From: Dave Eaton,dwe@eng.iac.honeywell.com Reply-To: dwe,dwe@eng.iac.honeywell.com Newsgroup: comp.answers,news.answers,comp.software.config-mgmt Receive-Date: Samstag, 01-Apr-95 16:27:15 Creation-Date: Mittwoch, 29-Mär-95 16:16:56 Message-ID: 3lc15o$pfc@adm09.iac.honeywell.com Date: 29 Mar 1995 16:16:56 GMT Subject: comp.software.config-mgmt FAQ: General Questions Organization: Honeywell IAC, Phoenix AZ Followup-To: comp.software.config-mgmt X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL1] UserFlags: Old ReadAccess GlobalFlags: Exported Link HardLink Archive-name: sw-config-mgmt/faq Last-modified: 1995/03/29 Version: 1.11 Posting-Frequency: monthly -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Configuration Management Frequently Asked Questions -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- This is the Configuration Management Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) file. It has been compiled from many sources. Many thanks to all contributors. In the newsgroups, this message should be followed by two others, each summarizing a different area of configuration management: Subject: comp.software.config-mgmt FAQ: General Questions (this text) Subject: comp.software.config-mgmt FAQ: Configuration Management Tools Summary Subject: comp.software.config-mgmt FAQ: Problem Management Tools Summary For those with World Wide Web access, HTML versions of these documents are available via: http://www.iac.honeywell.com/Pub/Tech/CM/index.html These are updated throughout the month as changes come in. A letter is added to the version number and the date is changed with each edit to help you determine if you've already seen it. Not Official Statements Please use the summary below in the spirit with which it has been supplied: for information only. These statements are composites and *do not* represent official positions by any particular responder's company. Remember that these users may not be commenting on the current version of a product. It is recommended that you do your own research before making a tool decision for your company. Sharing Of Information This document, as a collection of information, is Copyright 1995 by David W. Eaton. It may be freely redistributed in its entirety provided that this copyright notice is not removed. It may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents without the written permission of the copyright holder. This article is provided as is without any express or implied warranty. The content is the sole responsibility of the author and contributors, and does not necessarily represent the position of their employers nor an official position or opinion of Honeywell Inc. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Newsgroups line: comp.software.config-mgmt Configuration management, tools and procedures. CHARTER Comp.software.config-mgmt is intended to be a forum for discussions issues related to configuration management (CM), both the bureaucratic procedures and the tools used to implement CM strategies. CM is a corner-stone in software development, and has a very broad spectrum. For small shops developing non-critical products, perhaps all you need is RCS or SCCS and some makefiles. For large or safety-critical systems, a more sophisticated process and implementation may be required - possibly one integrated with change management and problem management. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ** What's New this Month? ** 1. Added "book" reference 2.11, a paper on CM Models in Commercial Environments. 2. Added [1.12] Will a sophisticated CM system solve my problems? 3. Added [1.13] How should a CM system relate to process enforcement? While there have been other topics discussed in this newsgroup, I tried to pull together some highlights here. All comments, content and format suggestions, and submissions for future versions are welcomed. This version is cross posted to comp.answers and news.answers and is archived at the usual public archive sites for *.answers FAQs. Please send your comments and suggestions for improvements to: -- dwe@eng.iac.honeywell.com (David W. Eaton) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --[ Table of Contents ]-- [1.0] === GENERAL QUESTIONS === [1.1] I have heard about this group (comp.software.config-mgmt) from cross-postings in other groups, but it's not in my news offering. How can I get it? [1.2] What is Configuration Management (CM)? [1.3] How does Problem Management relate to Configuration Management? [1.4] What Configuration Management tools are available? [1.5] What Problem Tracking tools are available? [1.6] What inexpensive (UNIX-like) CM tools are available for a DOS platform? (Well-established shareware or relatively inexpensive vendor tools.) [1.7] Where else can I look for configuration management information? [1.8] How can a vendor get information into the product summaries? [1.9] What user and vendor comments are appropriate here? [1.10] How do I reconfigure my PC or its applications? [1.11] How can I do CM in a mixed platform network? [1.12] Will a sophisticated CM system solve my problems? [1.13] How should a CM system relate to process enforcement? [2.0] === BOOKS ABOUT CONFIGURATION MANAGEMENT === [2.1] _Software Configuration Management_ [2.2] _Software Engineering_, chapter 29, Configuration Management [2.3] _Software Configuration Management_ [2.4] _Methods and Tools for Software Configuration Management_ [2.5] _Software Configuration Management_ [2.6] _Configuration Management Tools: a Detailed Evaluation_ [2.7] _Software Management Technology Reference Guide_ [2.8] _Implementing Configuration Management: Hardware, Software and Firmware_ [2.9] _Configuration Management for Software_ [2.10] _Multi-Platform Code Management_ [2.11] _Configuration Management Models in Commercial Environments_ [3.0] === PRODUCT SPECIFIC QUESTIONS === [3.1] May I post specific questions about ClearCase here? [3.2] Is there a tutorial someplace on RCS? [3.3] It seems SCCS doesn't have a $Log$ like RCS does. Am I correct? