What is the software development life cycle (SDLC)?

There are several different approaches to software development, each different enough that an organisation can find their needs fulfilled with one of them.

Just as a waterfall flows in a linear fashion, waterfall SDLC is a linear model that has the development of the software start from the beginning and move through each step of the process—but, the next step cannot start until the prior step has been completely finished. Waterfall SDLC helps a company analyse continuity and feasibility of each step of the process, which can help eliminate bottlenecks or silos.

The agile methodology focuses strongly on user input and experience, which can solve many issues that arose from older applications that were more cumbersome to use. The software, as it moves through the agile process, is very responsive to feedback and works to release software in quicker cycles in order to adhere to a changing and rapid market.

Software developers quickly create an initial version of the software, which is then improved upon in small iterations. This is an approach commonly used in larger applications that can help get the application up and running to meet a business need more quickly.

Very similar to agile, DevOps looks to improve the usability and relevance of an application that has been developed by gathering feedback from the software users during the design and implementation phases—all while using active collaboration and communication between members of a team that has been assembled to cover all aspects of a product. This team will include representation for information technology operational roles as well as development, testing and security.

Spiral uses the iterative approach of other models in conjunction with sequential processes as seen in waterfall. This allows for incremental releases and refinement through each step of the spiral as the development goes through each step of the process repeatedly.

Also known as the verification and validation model, the V-model approaches the steps sequentially, but in a “v” shape—it is an extension of the waterfall approach that includes testing that is directly associated with each phase of the development rather than testing in a single phase.

The big bang model involves very little planning and very few processes. The process begins with the necessary funding and resources, then output software that hopefully follows customer requirements. This model is usually used for very small projects with very small teams that don’t require as much formal structure and process.

Source control keeps all of the code in a single location in order to secure the working code. This can be a physical location or a virtual location wherein users can login to an encrypted cloud environment.

Make sure that each component of the asset is consistently compatible throughout the life cycle. Continuous integration ensures that all team members avoid conflicts and duplicates by using similar programming languages and libraries.

Add transparency to systems through each phase of the project, and throughout the project as a whole. SDLC management systems control each step of the way while adding analytics, work management systems, and bug-tracking that can improve parts of the life cycle that aren’t running effectively.