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The Software Development Life Cycle LoyicaBlog

Software Development Life Cycle or the SDLC is a systematic process used by the software industry to

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Author
Loyica Team
Sep 19 2019
The Software Development Life Cycle

Software Development Life Cycle or the SDLC is a systematic process used by the software industry to produce software with the highest quality at the lowest cost in the shortest time. SDLC includes a step-by-step plan on how to develop, change, maintain, and replace a software system.

Every phase of the SDLC has its own process and solutions that delivers into the next phase. Traditionally, SDLC consists of five phases. Nowadays, it is increased to seven phases in order for system analysts to define clearer actions to reach specific goals.

There are various SDLC models such as waterfall model, spiral model, and the agile model. Some models can be merged into a hybrid method. Regardless of what SDLC model used for an application, documentation is vital and is done parallel to the development process.

Seven Phases of SDLC

  1. Planning

What do we want and how will we do it?

This is where you do a feasibility study to know what new system is needed. This phase comprises aspects of project and product management including capacity planning, cost estimation, resource allocation, project scheduling, and provisioning rate.

The project managers and development staff should collaborate with the security and operation teams to guarantee that all viewpoints are represented.

  1. Requirement and Analysis

The most important parts of software development, requirement gathering and requirement analysis are conducted by senior team members with inputs from domain industry experts, programmers, customers, salespeople, and all stakeholders.

Subsequent to gathering the requirements from the client, a scope document is made to give a clearer picture of the range of the entire project and the predicted issues, opportunities, and directive whichever provoked the project.

  1. Design

Software developers and architects can start designing the software after the requirements are realized. This phase uses established patterns for the development of the software and application architecture, and serves as the input for the next stage of the model. Software architects may use frameworks like TOGAF or The Open Group Architecture Framework to construct an application from existent components, promoting reuse and standardization following conditions of use.

Architects use established design patterns to resolve algorithmic problems consistently. Subsequently, spike rapid prototyping may be included to compare solutions to find the most suitable one. Outputs of this stage include design documents that list the patterns and component selected for the project and the code produced by spikes.

There are 2 kinds of design documents developed in this phase-HLD and LLD.

LLD or the Low-Level Design

  • List of error messages
  • Input and output for each module
  • Database tables
  • Detailed Interface
  • Addresses any type of dependency issues
  • Functional logic of modules

HLD or the High-Level Design

  • Name and description of every module
  • Architecture diagrams and technology details
  • Database table and key elements
  • Interface relationship and dependencies
  • Functionality outline

This plan will be evaluated by all stakeholders and offer feedbacks and suggestions. Failure at this phase will result to cost escalation or even total collapse of the project.

  1. Software Development

The software development phase is also known as the coding phase. This is the phase where the software product is created. It is the longest phase of the SDLC but if the previous phases were followed meticulously the coding phase will be in fact the least complicated stage.

Developers build the software by writing code using a certain programming language. Tasks should be divided among developers into modules. Database developers will deal with the database needs, network engineers handle the network requirements while the system programmers work on the actual system code. They need to follow pre-defined coding guidelines and use programming tools such as compiler, interpreters, debugger to generate, and implement the code.

Stakeholders should be engaged frequently to guarantee that their requirements are met.

  1. Testing

This is the most important phase of the Software Development Life Cycle. Quality assurance professionals usually test the software for bugs and errors which they communicate to developers. The development team resolves the bug and it back again to the quality assurance professional for retesting. The process continues until the system is working and bug-free and ensured that the original design specifications are met.

There are various types of testing for a system including:

Path Testing- the test ensures that every path through a program has been executed at least once.

Data Set Testing- separating data into two sets-training and testing. By using this type of testing, we can minimize data discrepancies effect and have a better understanding of the model’s characteristics.

Unit Testing- individual units or components of a software are tested to validate that each unit of software performs as designed.

System Testing- this test is to evaluate the software’s fulfillment to the original design specifications.

Integration Testing- in this type of test individual units are combined into groups and tested. The purpose of this test is to uncover faults in the interaction between integrated units.

Black-Box Testing- tests the functionality of software without looking through its internal workings.

White-Box Testing- examining the internal structures including the used data structures, internal design, code structure and the working of the software not just the functionality unlike black-box testing. It is also called glass box testing, clear box testing, or structural testing.

Regression Testing- ensures the software that was previously developed and tested still works correctly after it was altered or interface with another software.

  1. Deployment

Once the system has been developed and fully tested then the final deployment process starts. It is where the product is put into production. This means that the software is now ready to be used in a real environment by all end users of the product. There are different sub-phases of the deployment process. These phases include deployment preparation and procedures, product deployment, transferring of ownership of the product, and closing the deployment phase.

  1. Maintenance

This the “end of the beginning” phase. The SDLC does not end here. The software must be constantly monitored to guarantee seamless operation. This phase ensures that the software does not become obsolete so in the long run there will often rise the need to make changes and improvements.

If you want to know more about SDLC, contact as at Loyica the best software development and digital marketing company in Dubai.

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