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --[ Topics ]-- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [1.0] === GENERAL QUESTIONS === ----------------------------------------------------------------- [1.1] I have heard about this group (comp.software.config-mgmt) from cross-postings in other groups, but it's not in my news offering. How can I get it? ----------------------------------------------------------------- Talk to your local system administrator. All sites do not automatically create new groups as they are initiated. Also, some readers do not automatically show you all new groups as they become available at your site. Perhaps you have access and do not realize it. -------------------------------------- [1.2] What is Configuration Management (CM)? -------------------------------------- There are a number of different interpretations. For purposes of this newsgroup, we are talking about tracking and control of software development and its activities. Even within that scope there are different schools of thought: o Traditional Configuration Management - checkin/checkout control of sources (and sometimes binaries) and the ability to perform builds (or compiles) of the entities. Other functions may be included as well. o Process Management - control of the software development activities. For example, it might check to ensure that a change request existed and had been approved for fixing and that the associated design, documentation, and review activities have been completed before allowing the code to be "checked in" again. While process management and control are necessary for a repeatable, optimized development process, a solid configuration management foundation for that process is essential. --------------------------------------------------------------- [1.3] How does Problem Management relate to Configuration Management? --------------------------------------------------------------- Many organizations choose to integrate their problem management and classic configuration management tools to gain better control of their development activities and to improve quality. Problem management may include call tracking, problem tracking, and change management. These are described more completely in part 3 of this FAQ. -------------------------------------------------- [1.4] What Configuration Management tools are available? -------------------------------------------------- Check the list of free, public domain, and commercial vendor CM tools in part 2 of this FAQ, CM Tools Summary. -------------------------------------------- [1.5] What Problem Management tools are available? -------------------------------------------- Check the list of free, public domain, and commercial vendor problem management tools in part 3 of this FAQ, PM Tools Summary. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [1.6] What inexpensive (UNIX-like) CM tools are available for a DOS platform? (Well established shareware or relatively inexpensive vendor tools.) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Check the list of free and commercial vendor CM tools in part 2 of this FAQ, PM Tools Summary. --------------------------------------------------------------- [1.7] Where else can I look for configuration management information? --------------------------------------------------------------- Topics related to software configuration management are discussed in other newsgroups as well. One such group is: comp.software-eng Software Engineering Issues Its FAQ will direct you to other possible groups to check, as well. Some products have their own e-mail lists to assist users. Check with your vendor. See information elsewhere in this FAQ about: cciug@atria.com ClearCase International User Group mailing list The Software Engineering Institute provides on-line CM information via the World Wide Web at http://www.sei.cmu.edu/tech/cmHomePage.html. Additional WWW sites are listed at the ends of other segments of this FAQ: o Configuration Management Tools with World Wide Web sites o Problem Management Tools with World Wide Web sites ------------------------------------------------------------ [1.8] How can a vendor get information into the product summaries? ------------------------------------------------------------ If you know of a tool you believe should be represented in one of the CM FAQ product lists, please send the product name, preferred company address, phone, e-mail (if any) contact information and supported platforms to: dwe@eng.iac.honeywell.com so it may be included in the address portion of a future issue. By request, the content of these FAQs is intended to be user-supplied, relatively