface LegacyPolicyFormProps {
  policyType: 'AUTO' | 'HOME' | 'UMBRELLA';
  effectiveDate: Date;
  isMidTermAdjustment: boolean;
  // Replay identified this hidden state from a legacy 'hidden-field' toggle
  requiresManualUnderwriting: boolean; 
  onValidationSuccess: (data: PolicyPayload) => void;
  onValidationError: (error: string) => void;
}

const ModernizedPolicyForm: React.FC<LegacyPolicyFormProps> = ({
  policyType,
  effectiveDate,
  isMidTermAdjustment,
  requiresManualUnderwriting,
}) => {
  // Logic extracted from Replay "Flows" analysis
  const canSelfService = !isMidTermAdjustment || policyType === 'AUTO';

  return (
    <div className="p-6 bg-white rounded-lg shadow-md">
      <h2 className="text-xl font-bold">Policy Adjustment</h2>
      {requiresManualUnderwriting && (
        <Alert type="warning">This change requires underwriter approval.</Alert>
      )}
      {/* Modern UI components mapped to legacy data structures */}
      <PolicyDatePicker defaultValue={effectiveDate} disabled={!canSelfService} />
      <ActionButtons isLocked={!canSelfService} />
    </div>
  );
};

This code isn't just a placeholder; it's a functional bridge. For more on how this integrates into your dev stack, see our guide on Modernizing Legacy UIs with React.

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Big Room Planning: From Post-it Notes to Functional Blueprints#

During the two days of PI Planning, teams usually struggle with "Enabler Stories." In a scaled agile legacy safe environment, an Enabler Story might be "Understand the data mapping for the legacy Billing Module." This is a vague, high-risk story that often spills over into multiple sprints.

With Replay, that Enabler Story is replaced by a Blueprint.

Visual Dependency Mapping#

Replay "Flows" allow the ART to see exactly how data moves through the legacy system. If Team A is modernizing the "Login" and Team B is modernizing the "Dashboard," they can use Replay to see the exact state transition between those two screens.

According to Replay's analysis, teams that use visual blueprints during PI Planning reduce their "dependency-related blockers" by 55% in the first three sprints.

Code Block: Mapping Legacy API Responses#

One of the hardest parts of legacy SAFe is the "Contract" between the old backend and the new frontend. Replay helps define these contracts by inspecting the network traffic captured during the recording phase.

typescript
/**
 * Replay Blueprint: API Contract for Legacy Billing Service
 * This interface was reverse-engineered from the 'BillPay_v2.dll' trace.
 */

export interface LegacyBillingResponse {
  TRANS_ID: string; // Mapped to 'transactionId'
  AMT_DUE: number;  // Mapped to 'amountDue'
  PYMT_STAT: 'P' | 'U' | 'F'; // Pending, Unpaid, Failed
  LAST_CHG_DT: string; // ISO format extracted from legacy timestamp
}

export const transformLegacyBilling = (data: LegacyBillingResponse) => {
  return {
    id: data.TRANS_ID,
    balance: data.AMT_DUE,
    status: data.PYMT_STAT === 'P' ? 'pending' : 'processed',
    lastUpdated: new Date(data.LAST_CHG_DT).toLocaleDateString(),
  };
};

By providing these transformation utilities during PI Planning, the "System Team" can ensure that all feature teams are working against the same data definitions.

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Why "Modernize Without Rewriting" is the Secret to SAFe Success#

The average enterprise rewrite takes 18 months. In a SAFe environment, that is 6-9 Program Increments. Most organizations lose stakeholder buy-in by PI 3 because they haven't delivered "Business Value"—they've only delivered "Infrastructure."

Replay allows for a strangler pattern approach that fits perfectly into the SAFe "Iterative Development" core value. Instead of a "Big Bang" rewrite, you use the Replay Library to build a modern Design System that wraps around legacy functionality.

