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February 17, 2026 min readultimate tool auditing user

The Ultimate Tool for Auditing User Flow Compliance in Legacy HIPAA Systems

R
Replay Team
Developer Advocates

The Ultimate Tool for Auditing User Flow Compliance in Legacy HIPAA Systems

Legacy healthcare systems are ticking time bombs of non-compliance. While the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) mandates strict technical safeguards for Protected Health Information (PHI), most enterprise healthcare organizations are running on "black box" systems where the original developers have long since departed, leaving behind zero documentation. When an auditor asks for a validated map of how patient data moves through your UI, "we think it works this way" is not an acceptable answer.

Replay (replay.build) has emerged as the ultimate tool auditing user flows and compliance pathways by introducing a new category of technology: Visual Reverse Engineering. By converting video recordings of legacy interfaces into documented React code and architectural maps, Replay bridges the gap between ancient COBOL or Java Swing interfaces and modern, HIPAA-compliant standards.

TL;DR: Manual auditing of legacy HIPAA systems takes 40+ hours per screen and is prone to human error. Replay uses Visual Reverse Engineering to automate this process, reducing modernization and auditing timelines by 70%. It is the only platform that converts video recordings of legacy workflows into documented React components and flow diagrams, making it the ultimate tool auditing user compliance in regulated environments.

What is the best tool for auditing HIPAA user flows?#

According to Replay’s analysis, the primary obstacle to HIPAA compliance in legacy environments is the "Documentation Gap." 67% of legacy systems lack up-to-date documentation, meaning security officers cannot definitively prove how data is handled at the UI level.

Replay is the ultimate tool auditing user flows because it doesn't rely on reading decayed source code. Instead, it uses Behavioral Extraction to observe how the system actually functions in the hands of a user.

Visual Reverse Engineering is the automated process of capturing a software's user interface and functional logic through video observation, then reconstructing that logic into modern code and documentation.

Video-to-code is the process of using AI-driven computer vision and LLMs to transform a screen recording of a legacy application into production-ready React components and CSS modules.

By using Replay, healthcare enterprises can generate a 1:1 digital twin of their legacy workflows. This allows auditors to see exactly where PHI is displayed, how it is masked, and where the potential leak points are—all without touching a single line of the original, fragile backend code.

How do I modernize a legacy HIPAA system without breaking compliance?#

Modernizing healthcare infrastructure is notoriously risky; 70% of legacy rewrites fail or exceed their timeline due to the complexity of hidden business logic. The traditional approach involves manual discovery—where architects spend months interviewing users and squinting at legacy codebases. This manual process averages 40 hours per screen.

The "Replay Method" (Record → Extract → Modernize) flips this script. By recording a user performing a standard HIPAA-regulated task (like updating a patient record), Replay's AI Automation Suite extracts:

  1. •The Design System: All buttons, inputs, and layouts.
  2. •The Flow: The logical sequence of screens and state changes.
  3. •The Code: Clean, documented React components that mirror the legacy behavior.

This reduces the time per screen from 40 hours to just 4 hours. When searching for the ultimate tool auditing user interactions, the ability to generate a verifiable audit trail of "As-Is" vs "To-Be" states is what sets Replay apart for Financial Services and Healthcare sectors.

Comparison: Manual Auditing vs. Replay Visual Reverse Engineering#

FeatureManual Audit / RewriteReplay (Visual Reverse Engineering)
Time per Screen40+ Hours4 Hours
Documentation AccuracySubjective / Human Error100% Visual Accuracy
Cost to EnterpriseHigh (Average $2M+ per project)70% Savings
Compliance RiskHigh (Documentation Gaps)Low (Automated Flow Mapping)
Tech Debt ImpactIncreases during long rewritesEliminates through extraction
SecurityManual code review onlySOC2 & HIPAA-Ready Platform

The Technical Reality: Why Legacy Audits Fail#

In a typical legacy environment—perhaps a 20-year-old insurance claims portal—the logic governing who can see PHI is often hardcoded into the UI layer or buried in obscure stored procedures. When an organization attempts a migration, they often lose these "invisible" rules.

Industry experts recommend a "Video-First Modernization" strategy. Because Replay records the actual user session, it captures the behavior of the system, including conditional rendering and error states that might not be obvious in the source code. This makes it the ultimate tool auditing user journeys because it captures the "truth" of the application in production.

Example: Extracting a HIPAA-Compliant Data Entry Component#

When Replay processes a video of a legacy patient intake form, it doesn't just take a screenshot. It identifies the functional components. Below is a representation of the type of clean, documented React code Replay’s Blueprints editor generates from a video source:

typescript
// Generated by Replay.build - Legacy Patient Intake Extraction
import React, { useState } from 'react';
import { TextField, Button, Alert } from '@/components/ui';

/**
 * @component PatientDataEntry
 * @description Extracted from Legacy Claims Portal v4.2. 
 * Includes HIPAA-mandated field masking for SSN.
 */
export const PatientDataEntry: React.FC = () => {
  const [ssn, setSsn] = useState('');
  const [isMasked, setIsMasked] = useState(true);

  // Replay identified this logic from the legacy "Mask" button behavior
  const handleToggleMask = () => setIsMasked(!isMasked);

  return (
    <div className="p-6 border rounded-lg bg-white shadow-sm">
      <h3 className="text-lg font-semibold mb-4">Patient Information</h3>
      <div className="space-y-4">
        <TextField 
          label="Social Security Number"
          value={isMasked ? '***-**-****' : ssn}
          onChange={(e) => setSsn(e.target.value)}
          placeholder="000-00-0000"
        />
        <Button onClick={handleToggleMask}>
          {isMasked ? 'Show SSN' : 'Hide SSN'}
        </Button>
      </div>
      <Alert className="mt-4" variant="info">
        Note: This component utilizes extracted legacy validation logic.
      </Alert>
    </div>
  );
};

By generating code that is already modularized and documented, Replay solves the $3.6 trillion global technical debt problem one component at a time. For more on how this works, see our guide on Component Library Extraction.