short, and free from obvious extremes of opinion. (There are plenty of opportunities for company advertising elsewhere.) If you want to have a paragraph or two included, please have a user or customer post their views to the newsgroup (copying this editor via e-mail would help ensure that it is seen.) It will be edited, combined it with other responses, and included in the product summary section of a future issue as time permits. Features described should represent existing product, not future plans. The one exception which has proven of value is to allow the FAQ to indicate platform ports in progress which will be delivered "soon". This should help customers determine candidate tools, since there is a long lead time required for a site to choose and implement a CM environment. --------------------------------------------------- [1.9] What user and vendor comments are appropriate here? --------------------------------------------------- Heated discussions often have been raised in this newsgroup concerning what are appropriate comments from vendors and users. While there is no desire to eliminate meaningful contributions from either segment of the population, keeping these guidelines in mind should help hold down the "flames". o If you are new to news, read "news.newusers.questions" and related FAQs before posting here. Most FAQs are posted in "news.answers" and related "*.answers" groups and archived at rtfm.mit.edu and elsewhere. Also, read the other segments of the FAQ for this group and read the articles in this group for a while *before* posting your own comment. o If someone asks about a tool that has features xyz or helps to solve problem xyz, vendors should refrain from posting "my tool does that" responses which would clutter the newsgroup. Of course, any private e-mail response may be made at the vendor's or user's discretion. As always, users are encouraged to summarize pertinent e-mail to the newsgroup. o If someone asks for people's experience using a tool, then the vendor of the tool should not offer any opinion. Please leave it to users. o If someone asks for a comparison of tool x with tool y, then neither vendor x nor vendor y should offer any opinion. Please leave it to users. o Vendors should are allowed and encouraged to comment upon and clarify issues raised by others on the use of their tool. The discussion should stay technical and "what the tool does" as opposed to "this way is better than this other way". This is one of the main ways vendors can contribute to discussions here. o Vendors are allowed and encouraged to make *brief* announcements of significant new versions or products which *are shipping now*. It would be best if this announcement pointed readers to other sources for more information (such as FTP and WWW sites or e-mail lists.) ----------------------------------------------- [1.10] How do I reconfigure my PC or its applications? ----------------------------------------------- Although questions about PC hardware configurations, changes to ".INI" files and ".BAT" get posted to this newsgroup, they should not be. Please review available FAQs or consult articles on newsgroups such as: comp.sys.ibm.pc.*, comp.os.ms-windows.setup, comp.os.ms-windows.apps.misc, comp.os.msdos.apps, comp.os.os2.apps, or comp.os.ms-windows.nt.setup. Please review the charter of this group and our definition of CM above before posting here. -------------------------------------------- [1.11] How can I do CM in a mixed platform network? -------------------------------------------- This particular [edited] response to the generic question which is so frequently asked is courtesy of Jeff Faist, Timberline Tape Division, StorageTek. Unix, DOS, Mac, VM, HP, SGI, DEC, etc. use different OS and hardware to a point. With the exception of VM all can be either a client or server and all can do NFS mounting of disks. Currently, NFS is the key to any cross platform CM situation. Since CM is based on files and versions of files, it is also based on disk access and disk space. So for the basic CM functions of file checkout (CO) and checkin (CI), if you get your machines on the same LAN and get NFS packages for the DOS and MAC machines so they can mount a Unix server that also runs NFS, you got that part licked. With the right software, even NOVELL servers can look like NFS servers to a Unix box now. Now we get into the hard part: what to use for the programs to do CO and CI, where to put the source code, training your developers, and buying tools. Cost aware Unix users likely will go for RCS or SCCS, DOS and Mac users may prefer something else. The concept will work with many of the CM systems available on the market. It all depends on the direction of your company with respect to cost, platform choices, and the majority of users. Some DOS, Mac, and VM users will just telnet into a Unix servers and work in Unix land for all CM needs. Once the file is checked out the developer can use his native platform and editors to work and build, but must restart a Unix telnet session to check the file back in. That process can be automated in batch files to auto-login and checkin. As for making builds on each platform, if you have everything on an NFS server it doesn't matter, mount the server from the DOS or Mac and then do the build with the DOS or Mac tools using different