What is a Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC)?

What is Software Development Lifecycle?

The Software Development Life cycle, or SDLC, is a comprehensive method for creating software that systematically verifies that the product's quality and correctness align with the standards established by the business and the sector. 

This lifecycle attempts to make sure that the software being produced in the sector adequately fits the customer's expectation range. It guarantees, among other things, that the software development process stays within the predetermined budget and schedule. 

A collection of concepts and strategies known as the software development life cycle describes the entire process of designing, creating, and maintaining software from start to finish. Additionally, it's a dynamic process. 

Phases of Software Development Life Cycle

1. Organizing

During the planning stage, project managers evaluate the project's terms. This involves determining the project's teams and organizational structure, producing a timetable with clear deadlines, and calculating labor and material costs. 

It is also possible to incorporate stakeholder comments into planning.  Ask prospective customers, programmers, business leaders, and salespeople for their opinions. 

2. Specify Goals

Defining requirements is seen as a component of planning because it clarifies the goals and needs of the project. A social media app could be needed to enable user interaction with friends, for instance. It may be required for inventory software to have a search capability. 

Another component of the criteria is figuring out the resources needed to finish the project. As an illustration, a team could develop software to control a machine used in custom manufacturing. The operation requires a machine. 

3. Design & Prototype

The software program's working model is produced during the design phase. A few design components include architecture, user interface, platforms, programming, communication, and security. A stage of design that involves prototyping. A prototype is analogous to one of the early software versions while developing software iteratively. 

It conveys a basic understanding of how the application looks and works. This "hands-on" design can be seen by stakeholders. Make use of the comments to improve the application. In the Development phase, prototyping improvements are less expensive to implement than rewriting existing code. 

4. Software Development

This is legitimate programming. A small project might only require one developer to write it, whereas a large project might require multiple teams to work on it. During this phase, use a source code management or access control solution. Programmers can keep track of code changes with the help of these tools. They also support ensuring that goals are met and that diverse team projects are compatible with one another. 

There are other tasks involved than coding. Many developers need to collaborate with others or polish their skills. Finding and fixing errors and problems is essential. 

5. Testing

Testing is necessary before making a program available to users. Security testing can be automated. Create a simulated production environment for complex deployments because testing in another environment is only feasible in that environment. It is important to test each function to make sure it functions properly.  

To get rid of any processing hangs or lags, performance testing on the program's various components should be done. The testing phase reduces the number of glitches users encounter. This has the effect of increasing customer satisfaction and improving engagement. 

6. Deployment

While the application is being deployed, users can access it. Businesses frequently automate the deployment stage. It would be sufficient to have a payment portal and download link on the company website. Downloading an app to a smartphone is an additional choice. 

Deployment may also be challenging. One example is moving from an application that was previously created to a corporate database. The database interacts with a number of other systems, so integrating the upgrade might take more time and work. 

7. Maintenance and Operations

At this point, the development cycle is about to end. The program has been completed and is currently being used. The Operation and Maintenance phase is still quite important, though. In this stage, users discover issues that weren't found during testing.  

These errors need to be corrected, which can result in new development cycles. Every time a new release is made, a new Development Cycle might begin. 

Why is SDLC important in Project Management?

The following are some ways that the software development life cycle improves software development: 

Summing Up

You can see what's going on and where your development process needs to be improved with SDLC. You become aware of each step and the entire process. Like many business processes, SDLC strives to evaluate and enhance the software development process. It creates a scalable view of the project, from managing production dates to day-to-day coding. I hope you have understood the software development cycle and why it is important for your business.