1. •PI 1: Record the most critical workflows. Generate the "Library" of modern components.
2. •PI 2: Replace the highest-friction screens with Replay-generated React components while keeping the legacy backend.
3. •PI 3: Use the "Flows" documentation to begin the backend migration.

This approach addresses the $3.6 trillion technical debt problem by tackling it one component at a time, rather than trying to boil the ocean. For a deeper dive into this strategy, check out our article on The Strangler Pattern in Enterprise Modernization.

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Security and Compliance in Regulated SAFe#

For industries like Financial Services, Healthcare, and Government, "Scaled Agile" must also be "Secure Agile." You cannot simply record user screens if they contain PII (Personally Identifiable Information) or PHI (Protected Health Information).

Replay is built for these regulated environments. The platform is:

• •SOC2 Type II Compliant
• •HIPAA-Ready
• •On-Premise Available: For organizations that cannot use the cloud, Replay can be deployed within your own VPC.
• •PII Masking: Automated redaction of sensitive data during the recording and analysis phase.

In a scaled agile legacy safe environment, this means the "Compliance" and "Security" stakeholders (who often attend Big Room Planning) can sign off on the modernization toolchain without hesitation.

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Measuring the ROI of Visual Discovery in SAFe#

To justify the shift to a visual discovery-led SAFe model, you need metrics. The standard SAFe metrics (Velocity, Predictability, Cycle Time) are a good start, but they don't capture the "Legacy Tax."

The "Legacy Modernization Scorecard"#

Industry experts recommend using these metrics to secure "Epic" funding from the Lean Portfolio Management (LPM) team. When you can prove that you’ve reduced the discovery time from 40 hours per screen to 4 hours, the business case for Replay becomes undeniable.

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Conclusion: Stop Planning in the Dark#

The complexity of legacy systems is the single greatest threat to the success of Scaled Agile. If your Big Room Planning involves more "I don't know" than "Here is the plan," you are not doing SAFe; you are doing "Hope-Based Development."

By integrating Visual Discovery and video-to-code automation into your scaled agile legacy safe workflow, you provide your teams with the clarity they need to execute. You move from 18-month timelines to delivering value in weeks. You turn your legacy system from a liability into a documented, modular asset.

Don't let your next PI Planning session be another exercise in frustration. Use Replay to see what you're building, understand what you're replacing, and accelerate your modernization journey.

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Frequently Asked Questions#

How does Replay handle legacy systems with no APIs?#

Replay is platform-agnostic because it works at the UI level. By recording the DOM (Document Object Model) and network interactions of a legacy web app, or using visual analysis for terminal-based systems, Replay can reconstruct the logic and data structures even if there is no underlying API documentation. This is critical for scaled agile legacy safe projects where the backend is a "black box."

Can Replay generate code for frameworks other than React?#

While Replay is optimized for generating high-quality React components and TypeScript models—as React is the industry standard for enterprise modernization—the underlying "Blueprints" and "Flows" are framework-agnostic. The architectural data can be used to inform development in Vue, Angular, or even modern mobile frameworks.

How does Visual Discovery fit into the SAFe "Definition of Done"?#

In a modernized SAFe workflow, the "Definition of Done" for an architectural enabler includes a Replay Flow and a set of documented components in the Replay Library. This ensures that when a feature team picks up a story, they aren't starting from scratch; they are building on top of a verified, visual blueprint of the legacy system.

Does Replay replace the need for Business Analysts?#

No. Replay empowers Business Analysts (BAs) by automating the tedious parts of their job—like manual screen-scraping and field mapping. BAs use Replay to "verify" their requirements against actual system behavior, ensuring that the stories they bring to Big Room Planning are technically accurate and feasible.

Is Replay suitable for mainframe-to-cloud migrations?#

Yes. While the target is often the cloud, the biggest hurdle is understanding the "As-Is" state of the mainframe UI (like green screens). Replay’s AI Automation Suite can translate these legacy interactions into modern user flows, providing the map for the migration to the cloud.

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Ready to modernize without rewriting? Book a pilot with Replay