What is System Development Life Cycle?
A system development life cycle or SDLC is essentially a project management
model. It defines different stages that are necessary to bring a project from its
initial idea or conception all the way to deployment and later maintenance.
The system development life cycle framework provides a sequence of activities for
system designers and developers to follow. It consists of a set of steps or phases in
which each phase of the SDLC uses the results of the previous one
7 Stages of the System Development Life Cycle
There are seven primary stages of the modern system development life cycle.
Here’s a brief breakdown:
Planning Stage
Feasibility or Requirements of Analysis Stage
Design and Prototyping Stage
Software Development Stage
Software Testing Stage
Implementation and Integration
Operations and Maintenance Stage
1. Planning Stage
The planning stage (also called the feasibility stage) is exactly what it sounds like:
the phase in which developers will plan for the upcoming project.
It helps to define the problem and scope of any existing systems, as well as
determine the objectives for their new systems.
By developing an effective outline (plan) for the upcoming development cycle,
we’ll theoretically catch problems before they affect development.
And help to secure the funding and resources they need to make their plan happen.
Most importantly, the planning stage sets the project schedule, which can be of
key importance if development is for a commercial product that must be sent to
market by a certain time.
Following are different components of the feasibility study:
Operational feasibility
Economic feasibility
Technical feasibility
Human factors feasibility
Legal/Political feasibility
2. Analysis Stage
The analysis stage includes gathering all the specific details required for a new
system as well as determining the first ideas for prototypes (a first or preliminary
version of a device or vehicle from which other forms are developed).
This phase formally defines the detailed functional user requirements using high-
level requirements identified in the Initiation and Feasibility Phases. The
requirements are defined in this phase to a Michigan Tech Information Technology
System Development Lifecycle Page 3 level of detail sufficient for systems design
to proceed. They need to be measurable, testable, and relate to the business need or
opportunity identified in the Initiation Phase.
Defines project goals into defined functions and operation of the intended
application. Analyzes end user information needs.
Developers may:
Define any prototype system requirements
Evaluate alternatives to existing prototypes
Perform research and analysis to determine the needs of end-users
3. Design Stage
Describes desired features and operations in detail, including screen layouts,
business rules, process diagrams, pseudo-code and other documentation.
Developers will first outline the details for the overall application, alongside
specific aspects, such as its:
User interfaces
System interfaces
Network and network requirements
Databases
Design Phase During this phase, the system is designed to satisfy the
functional requirements identified in the previous phase. Since problems in
the design phase can be very expensive to solve in later stages of the
software development, a variety of elements are considered in the design to
mitigate risk. These include:
• Identifying potential risks and defining mitigating design features
• Performing a security risk assessment
• Developing a conversion plan to migrate current data to the new system
• Determining the operating environment
• Defining major subsystems and their inputs and outputs
• Allocating processes to resources
4. Development Stage
Effective completion of the previous stages is a key factor in the success of the
Development phase. The real code is written here.( C++, JAVA)
The Development phase consists of:
• Translating the detailed requirements and design into system components
• Testing individual elements (units) for usability
• Preparing for integration and testing of the IT system.
Integration, system, security, and user acceptance testing is conducted during
this phase as well. The user, with those responsible for quality assurance,
validates that the functional requirements are met by the newly developed or
modified system.
5. Testing Stage
Now it must be tested to make sure that there aren’t any bugs and that the end-user
experience will not negatively be affected at any point.
Brings all the pieces together into a special testing environment, then checks for
errors, bugs and interoperability.
6. Implementation and Integration Stage
The final stage of initial development, where the software is put into production
and runs actual business.
This phase is initiated after the system has been tested and accepted by the user.
In this phase, the system is installed to support the intended business functions.
System performance is compared to performance objectives established during
the planning phase. Implementation includes user notification, user training,
installation of hardware, installation of software onto production computers,
and integration of the system into daily work processes. This phase continues
until the system is operating in production in accordance with the defined user
requirements.
7. Maintenance Stage
During the maintenance stage of the SDLC, the system is assessed to ensure it
does not become obsolete. This is also where changes are made to initial
software. It involves continuous evaluation of the system in terms of its
performance.
The system operation is ongoing. The system is monitored for continued
performance in accordance with user requirements and needed system
modifications are incorporated. Operations continue as long as the system
responds to the organization’s needs. When modifications are identified, the
system may reenter the planning phase.
