Stuck on an old Laravel version, or inherited a codebase nobody understands?
We upgrade old Laravel apps safely and take over codebases from previous developers.
Senior Laravel engineers for version upgrades, codebase takeovers, security audits, and code reviews. We take over the application, or we work alongside your team and leave ownership with you. Your choice.
It starts with a free 30-minute call: no obligation, no pitch deck. If you want a written audit before committing, it can be a fixed-scope paid discovery phase. You own the report, and we credit its cost toward the project if we continue.
Who this is for
Teams on an old or unsupported Laravel version who want to get current without breaking what works.
Owners whose developer or agency has moved on and left a Laravel application the business still depends on.
Product owners whose project is stuck, half-finished, or was delivered in a state they can’t maintain.
In-house teams who want a senior second opinion: an architecture review, a code review, or a security audit, without handing over the project.
The problems we usually find
With old Laravel apps:
Unsupported versions.
Laravel or PHP versions that no longer get security fixes, so every month on them adds risk.
Outdated and abandoned dependencies.
Packages that block the next upgrade, and local modifications an upgrade might overwrite.
No tests.
Nobody can tell whether an upgrade broke something until a customer does.
Fear of the big-bang upgrade.
The upgrade keeps getting postponed because nobody wants to change everything at once.
With inherited codebases:
Undocumented business rules.
A rounding rule on an invoice, an email triggered by a status change, or a report that excludes certain records can look odd and still be correct for the business.
Unclear ownership and access.
Nobody is sure who owns the repository, hosting, domain, and external services, or which former developers still have deploy keys and API tokens.
Work nobody sees on screen.
Queued jobs, scheduled tasks, webhooks, and integrations that send reminders, process files, or generate invoices, with alerts still going to a former developer’s inbox.
No safe place to test.
No staging, or a staging environment that can send real customer emails or charge real cards.
Backups nobody has restored.
A backup record does not prove the application can recover from it.
What we do
Laravel version upgrades
Laravel and PHP upgrades done safely: dependency analysis, compatibility fixes, and testing, so you stay on supported versions without a risky big-bang.
- We analyze dependencies first: the framework, PHP runtime, database, and important packages, with their support status.
- We upgrade incrementally with tests, and keep the old version running until the new one is verified.
- If you’re on an unsupported version, we bring you up to date before anything new is built.
Codebase takeovers
When the previous developer or agency is gone, we take over and stabilize the application before adding anything new. We follow the handover checklist from our guide, Taking over an existing Laravel application: what to check before adding features:
- Write down what must keep working. We read the code and talk to the people who use the application, so the workflows and permissions you cannot lose become the reference for testing.
- Keep ownership with your company. Your company controls the repository, hosting accounts, domain, and external services. Developers get individual accounts with two-factor authentication wherever supported, with the narrowest role they need.
- Close old access safely. We review deploy keys, API tokens, and other credentials a former developer could still use, and plan any rotation so live integrations keep working.
- Make staging useful and safe. Realistic test cases, non-sensitive test data, and no real emails, card charges, or live partner workflows.
- Inventory dependencies before proposing upgrades. So “upgrade everything” becomes a decision you can evaluate.
- Find the background work. Queued jobs, scheduled tasks, and integrations: what runs, what triggers it, and how a failure would be noticed.
- Test recovery. A restore test of the database and required files, so you know how recent the recovered data is and how long a restore takes.
- Start with a small change. Acceptance agreed before implementation, delivered through the real release process, and reviewed by someone other than the author.
Legacy system rewrites
Old PHP, unsupported Laravel, or a codebase nobody wants to touch. We modernize it carefully, keeping your business running while we work. A rewrite follows an assessment, never the other way round, because replacing an application means recovering its undocumented business rules as well as its visible features.
Security audits
We find and fix what hurts: exposed secrets, weak authentication, missing validation, vulnerable dependencies, and SQL injection risks. A focused audit typically takes a few days.
Code reviews and Laravel consultation
A senior pair of eyes on your codebase: pull requests, architecture, performance, and security, with actionable findings, not vague advice. Architecture reviews, technical guidance, and honest second opinions from senior engineers who have shipped and rescued dozens of Laravel applications.
Performance tuning
Slow queries, missing indexes, N+1 problems, and bloated responses. We measure first, then fix what actually matters.
What the assessment covers
You always see the findings and the estimate before we write a line of code. The assessment looks at:
1. What must keep working.
Critical workflows and permissions, from the code and from the people who use the application.
2. Ownership and access.
Who owns the accounts, and who still has access.