Makefiles and compilers/linkers or your favorite "Visual" tool, etc. The only telnetting that needs to be done is to CO, CI, and to promote the resulting files. Builds still happen on the respective platforms. This is my opinion and may have some holes in it, but it is something to keep in mind. If you would like more details on this topic, you may contact: Jeffrey W. Faist - Jeff_Faist@atlantis.stortek.com ------------------------------------------------- [1.12] Will a sophisticated CM system solve my problems? ------------------------------------------------- Discussed in many forms on this newsgroup, the simple answer is no, there is no silver bullet tool which can solve all configuration management problems by itself. Any good CM tool which provides version control is a great benefit over manually keeping copies of files in alternate directories. Including build management can provide tremendous increases in productivity. Some organizations will choose to use a tool which can provide some degree of process management. The level of sophistication required will depend upon the complexity of the software being developed and the size and dynamics of the organization doing the development. Budget may dictate what tools can be considered. As always, local CM requirements should be determined before a CM tool investigation is undertaken. ----------------------------------------------------- [1.13] How should a CM system relate to process enforcement? ----------------------------------------------------- This is a very controversial topic and many good discussions have been held in this newsgroup. Some frequently voiced ideas include: o CM is a "Good Thing". o CM is intended to *help* developers. o Integrating CM into a development environment should be "evolutionary", and not "revolutionary". It takes time and iterations to do it right. o Develop a proven, bulletproof implementation of an integrated CM/Development process, then apply it from day one on new project. o Automation of a good CM process improves the likelyhood it will be followed and can improve productivity and quality. o Automation of a bad CM process can be worse than no automation. Chances for success may be improved if you first establish a process on which both the CM and development staff can agree. Consider the capabilities of the tool you will use and automate the process in a non-intrusive manner as much as possible. Process is very site specific. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [2.0] === BOOKS ABOUT CONFIGURATION MANAGEMENT === (Hal Render maintains a bibliography of books and articles on SCM, version control, and related subjects. To request a copy, you may contact him at: render@massive.uccs.edu ) [2.1] _Software Configuration Management_ by Wayne A. Babich; Addison-Wesley, Reading, Massachusetts, 1986 (The 'bible' on configuration management? Good, easy reading, nice examples, lots of topics) [2.2] _Software Engineering_, chapter 29, Configuration Management by Ian Sommerville; (a nice introduction to the topic) [2.3] _Software Configuration Management_ by H. Ronald Berlack; John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, New York, USA, 1992; ISBN 0-471-53049-2 [2.4] _Methods and Tools for Software Configuration Management_ by David Whitgift; John Wiley & Sons Ltd., West Sussex, England, 1991 [2.5] _Software Configuration Management_ by Edward H. Bersoff, Vilas D. Henderson and Stanley G. Siegel; Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1980 (a classic, but reportedly out of print) [2.6] _Configuration Management Tools: a Detailed Evaluation_ by P. Ingram, C. Burrows and I. Wesley; Ovum Ltd., 1 Mortimer Street, London W1N 7RH, England (Tel: +44 71 255 2670, Fax: +44 71 255 1995) (Ovum writes evaluation reports and charges a great deal of money for them (US $1345). Their argument is that they do all the legwork for you of evaluating a range of offerings; all you have to do is pay them the money, read the results, and buy the system/tool that is best for you. All well and good - if you agree with their evaluation methods and accept that their results will hold in your environment.) [2.7] _Software Management Technology Reference Guide_ Contact Software Management News at 73670.2227@compuserve.com to obtain copy. It list most of the current CM tools. [2.8] _Implementing Configuration Management: Hardware, Software and Firmware_ by Fletcher J. Buckley; IEEE Press, 1992. (discusses how CM principles can be applied to all areas of computer engineering, and not just software engineering) [2.9] _Configuration Management for Software_ by Stephen B. Compton and Guy R. Conner;Van Nostrand Reinhold; ISBN 0-442-01746-4 (Well thought out and easy reading. Good discussion of standards such as ISO900 and DOD2167A along with work sheets for managing the change. Lacking an automation approach. There is little discussion given regarding the adaptation of a process change. The glossary is very helpful and there is a good bibliography.) [2.10] _Multi-Platform Code Management_ by Kevin Jameson; O'Reilly & Associates; 354 pages, (includes two diskettes); ISBN 1-56592-059-7 (Intended for programming teams struggling with build and maintenance problems. Accompanying software is available for fifteen platforms, including MS-DOS and various UNIX systems. It shows you how to