Beyond Software Configuration Management Improvement in the Quality and Reliability of the Software Development Process

Transcription

1 Beyond Software Configuration Management Improvement in the Quality and Reliability of the Software Development Process Ramesh Jangareddi EMC Corporation EMC, and the EMC logo are registered trademarks, and "where information lives" is a trademark of EMC Corporation. 1

2 Agenda! Introduction! Project environment! SCM importance! Goals! Approach! Results and benefits! Challenges faced! Learned lessons! Summary 2

3 Introduction! EMC is the world s automated networked storage leader.! Our group develops a product to simplify and automate the management of multi-vendor networked storage environment. 3

4 Project Environment! Large team of engineers involved in this project, including local sites and the sites that are geographically distributed.! The demand for software functionality was increasing steadily.! Dealing with new products and new features at an increasing pace.! Projects were trying to meet both specific customer requests and general competitive pressure. 4

5 Few Words on SCM! Software configuration management (SCM) is the discipline of managing and controlling the evolution of the system software.! The purpose of the SCM is to establish and maintain the integrity of the products of the software project through out the project s software life cycle.! SCM is achieved through several primary functions: Identification, documentation, control, and audit.! SCM is one of the key process area for SW-CMM level 2.! Test teams rely on SCM for developing procedures. 5

6 Key Process Area Goals for SW- CMM Level 2 on SCM 1. Software configuration management activities are planned. 2. Selected software work products are identified, controlled, and available 3. Changes to identified software work products are controlled. 4. Affected groups and individuals are informed of the status and content of software baselines. 6

7 Goals on process improvement! Able to identify all the release artifacts for every current and future releases! Able to unify the activities used to plan and track project progress with the artifacts being changed! Closely integrate the change management with the software artifact changes! Select tool(s) and prove the process improvement by instituting a pilot project! No impact expected on the production environment.! Deployment upon successful pilot results. 7

8 Initiative! Tool research! Learning curve! Budget! Management approval! Design and plan the implementation process! Training 8

9 Our Approach! Unified Change Management Model! Define process! Integration with the Change tracking system! Customize the model to fit our goals! Automate the change management steps! Enforce the policies 9

10 Implementation Mechanics! No impact on the production environment! Reduce the risk involved! Prove the process improvements with pilot implementation! Deployment upon successful pilot! Identify the resources! Define a project plan 10

11 Pilot Institution! Set the requirements/expectations for each phase! Created a replica of the existing development environment! Implement the defined process! Training provided on procedures, and methods to be followed for SCM activities! Follow up meetings for feedback regularly! Instantiate and assign the work! Simulate the integration test environment! Simulate multiple product releases 11

12 Participation At least one of the representative(s) from the following teams were participated! Architecture/Design! Development manager(s)! Development engineer(s)! Project Manager(s)! Integration! QA 12

13 Phase - I! The objective is to get the feedback on the basic process and the SCM tools used.! 10+ engineers participated from various development groups.! Provided required training.! Results were expected after 2 weeks.! Positive feedback with some suggestions and improvements. 13

14 Phase - II! Objective is to work on the simulated product release process and track SCM activities over the product life cycle.! 25+ participants participated geographically distributed! Phase I feedback/suggestions incorporated! Test out the whole life cycle of the product! Identify all the software artifacts for each release! Monitor the change request life cycle! Able to identify the risk on any change request! Enforce the policies as much as possible. 14

15 Deployment Considerations! Reduced productivity risk tremendously! Reduction in implementation time! Training provided for all teams! Documentation on procedures, methods on SCM activities! Approval 15

16 Results and Benefits! A more disciplined and thorough approach to process improvement.! Senior managers and program managers exhibit more confidence with the model.! Increase in quality.! Effective release tracking.! Prompt product deliveries.! Improved insight into a project's status leading to: Better decision- making regarding schedule and resource allocation. Better understanding of risks or problem areas. Improved communication of status to all levels: the individual, the team, line management, and program management. 16

17 Summary Our model is a strategic approach for implementing :! Process improvement! Project management methodology! Systems development life cycle methodology! Software engineering processes! Organizational processes! Policies, standards & procedures 17

18 Challenges Faced! Introducing change! Pilot schedules! Training! Customizations! Policy enforcements 18

19 Lessons Learned! No shortcuts! Can t eliminate development of basic project! Management practices and processes! Must tie process improvement to business objectives! Use a project model to link your methodologies, processes, and standards! Don t overlook deployment which is critical to success 19

20 Questions and Answers 20

21 References! Antipatterns and patterns in software configuration management by William J. Brown, hays W. Skip McCormick III, and Scott W. Thomas, ISBN ! The capability maturity model guidelines for improving the software process, Carnegic Mellon university, software engineering institute, ISBN ! Software configuration management strategies and rational ClearCase, Brian A. White, ISBN

22 Contact Information Ramesh Jangareddi EMC corporation 228 south St, Hopkinton, MA Phone: