Software maintenance retainer
Software ages. The system that went live is not the same product six months later. Feature requests pile up, edge cases show up, performance creeps, and the dependencies need patching. Without a maintenance plan, you're left with a slowly-decaying asset.
What's included in Maintenance retainer.
Most of our active clients are on a monthly retainer. We agree the month's scope in writing at the start, work through it, and send a written report of what was delivered at the end, followed by a review call. No surprise invoices, no scope-creep arguments.
Companies running custom software (whether we built it or not) who want a single retainer covering ongoing work, with a clear monthly scope. Especially good as a follow-on after an initial build, once the team uses the system daily and new requests start coming in.
- 01
Bug fixes
Every issue triaged on intake against a written priority rule. Critical issues are handled first, and the rest go into the month's agreed scope.
- 02
Small features
The list of 'can we add this?' requests that pile up, each one written up and agreed with you before any work starts.
- 03
Performance tuning
Slow queries, missing indices, N+1s, bundle bloat: the boring work that keeps the app feeling new even 18 months in.
- 04
Security patches
Dependency updates, security advisories, certificate rotation, audit log review. Quarterly security checkpoint included.
- 05
Backups + recovery drill
Backup verification monthly, full recovery drill quarterly. Documented RTO/RPO. So when something goes wrong, restoring is a calm, documented procedure.
- 06
Monthly report + review
At month end, a written report of what was delivered, what's pending, and what's next, followed by a review call with your team. Easy to forward to your boss.
From a backlog of requests to an agreed monthly scope.
Review system and backlog
We start by reviewing the codebase, deploy process, backups and open issues, whether or not we built the system. With your team we rank the backlog against a written priority rule, and the scope for the opening month is agreed in writing.
Deliver the agreed scope
We work through the agreed fixes, small features, tuning and security patches, tracked in Linear or Jira and discussed in a shared Slack channel. Critical issues jump the queue, and any new feature request is written up for your approval first.
Report, review, plan
At month end we send a written report of what was delivered and what is still pending, then hold a review call. That conversation sets the next scope document, alongside the backup checks and recovery drills that run in the background.
Questions about Maintenance retainer.
- What does a software maintenance retainer cover each month?
- Bug fixes triaged against a written priority rule, the small feature requests that pile up once people use the system daily, performance tuning such as slow queries and missing indices, and security patches with a quarterly security checkpoint. Backups are verified monthly and a full recovery drill runs quarterly against a documented RTO and RPO, so restoring after a failure is a procedure rather than a panic.
- Can you maintain custom software that another vendor built?
- Yes. The retainer covers custom software whether we built it or not. For a system we did not build, we first review the codebase, deploy process and backups so the opening month’s scope reflects what is actually there, and a code audit is often the sensible starting point. We then work in the same stack as your existing build rather than proposing a rewrite for its own sake.
- How is the monthly scope set, and what happens to urgent bugs?
- At the start of each month we agree the scope in writing: the fixes, small features and tuning work to be delivered. New issues are triaged on intake against a written priority rule, critical ones are handled first, and the rest go into the agreed scope. Each feature request is written up and agreed with you before work starts, which keeps invoices predictable and avoids arguments about scope creep.
- What do we receive at the end of each retainer month?
- A written report covering what was delivered, what is pending and what comes next, followed by a review call with your team. It is written to be forwarded to management as it stands. During the month, work is tracked in Linear or Jira and discussed in a shared Slack channel, so progress is visible between reports, and the next month’s priorities are set in the following scope document.
Tell us what's slowing you down.
A 30-minute discovery call. We map the process, point out the easy wins, and outline a clear plan (no obligation).