TOWSON UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER & INFORMATION SCIENCES
COSC 412 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
CLASS EXERCISE SHEET FOR CHAPTER 29
What is meant in this chapter by “software configuration management?”
>Configuration Management is the management of system change. When a system is maintained, the role of the CM team is to ensure that changes are incorporated in a controlled way.
How are most new software system releases distributed in today’s society?
>The normal distribution medium for system releases is optical disks, or may be released online for download.
What is the IEEE828 Standard, and can you find out what it says???
>It is a standard for configuration management plans. Dept of Energy: Establishes minimum required contents of a software configuration management plan and defines specific activities to be addressed.
Since much software is developed by use of the waterfall model, much of the software delivered to the SCM team have been completed by the development team. How does this change what they have to do ?
>The team takes over the responsibility for building the complete system and for managing system testing.
What is “system building” and how does it get changed for different target systems?
>System building is the process of compiling and linking software components into a program that executes on a particular target configuration.
What is one way that classes or items listed in the software system can be uniquely identified in the automated configuration management software?
>Version -Numbering:the component is given an explicit, unique version number.
Name some of the information that will be kept in the configuration database?
>The configuration DB is used to record all relevant information about system configurations. This includes:users of components, system customers, execution platforms, and proposed changes.
What is one way for the software manufacturer set up a “change request” process to know when a configuration change is needed?
>By submitting a CRF describing the change required to the system.
What is a “derivation history” record?
>It is a record of the changes made to each component.
Why does a software manufacturer or a standards organization need to keep and maintain some obsolete computers on which large software systems were developed?
>Current versions of software tools may be incompatible with the older versions used to develop the system.
Exercise sheet/COSC 412.001/Fall Semester 2005/ Dr. Little
Case tool RCS manages multiple revisions of files. RCS automates the storing retrieval, logging, identification, and merging of revisions. RCS is useful for text that is revised frequently, including source code, programs, documentation, graphics, papers, and form letters. RCS design was an improvement from its predecessor Source Code Control System. The improvements include an easier user interface and improved storage of version for faster retrieval. RCS improves performance by storing an entire copy of the most recent version and then stores reverse differences.