{"id":9242,"date":"2023-11-22T15:11:07","date_gmt":"2023-11-22T15:11:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/?p=9242"},"modified":"2023-11-23T15:11:26","modified_gmt":"2023-11-23T15:11:26","slug":"look-at-software-development-lifecycle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/look-at-software-development-lifecycle\/","title":{"rendered":"An In-Depth Look at the Software Development Lifecycle"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you&#8217;re a software engineer or someone interested in understanding how software is built, you&#8217;ve probably heard the term &#8220;software development lifecycle&#8221; thrown around a lot. But what exactly does it mean and why is it important? In this post, we&#8217;ll take an in-depth look at the typical software development lifecycle stages, best practices, and how following a structured process can lead to better-quality software.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ibb.co\/tLL1wzL\/software-development-lifecycle-guide.png\" alt=\"software-development-lifecycle-guide\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peerbits.com\/blog\/guide-to-software-development-lifecycle.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>software development lifecycle<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (SDLC) is essentially a blueprint for managing and executing software projects. It provides a systematic approach to building software that ensures all requirements are met and products are delivered with fewer defects and on time.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>While there are different SDLC methodologies, most follow a similar high-level workflow:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Requirements gathering and analysis<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Software design<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Software development\/coding<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Testing<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Deployment<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Maintenance<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Each of these phases plays a key role in taking a software product from initial concept to launch. Now let&#8217;s dig into each stage in more detail.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_65 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title \" >Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/look-at-software-development-lifecycle\/#Defining_Requirements\" title=\"Defining Requirements\">Defining Requirements<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/look-at-software-development-lifecycle\/#Creating_the_Software_Design\" title=\"Creating the Software Design\">Creating the Software Design<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/look-at-software-development-lifecycle\/#Developing_the_Software\" title=\"Developing the Software\">Developing the Software<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/look-at-software-development-lifecycle\/#Testing_And_Then_Testing_Some_More\" title=\"Testing (And Then Testing Some More)\">Testing (And Then Testing Some More)<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/look-at-software-development-lifecycle\/#Deployment_Time\" title=\"Deployment Time\">Deployment Time<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/look-at-software-development-lifecycle\/#Maintaining_the_Software\" title=\"Maintaining the Software\">Maintaining the Software<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Defining_Requirements\"><\/span><strong>Defining Requirements<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The requirements phase is all about understanding what exactly needs to be built and why. This starts by meeting with key stakeholders like customers, managers, and end users to gather all functional and non-functional requirements.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Functional requirements define the core features and behaviors of the system. For example, allowing users to sign up, search for products, and make purchases may be key functions for an e-commerce site. Non-functional requirements are attributes like security, performance, and usability.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Requirements are prioritized so the development team knows what&#8217;s absolutely critical vs. nice to have. All requirements, priorities, and supporting details are then documented in a <a href=\"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/top-10-sectors-of-fintech-software-development\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Software Requirements<\/a> Specification (SRS) document. This provides a single source of truth on what needs to be delivered that both business stakeholders and software developers can refer to throughout the project.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Creating_the_Software_Design\"><\/span><b>Creating the Software Design<\/b><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the design phase, the focus shifts to defining the architecture, components, interfaces, and data for your system.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">High-level architectural design involves choosing technology stacks, platforms, and integration approaches. For example, deciding on a client-server architecture vs. a cloud-based app.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Detailed software design gets into the specifics of application structure, algorithms, and database schema. This may involve flowcharts, class diagrams, pseudocode, and other models to describe the inner workings of the code.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Prototyping is commonly used during design to create an early sample of a user interface or process so stakeholders can provide feedback and guide the end product design in the right direction.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once the blueprint for the software is created, the real coding can begin!<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Developing_the_Software\"><\/span><strong>Developing the Software<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Development is when the rubber meets the road in transforming design into functional code. Coding is done according to the frameworks, data models, and interfaces defined in the design phase.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Version control tools like Git allow managing code changes made by multiple developers. Code repositories also facilitate collaboration by allowing developers to regularly merge their working code with the main codebase.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Code reviews or walkthroughs are best practices during development. This involves having developers review each other\u2019s code to validate logic, and standards and catch defects early.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unit testing will also be performed in parallel to check individual modules are working as intended before integrating them together. Test automation frameworks like Selenium speed up and standardize the unit testing process.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Testing_And_Then_Testing_Some_More\"><\/span><strong>Testing (And Then Testing Some More)<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once all the pieces of code are developed, they need to be integrated and rigorously tested as a complete system.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Different types of testing will check for various potential issues:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Integration testing verifies the modules and interfaces work when integrated together.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">System testing evaluates the entire system against the original requirements.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">User acceptance testing has real users validate the system works as expected.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Performance testing checks for system robustness under peak loads.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Security testing identifies vulnerabilities like SQL injection or cross-site scripting.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Having a structured testing approach uncovers defects missed during earlier development. Defect tracking tools log issues found during testing and allow the team to prioritize and resolve bugs in an orderly fashion.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Deployment_Time\"><\/span><strong>Deployment Time<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once the quality of the software has been validated through testing, it\u2019s ready for showtime!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some type of staging or pre-production environment is needed to give the software one final shakedown before going fully live. This simulates real-world conditions to catch any production snags.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The actual deployment strategy must be chosen based on factors like application type, infrastructure, data migration needs, and more. Common approaches include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Phased deployment rolls out the system incrementally to groups of users.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Parallel deployment runs the new and old systems simultaneously.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Big bang deployment cuts over the entire system at once.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Staff should be trained on usage and administrators must be ready for launch. Even with extensive testing, issues can still pop up once live so customer support should be staffed to handle any incidents after launch.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Maintaining_the_Software\"><\/span><strong>Maintaining the Software<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Deployment is not the end though! The application needs to be actively maintained and supported throughout its lifetime.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Post-launch defects and change requests need to be evaluated and prioritized for future releases. Performance and usage metrics should be monitored to identify optimization opportunities.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Regular maintenance activities include:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Managing live defects and issues<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Releasing patches and updates<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Adding new features<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Scaling infrastructure to meet demand<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Improving reliability and performance<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The cycle then continues as new releases move through the SDLC phases.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Following the SDLC ensures higher-quality software<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The software development lifecycle provides structure, consistency, and control across all phases of work. While specific methodologies and tools can vary, having a systematic approach to building software brings many benefits:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Reduce wasted time and rework through upfront requirements gathering and design<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Catch defects early in the cycle when they are cheaper to fix<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Deliver better quality products aligned with customer needs<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Enable collaboration and visibility across cross-functional teams<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Adapt to changing priorities and new requirements<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Improve cost and schedule predictability<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The SDLC allows continuously improving how your team builds and deploys software. Following these <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peerbits.com\/software-development-company.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>software development<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> best practices results in more robust applications, faster delivery of features, and reduced risk throughout the process.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So there you have it &#8211; a high-level overview of the major phases, activities, and benefits of structured software development life cycles. While the details may differ across industries, company cultures, and methodologies, the basic workflow of gathering requirements, designing, building, testing, and deploying remains at the core.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hopefully, this gives you a better understanding of the purpose behind software development processes. Leveraging these best practices can help any IT organization release higher-quality applications more efficiently.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you&#8217;re a software engineer or someone interested in understanding how software is built, you&#8217;ve probably heard the term &#8220;software development lifecycle&#8221; thrown around a lot. But what exactly does it mean and why is it important? In this post, we&#8217;ll take an in-depth look at the typical software development lifecycle stages, best practices, and&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":9298,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[2150,1866,2151],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9242"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9242"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9242\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9298"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9242"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9242"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/friendsoftoms.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9242"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}