Key Steps in Software Development
There are 6 steps in the Development process:
1. The first step in the process is the identification of needs. In this stage, researchers and developers explore various methodologies to investigate the market on software viability. The developers will first identify the function of the software and whether or not the consumers will be in need of such software. This can be achieved by getting feedback from potential customers or existing ones, or from surveys.
2. Requirement analysis is the second phase in the software development life cycle, where the stakeholders set agreements on technical and user requirements and specifications for the proposed product in such a way as to achieve intended objectives. This phase gives detailed descriptions of the scope, components, developer assignments, and other testing parameters necessary to facilitate the building of a quality product.
The requirement analysis stage involves the developers, users, testers, project managers, and quality assurance staff. It is also at this stage that programmers choose software development approaches such as waterfall or V model. This stage output is documented in a Software Requirement Specification (SRS) which other implementing teams will refer to throughout the project.
3. Design is the third step in the process of software development. Here the Architects and Developers document the advanced technical specifications they will need to build the software that meets those requirements. Stakeholders will discuss factors like risk areas, team make-up, technologies to be used, timeline, budget, project limitations, methodology, and architectural design.
The Design Specification Document (DSD) deals with the architectural design, components, communication, front-end representation, and user flows of the product. This step gives a template for the developers and testers and reduces the possibility of errors and delays in the final product.
4. The next phase is to develop and implement the design parameters. The developers code according to the product specifications and requirements agreed upon in the preceding phases. Following company procedures and guidelines, front-end developers build interfaces and the back-ends while the database administrators create the relevant data in the database. They also test and review each other's code.
After coding is over, the developers deploy the product in the implementation stage of the environment. This allows testing of a pilot version of the program whereby performance matches the requirements.
5. The testing phase is performed to check the software for bugs and verify its functioning before handing it over to the users. In this stage, experienced testers are assigned to verify the functions of the product so that it performs according to the needs laid down in the requirements analysis document.
Testers perform exploratory testing if they have experience with that software, or alternatively, they may decide to run a test script to verify how each of the software components performs. They communicate directly to developers regarding defects in the code. Once the developers have confirmed the defects, they rectify the code and repeat the investigation until the software is rendered defectless and behaves as needed.
6. Once the software has been tested and cleared of all bugs, it can be delivered to the customer. Since the production version is available for the clients, an IT software development corporation assigns specialists for maintenance to deal with problems which clients encounter while using the product. Maintenance solutions can be hot-fixes, or modifications in the software.