structure a large project and keep your files and builds under control over many releases and platforms. Uses RCS 5.5 for the version control portion.) [2.11] _Configuration Management Models in Commercial Environments_ by Peter Feiler; Tech Report CMU/SEI-91-TR-7, ESD-91-TR-7, March 91. (This is not a book, but is said to be an excellent overview of CM models with discussion of the Long transaction, Change Set, Composition, and Checkout/in models. It is available via FTP from: ftp://ftp.sei.cmu.edu/pub/documents/91.reports/tr07.91.ps (about 240k, PostScript format) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [3.0] === PRODUCT SPECIFIC QUESTIONS === --------------------------------------------------- [3.1] May I post specific questions about ClearCase here? --------------------------------------------------- Yes, you may post them here and are quite likely to get an answer. However, if the question is particularly detailed, you may have more luck with the ClearCase International User Group mailing list. To join that list, send e-mail to 'atria-list-manager@atria.com'. In the body of the message place the line: subscribe cciug [your-email-address] After your request has been approved and processed, you may e-mail to cciug@atria.com and it'll be read by Atria and all those customers who are on this mailing list. ------------------------------------- [3.2] Is there a tutorial someplace on RCS? ------------------------------------- Try executing 'man rcsintro'. It comes with rcs. Also try to get Walter Tichy's paper "RCS - A System for Version Control" which is in the gnu tree at prep.ai.mit.edu and is available on CD ROM from Walnut Creek. ---------------------------------------------------------------- [3.3] It seems SCCS doesn't have a $Log$ like RCS does. Am I correct ? ---------------------------------------------------------------- As far as I know there is NO keyword like $Log$ available on SCCS. They apparently implemented another way to log changes from files called 'delta table' (=some kind of database). Check out commands (on Sun4-os4) sccs prt [filename] ( = show log ) sccs cdc -r[version] [filename] ( = add command for logging) Also check out "sccs prs". ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --[ Contributors ]-- The answers in this FAQ are often composites from many responders and I felt it would not be practical to acknowledge each one here. In addition, many companies do not want their name associated with specific statements. If you disagree with this position, drop me a message and I'll consider a change. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- End of comp.software.config-mgmt FAQ 1 This document does not represent an official position or opinion of Honeywell Inc. -- +----------------------------------+----------------------------------+ |Dave Eaton | e-mail: dwe@eng.iac.honeywell.com| |Honeywell Inc. - IAC | FAX: (602)789-4064 | |16404 N Black Canyon Highway | voice: (602)863-5094 | |Phoenix, AZ 85023 | HED: AZ15/2E8 | +----------------------------------+----------------------------------+ From: Dave Eaton,dwe@eng.iac.honeywell.com Reply-To: dwe,dwe@eng.iac.honeywell.com Newsgroup: comp.answers,news.answers,comp.software.config-mgmt Receive-Date: Samstag, 01-Apr-95 16:27:18 Creation-Date: Mittwoch, 29-Mär-95 16:17:48 Message-ID: 3lc17c$pfc@adm09.iac.honeywell.com Date: 29 Mar 1995 16:17:48 GMT Subject: comp.software.config-mgmt FAQ: Problem Management Tools Summary Organization: Honeywell IAC, Phoenix AZ Followup-To: comp.software.config-mgmt X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.2 PL1] UserFlags: Old ReadAccess GlobalFlags: Exported Link HardLink Archive-name: sw-config-mgmt/prob-mgt-tools Last-modified: 1995/03/29 Version: 1.11 Posting-Frequency: monthly -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Problem Management Tools Summary -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- This is the comp.software.config-mgmt "Frequently Asked Questions" (FAQ) posting of a Problem Management tools summary. This list was originally an abbreviated summary of an evaluation of Problem Management tools performed by Honeywell Inc. during 1994. The information contained in this summary is a consolidation of data obtained from vendor materials and from a variety of sources around the Internet, including the comp.software-eng and the comp.software.config-mgmt newsgroup and the HP Workstation User Group (InterWorks) CASE Special Interest Group. This version contains substantial updates to that original version. Sharing Of Information This document, as a collection of information, is Copyright 1995 by David W. Eaton. It may be freely redistributed in its entirety provided that this copyright notice is not removed. It may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents without the written permission of the copyright holder. This article is provided as is without any express or implied warranty. The content is the sole responsibility of the author and contributors, and does not necessarily represent the position of their employers nor an official position or opinion of Honeywell Inc. Other Information For those with World Wide Web access, HTML versions of this and related documents are available via: http://www.iac.honeywell.com/Pub/Tech/CM/index.html These are updated throughout the month as changes come in. A letter is added to the version number and the date is changed with each edit to help you determine if you've already seen it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ** What's New this Month? ** 1. Corrected problems with hyperlinks. (WWW version only.) