What steps would you take to start working with legacy or outdated code?

Starting work with outdated or obsolete code involves several important steps:

1. Studying the code and documentation — understand what the code does, what dependencies exist, and how it is structured.
2. Setting up the environment — ensure that the code runs in the current environment, possibly requiring configuration of older PHP versions or libraries.
3. Test coverage — if there are no tests, write basic tests to capture the current behavior.
4. Refactoring gradually — improve the code in small steps without breaking functionality.
5. Updating dependencies — update libraries and PHP versions where possible, considering compatibility.
6. Documenting changes — record what was changed and why.

This approach minimizes risks and helps gradually bring the code to a modern state.