Configuration management (CM) is an important, but often neglected, practice that allows application developers and project managers to better identify potential problems, manage changes, and track the progress of software projects. An effective CM strategy—one that adheres to the practice's complexity while harnessing its depth—can be the cornerstone of fast, flexible development. However, CM practitioners often rely too heavily on commercial CM tools, and fail to understand the concept as a whole. While CM is not an easy discipline, it need not be a difficult one.

Configuration Management Principles and Practice explains the elements and benefits of a sound CM strategy and shows how to put that strategy into action. Through configuration examples and recommendations drawn from the author's considerable experience, this practical guide will help readers to better manage and deliver projects.

Key topic coverage includes:

• Incorporating CM into the overall development process

• Relating test cases to requirements and tracking, assessing, and reporting on testing

• Tracing product changes

• Applying CM in different environments, including agile, iterative, integrated-product, and sequential development methods

• Employing CM in projects, large and small, for safety-critical, composite, multiplatform, and multivariant systems

• Managing multisite development

• Serving cross-organizational functions

• Integrating different CM tools

• Improving CM processes

A comprehensive guide to the current state of CM, the text begins with an introduction to fundamental CM principles and activities and then illustrates how each can be tailored to meet a development organization's unique needs. In short, this easy-to-use reference will give organizations and individuals the tools they need to insure the integrity of their products and effectively manage the evolution of their systems.