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Still Needed The following tools have been mentioned in the newsgroups, but contact information (company name, address and phone or ftp location) as well as user comments are needed so they may be included in the report below. o Andromede (ESLOG) o Solomon Teamware System/STS (Neuma) (have address, still need a write-up) o Remedy ARS o Globetrotter GlobeTrack ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents 1. Summary 2. Problem Management Overview 3. Commercial Vendor Contact List 4. Problem Management Tools Generally Available Free 5. Commercial Problem Management Tools 6. Other Tools Appendix A. References and Sources of Information Appendix B. Prob. Mgmt. Tools with World Wide Web sites 1. Summary Information Requested In January, 1994, I requested information concerning software which provided problem management solutions by posting to the following sources: o the Usenet newsgroups comp.software-eng, comp.os.ms-windows.apps, comp.databases.oracle, and comp.databases.sybase o the ClearCase International User Group mail list o the InterWorks (HP Workstation Users Group) CASE SIG mailing list o the Lotus Notes Users mailing list It has been updated as readers have supplied additional information. Responses In addition to some of the vendors themselves, responses include those received from the following companies: Alcatel-Alsthom, Bell Northern Research, Cisco, EVB Software Engineering, Inc., Hewlett-Packard, Honeywell, ICL, Ingress, ISSC, Marathon Software, Mead Data, Mentor Graphics, Motorola, PI Systems Corp., National Instruments, Sequent, Sybase, Tekenekron Software Systems, Inc., Tektronix Laboratories, Tivoli, USDA Forest Service, Viewlog. Our gratitude has been extended to all who contributed. Not Official Statements Please use the summary below in the spirit with which it has been supplied: for information only. These statements are composites and *do not* represent official positions by any particular responder's company. Remember that these users may not be commenting on the current version of a product. It is recommended that you do your own research before making a tool decision for your company. Sharing Of Information Since this data represents knowledge which is publicly available, it may be shared freely as desired. The full report (including evaluation results and recommendations) is considered proprietary to Honeywell Inc. and cannot be shared with other companies. Honeywell employees may obtain the complete report from the author (see signature line at bottom). This document does not represent an official position or opinion of Honeywell. 2. Problem Management Overview Tool Capabilities Tools marketed as problem management tools may fulfill different functions. While not a comprehensive list, some common of the common capabilities are: o Call Tracking: - targeted towards problems reported by customers often over telephone lines - input from variety of geographically disperse locations - assignment to responsible person - status monitoring and reporting o Problem Tracking - development process management and change management authorization - work (task) management (who, what, when, due date, status) - statistics and metrics gathering and reporting - historical records and facilitation of understanding - integration with configuration management and test tools Some organizations only need one of these functions, while others need both. Many organizations choose to integrate their problem management and configuration management tools to gain better control of their development activities and to improve quality. Tool Packaging Problem management tools may be purchased in any of at least three distinct packaging methods: o Stand-alone, no integration with other tools o Purchased separately, but integrated with one or more companion software engineering tools such as configuration management and test tools - may be from the same or from different vendors o Bundled with other software engineering tools, usually a configuration management tool from the same vendor Be certain you determine your needs and confirm that the tool you select fulfills your needs. General Advice Although the statements below do not relate to a particular tool, they may provide valuable ideas for those implementing problem management. o Keep it simple. If it gets in the way people won't use it. o Make it part of your customer support process. o Make it part of your e-mail system. o Make problem management a part of the regular information flow. o Make it part of your design documentation process. o Documentation the original designer supplies seldom meets maintenance needs. The change history augments the original documentation. o Get requirements from the European Computer Manufacturers Association (ECMA) reference model. If you determine the best tool for your needs is one hosted on UNIX systems, but you must have access to it from PCs as well, consider using X-Server software on the PCs. 3. Commercial Vendor Contact List Vendors Platform availability