Configuration Management Principles and Practice

Chapter 1. Definition of Configuration Management Used in This Book

There are many definitions of configuration management and many opinions on what it really is. This chapter describes the definition on which this book is based. In short:

Configuration management is unique identification, controlled storage, change control, and status reporting of selected intermediate work products, product components , and products during the life of a system.

Figure 1-1 shows the activity areas included in the definition of configuration management used in this book. It also shows their relations to each other, to common data, and to elements outside the configuration management process area.

When you work professionally with configuration management (as with anything else) it's important to have the fundamental concepts in place. If all else fails, you can go back and seek a solution there.

Definitions of configuration management used in various standards are covered in Chapter 3, and definitions of configuration management used in various maturity models can be found in Chapter 2. The definitions in these standards and maturity models are similar to a large extent. However, they're expressed in slightly different words and with different divisions between the detailed activities that constitute configuration management. It's perfectly okay for a company to use its own definition of configuration management, but it's a good idea to investigate how that definition maps to the definition used in this book and other relevant definitions, to make sure no activity has been left out.