Version Control

Wanted: A software configuration management (SCM) tool that (a) provides the capabilities necessary to support an organization's software development process, (b) integrates seamlessly with the Integrated Development Environments (IDEs), (c) facilitates the organization's change management process, (d) facilitates the organization's build process, (e) requires only modest training for technical staff , and (f) encourages proper and effective use by technical staff.

Many applications have database components, and these components evolve in the same environment as your code and other development artifacts. This article explores some of the issues around applying version management to database development in an agile environment. The article raises more questions than it answers, and we hope that it starts a dialogue about this important, yet often neglected topic.

The activity of managing change is known as Change Management.  Managing change is typically very challenging and may occur at many levels within a workplace.  A key when implementing a change management process is truly understanding what should be managed and by whom.  For the sake of argument, I will refer to the group that manages the change as the Change Control Board (CCB).  However, there are other names used to represent this group (e.g., Configuration Control Board, Governance Board, etc.).  It is important to understand that while I use the phrase "manage or control the change", a CCB may not really control the change as much as acknowledge the change and apply impact analysis for the change in order to determine the best deployment guidance for the change.

Patterns and pattern languages are tools that can be used to help a team be more effective and agile. They can lead to robust, effective solutions, because the solutions that patterns can lead you to take the environment into account. They also solve problems in a way that makes the system work better. This article will show you how you can use existing patterns to improve your SCM process. It will also help you to understand where existing patterns and pattern languages have gaps.