and products are continually changing, please check vendors for current information and trade publications for new entrants. This should not be considered a complete list of all available tools. As of this writing, these vendors could be contacted as shown in this table. Since vendors are continually changing platform availability and upgrading their products, it is suggested you consult with them directly for current information before making a tool selection. Commercial Products Product Vendor Address Platforms BugBase Archimedes Software, Inc. PC (Windows) 2159 Union Street San Francisco, CA 94123 tel.: 415-567-4010 FAX: 415-567-1318 Continuus/CM Continuus Software Corp. DEC (Ultrix), DG Aviion, 108 Pacifica, 2nd floor HP-UX, IBM RS/6000, SGI, Irvine, CA 92718-3332 Sun tel.: 714-453-2200 FAX: 714-453-2276 or, in the UK: tel.: +44-1344-382118 FAX: +44-1344-382158 info@continuus.com CCC/Pro Softool Corp. HP-UX, IBM RS/6000 340 South Kellogg Ave. Sun (contact vendor Goleta, CA 93117 about others) tel.: 805-683-5777 ClearQuality Clarify Inc. HP-UX, IBM RS/6000 2702 Orchard Pkwy. SGI, Sun San Jose, CA 95134 Tel.: 408-428-2512 Query Client on FAX: 408-428-0633 Windows PC, Mac, UNIX running Motif Control First Repository Technology PC (DOS) tel.: 708-515-0780 800-776-2176 CustomerQ Quintus Corporation Server: HP, IBM, Sun (subsidiary of Intergraph)Client: PC (MS Windows, 301 East Evelyn Ave. Windows/NT) Sun, HP, Mountain View, CA 94041 IBM sales@quintus.com tel.: 415-254-2859 415-428-0211 Defect Control System Intersolv, Inc. PC (Windows) (DCS) The Software Edge 5526 N. Academy Blvd. Suite 204 Colorado Springs, CO 80918 tel.: 719-598-3713 FAX: 719-598-3970 Distributed Defect QualTrak Corp. Apollo, HP 9000, Tracking System 3160 De La Cruz Blvd. IBM RS/6000, (DDTs) Suite 206 DECstation & VAX Santa Clara, CA 95054 running Ultrix, Tel.: 408-748-9500 Sun (SunOS & Solaris), FAX: 408-748-8468 PC (SCO UNIX) KeepTrack! 3L Ltd. (was PC based, but Peel House it appears this Livingstone product may be EH54 6AG no longer Scotland available) Tel. +44 506 41 5959 Lotus Notes Lotus Development Corp. PC (DOS & OS/2), 55 Cambridge Parkway Macintosh, Sun (in Cambridge, MA 02142 Beta) (others planned) Process Configuration SQL Software, Ltd. Bull, DEC (VMS, Ultirx, Mangement System (PCMS) Northbrook House OSF/1), H-P, ICL, Sequent, John Tate Road Sun, PC (Win/NT coming) Hertford SG13 7NN UK tel.:+44-992-501-414 FAX: +44-992-501-616 or SQL Software, Inc. 8500 Leesburg Pike Suite 405 Vienna, VA USA 22182 tel.: 703-760-0448 FAX: 703-760-0446 Q&A Symantec Corporation PC (DOS, Windows) 10201 Torre Ave. Cupertino, CA 95014 tel.: 408-253-9600 Qualit Defect Manager Qualit, Inc. PC 801 W. El Camino Real Suite 359 Mountain View, CA. 94040 tel.: 415-964-4525 FAX: 415-964-4512 qualit@netcom.com QualTEAM and ProTEAM Scopus Technology, Inc. Server: DEC Ultrix, 1900 Powell Street HP-UX, IBM RS/6000, Suite 900 Sun, VMS, others Emeryville, CA 94608 tel.: 510-428-0500 Client only: PC fax: 510-428-1027 (Windows, NT coming) Macintosh, MIPS Razor Tower Concepts, Inc. Sun 103 Sylvan Way (others planned) New Hartford, NY 13413 tel.: 315-724-3540 razor-info@tower.com SMS Intasoft Bull, HP-UX, IBM RS/6000 Tresco House AIX, ICL, PC (SCO UNIX), 153, Sweetbriar Lane Phillips, Sequent, Sun Exeter EX1 3DG England Tel. +44 392 217670 FAX. +44 392 437877 Solomon Teamware System Neuma Technology (STS) Corporation 130 Albert Street, Suite 1105 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K1P 5G4 Tel: 613-598-0241 FAX: 613-563-1716 Track for Windows Soffront PC (Windows, soon a 32 1806 Milmont Drive bit version for WinNT Suite 169 and OS/2) Milpitas, CA 95035 Tel: 408-263-2703 800-sof-front sales@soffront.com TrackRecord UnderWare, Inc. PC (MS Windows, WinNT, 321 Columbus Ave and OS/2) Boston, MA 02116 Tel: 800-343-7308 Vantive Quality Vantive Corp. HP-UX, IBM RS/6000 1890 N. Shoreline Blvd. Sun Mountain View, CA 94043 Tel.: 415-691-1500 Client on Windows PC (WinNT Planned) 4. Problem Management Tools Generally Available Free Free But Perhaps Not Fully Supported There do not seem to be many public domain problem management tools available. A public domain tool is generally available at no charge if you transfer it from an archive site on the Internet using a tool such as FTP. In some cases the tool will need to be compiled at your site. Most come bundled with adequate documentation. Such tools generally are provided without support, so it may not be advisable to use them on some projects. For completeness, any tools recommended by others on the Internet have been listed here despite that potential drawback. GNU GNATS GNU GNATS (GNU Problem Report Management System) is copyrighted by the Free Software Foundation and freely available according to the terms of the GNU General Public License. Commercial support for GNATS is provided by Cygnus Support. This product which helps track software problems or change-requests. Some of its features include: o problems submitted via e-mail o uses a file system based database o each problem identified by a unique key o querying possible o can maintain audit trail of all activities concerning a specific problem o a GUI interface (via tkgnats) Responders believed that linking GNATS and the ClearCase task examples (/usr/atria/examples/task) should not be too difficult, though no