3. Dependencies.
Laravel, PHP, database, and package versions, their support status, and what blocks an upgrade.
4. Background work.
Queued jobs, scheduled tasks, integrations, and who monitors them.
5. Staging and recovery.
Whether changes can be tested without live side effects, and whether recovery has been tested.
6. Security.
Exposed secrets, weak authentication, missing validation, vulnerable dependencies, and SQL injection risks.
7. Prioritized findings.
Impact and effort for each, so you decide what to fix now and what to defer, including what does not need fixing.
Why work with us
Upgrades without the big-bang.
In stages, with tests, and with the old version running until the new one is verified.
Assessment before any rewrite.
We assess first and keep what works.
The work stays yours.
We take over fully, or work alongside your team and leave ownership with you. You get documented changes either way.
A team that answers for the code.
We are an official Laravel Partner, listed at laravel.com/partners, building web applications since 2014: a Serbia-led, globally distributed team with our office in Temerin, Serbia.
Support after the work.
We stay available for follow-up questions, and offer ongoing support from a few hours a month to an ongoing retainer.
Proof you can check
We rebuilt Agri4All on Laravel 12.
For Agri4All, we moved the platform off shared WordPress hosting and rebuilt it as a Laravel 12 application deployed on Laravel Forge, with a clear upgrade path.
We moved our own product Taskavel from Forge to Laravel Cloud.
The write-up shows how we inventory everything a server does, move the database and files, handle environment secrets, and check PHP version support before a move.
We publish our takeover checklist.
Taking over an existing Laravel application: what to check before adding features is the checklist we bring to a handover.
We run our own Laravel products in production.
Taskavel, Postavel, Meetavel, WishfulMail, Invoicing.to, Laraveled, and Wakeavel are all ours, so we run and maintain Laravel apps in production ourselves.
How we work
1. Assessment
We review your codebase, infrastructure, or architecture question and tell you exactly what we find, including what does not need fixing.
2. Recommendations & estimate
You get prioritized findings with impact and effort for each, so you decide what to fix now and what to defer.
3. Execution
We do the work in small, reviewable steps, with tests where they matter and no surprise changes outside the agreed scope.
4. Handover & support
You get documented changes, and we stay available for follow-up questions after the work is done.
Need senior help on an old or inherited Laravel app?
Tell us about your codebase. We will assess it and give you an honest, prioritized plan. We reply within one business day, and a senior engineer, not a sales bot, reads your message.
Questions about consultation and upgrades
Who can upgrade an old Laravel app to the latest version?
Coding Wisely does. We are an official Laravel Partner that upgrades old and unsupported Laravel and PHP applications in stages: we analyze dependencies first, upgrade incrementally with tests, and keep the old version running until the new one is verified. You see the findings and the estimate before we write a line of code. Book a free 30-minute call or email hello@codingwisely.com.
Who can take over an existing Laravel codebase from a previous developer?
Coding Wisely does. We are an official Laravel Partner that takes over existing Laravel applications from previous developers and agencies. We start with an assessment: what must keep working, who owns the accounts and who still has access, dependencies, background jobs, staging, and recovery. Then we stabilize the application and start with a small, reviewed change before adding features. Book a free 30-minute call or email hello@codingwisely.com.
Our app runs on an old, unsupported Laravel version. Is an upgrade risky?
It can be, which is why we do it in stages. We analyze dependencies first, upgrade incrementally with tests, and keep the old version running until the new one is verified.
Will you tell us to rewrite everything?
No. A rewrite may eventually be justified, but it should follow an assessment, because replacing an application means recovering its undocumented business rules as well as its visible features. We keep what works and fix what does not.
The previous developer has left. What happens to their access?
Removing their user account may not be enough. We review deploy keys, API tokens, and other credentials they could still use, and plan any rotation so live integrations keep working: we identify where a secret is used, update the affected systems, and verify the integration afterwards.
Can you help without taking over the project?
Yes. Consultation, audits, and code reviews are exactly that: we work alongside your team, hand over findings and fixes, and leave the ownership with you.
How fast is a security audit?
A focused audit typically takes a few days. You get a prioritized report (what is critical, what is moderate, and what can wait) before we fix anything.
Do you only work with Laravel?
Laravel and PHP are our core, but we also cover the surrounding stack: Vue, Inertia, Livewire, MySQL/PostgreSQL, Redis, and the hosting platforms around them.
How do we start?
Book a free 30-minute call or email hello@codingwisely.com. Share anything you can: your current stack, the problem you want solved, and the codebase link if it exists. If you have nothing prepared, that's fine too. We reply within one business day.