Guidelines: Important Decisions in Configuration & Change Management
Topics
Decide How to Perform the Workflow
The following decisions should be made regarding the Configuration & Change Management discipline's workflow:
- Decide how to perform the workflow by looking at the Configuration & Change Management: Workflow. Study the diagram with its guard conditions, and the guidelines below. Decide which workflow details to perform and in which order.
- Decide what parts of the Configuration & Change Management workflow details to perform. For example, the Workflow Detail: Manage Change Requests is performed only if you are going to manage the change requests in a systematic way.
- Decide when, during the project lifecycle, to introduce each part of the workflow. More information can be found in Workflow: Configuration & Change Management.
Document the decisions in the Development Case, under the headings Disciplines, Configuration & Change Management, Workflow .
Decide How to Use Artifacts
Decide which artifacts to use and how to use each of them. The table below describes those artifacts you must have and those used in some cases. For more detailed information on how to tailor each artifact, and a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of that specific artifact, read the section titled "Tailoring" for each artifact.
For each artifact, decide how the artifact should be used: Must have, Should have, Could have or Won't have. For more details, see the Guidelines: Classifying Artifacts.
| Artifact | Purpose | Tailoring (Optional, Recommended) |
|---|---|---|
| Change Request | Used to track requested changes to project artifacts, including defects. | Recommended for most projects. |
| Configuration Audit Findings | Used to record the results of a configuration audit. | Optional. Generally associated with more formal processes. |
| Configuration Management Plan | Describes all Configuration and Change Control Management (CCM) activities to be performed during the the product or project lifecycle. | Optional |
| Project Repository | Stores all versions of project files and directories. | Recommended. A configuration management system to track versions of files and builds is recommended for all projects. |
| Workspace | Provides a private development area within which a team member can make changes to artifacts without the changes becoming immediately visible to others. | Recommended for most projects. |
Tailor each artifact to fit the needs of the project. For tailoring considerations, see the tailoring section of the artifacts' description page, or the steps described under the heading "Tailor Artifacts per Discipline" in the Activity: Develop Development Case.