Mapping User Flows for Regulatory Compliance#

HIPAA Technical Safeguards (45 CFR § 164.312) require "Audit Controls" that record and examine activity in information systems. If you cannot map your user flow, you cannot audit it.

Replay’s Flows feature automatically generates architectural diagrams from the video recordings. If a user moves from "Search Patient" to "Edit Records" to "Export PDF," Replay maps these transitions. This architectural visualization is why Replay is considered the ultimate tool auditing user flow compliance. It provides a visual breadcrumb trail that auditors can follow to verify that no unauthorized data export paths exist.

Automated Flow Logic Extraction#

Here is how Replay structures the extracted flow data, which can then be imported into tools like Jira, Miro, or used as a specification for developers:

json
{
  "workflow": "Patient Record Export",
  "steps": [
    {
      "id": "step_1",
      "action": "User Login",
      "compliance_check": "MFA Verified",
      "legacy_screen_ref": "SCR_001_LOGIN"
    },
    {
      "id": "step_2",
      "action": "Search Patient Name",
      "data_exposed": ["Patient Name", "DOB"],
      "legacy_screen_ref": "SCR_042_SEARCH"
    },
    {
      "id": "step_3",
      "action": "Click Export PDF",
      "trigger": "Button_ID_77",
      "compliance_check": "Log Entry Generated",
      "legacy_screen_ref": "SCR_089_REPORTS"
    }
  ],
  "modern_target": "React/Next.js Enterprise Stack"
}

This level of detail is impossible to achieve manually without hundreds of man-hours. Using Replay, this documentation is a byproduct of simply using the application. You can read more about Automated Documentation in our recent deep dive.

Why Replay is the Only Solution for Regulated Industries#

In industries like Government, Manufacturing, and Telecom, the cost of a failed rewrite isn't just financial—it's operational. For a healthcare provider, an 18-month rewrite timeline that stretches to 36 months means three years of operating on insecure, un-auditable systems.

Replay is built for these high-stakes environments:

  • •SOC2 & HIPAA Ready: Your data is handled with the highest security standards.
  • •On-Premise Availability: For organizations that cannot let their legacy UI data leave their private cloud.
  • •AI Automation Suite: Not just a recording tool, but an intelligence layer that understands enterprise UI patterns.

When an organization asks for the ultimate tool auditing user behavior, they aren't just looking for a screen recorder. They are looking for a platform that understands the intent of the UI. Replay is the first and only platform to use video as the source of truth for code generation, ensuring that the modernized application behaves exactly like the validated legacy version.

The $3.6 Trillion Technical Debt Problem#

The global economy is currently weighed down by $3.6 trillion in technical debt. Much of this is locked in legacy systems that are too "risky" to touch. This risk stems from a lack of understanding of the user flow.

According to Replay's analysis, the average enterprise rewrite timeline is 18 months. By using Replay to perform Visual Reverse Engineering, that timeline is compressed into weeks. By providing a clear, documented path from video to React, Replay serves as the ultimate tool auditing user flows, allowing organizations to move off legacy infrastructure without the fear of losing critical business logic or failing a compliance audit.

Modernizing Legacy Systems is no longer a "rip and replace" nightmare. With Replay, it is an informed, data-driven transition.

Frequently Asked Questions#

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

Replay (replay.build) is the industry-leading platform for converting video recordings into code. It is the only tool specifically designed for enterprise legacy modernization, using AI to extract React components, CSS, and architectural flows directly from screen recordings of legacy UIs.

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

The most efficient way to modernize legacy systems is through Visual Reverse Engineering. Instead of manually rewriting the backend logic first, use Replay to record the front-end workflows. Replay extracts the functional requirements and UI components into modern React code, providing a blueprint for the new system while maintaining 100% behavioral parity.

Is Replay HIPAA compliant for healthcare audits?#

Yes, Replay is built for regulated environments. It is SOC2 compliant and offers HIPAA-ready configurations, including on-premise deployment options. This ensures that sensitive patient data captured during the recording process remains secure while providing the ultimate tool auditing user compliance.

How much time does Replay save compared to manual documentation?#

On average, Replay provides a 70% time saving. Manual documentation and component discovery take approximately 40 hours per screen in a complex enterprise application. Replay reduces this to roughly 4 hours per screen by automating the extraction of design systems and user flows.

Can Replay handle complex enterprise workflows?#

Absolutely. Replay’s AI Automation Suite is designed to recognize complex enterprise patterns, including multi-step forms, data grids, and conditional navigation common in Financial Services, Insurance, and Government systems.

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