responders seem to have tried this. GNATS can be obtained from one of the GNU mirrors or from Cygnus Support. For example, GNATS may be found via anonymous FTP at: site filename prep.ai.mit.edu pub/gnu/gnats-3.2.tar.gz 5. Commercial Problem Management Tools Growing Number On Market It was not possible to provide comments concerning all the available tools during the course of this project. A brief summary of various offerings is provided below so that your site may decide if it would be appropriate to consider one of these tools. The comments are a composite made from vendor literature, and various contributing volunteers. (Some are from the Usenet newsgroup comp.software-eng and other e-mail communications and do not necessarily reflect the experiences of the author of this document.) Contact information such as address and phone number may be found in the Commercial Vendor Contact List, elsewhere in this document. Mentioned Most Often The Scopus tool set (QualTEAM and ProTEAM) were mentioned most often by those responding to the request for information, followed closely by the QualTrak tool (DDTs). (This represents those responding to the request for information and those commenting on this FAQ, it is not meant to indicate these products are the "winners" of a sanctioned evaluation of such tools.) BugBase BugBase is a PC-only tool which keeps track of problems and provides on-screen reports as text, pie charts or bar graphs. The database tracks the status, severity, urgency, and type of the defect, as well as providing for a brief description of the problem. Other fields allow additional information to be included. Sorts may be based on any field. Continuus/PT The Continuus/PT problem tracking tool from Continuus Software Corp. (formerly CaseWare, Inc.) is excellent and is driven from the same configuration management database as their Continuus/CM tool, providing a tightly integrated package. The system supports problem submission (either through a graphical user interface or electronic mail), on-line queries, problem reporting, and correlation of change requests to project components. Problems may be divided into separately assigned tasks which are tracked as part of problem resolution. Standard problem and task management process models and user screen formats may be used as is, or may be modified to fit customer-specified processes. CCC/Pro CCC/Pro provides problem management as a stand-alone tool or in conjunction with Softool's other software development tools. Electronic review and notification of status changes is part of the problem life cycle management provided. ClearQuality ClearQuality is part of Clarify Inc.'s Service Management System. While ClearSupport provides high volume call tracking, ClearQuality provides defect tracking. Information it keeps includes priority, severity, module and description. It allows related information to be attached by the user. In addition to Motif on UNIX platforms, ClearQuality's query tool may be run from PCs running MS Windows and from Macintosh machines. Control First The Control First product by Repository Technology (708-515-0780) provides problem tracking capability for the configuration management product PVCS. DCS The PC Windows-only tool DCS came highly recommended by the person who responded. It may be used in stand alone mode or may be networked. UNIX systems may access the database via lan manager and PC/NFS. The integration with PVCS provides a development platform for PC users. DDTs (QualTrak) QualTrak's DDTs received the second highest number of recommendations, behind Scopus. Some of the DDTs advocates had been using the tool for several years and claimed they could not imagine functioning without it. While it does not provide call tracking, it does a very good job of problem management and metrics gathering. The e-mail interface allows notification of new problems and changes of status. The tool's character-based terminal interface origins is still evident even in the newer X-Windows version, causing some users to find it harder to use than a full GUI tool. Despite that drawback, it had many strong supporters. The DDTs and ClearCase configuration management integration has been shipping for a while and seems to be very popular. A number of users report a high degree of satisfaction with this integration. One outstanding problem is a current ClearCase limitation. It only has the ability to attach one defect to each of the files/directories. The user reports that ClearCase version 2 is expected to fix this problem. DDTs is integrated with QualTrak's Xsimul-test, announced in March, 1994. DDTs provides a simple "query language" that allows extracting "all bugs submitted against product-x by person-y between date-1 and date-2 that have priority greater than z." While it does not support SQL, those with Bourne shell experience should have no trouble creating their own scripts to perform specialized queries. Advantages o very easy to use platform o very flexible tool o good integration with ClearCase o offers the most benefit for the dollar o references check out well o good support o ability to link problem reports in parent-child relationships o allows some rather complex searches o very nice metrics shipped and setup with the tool o engineer can get e-mail with change-request number o people at QualTrak have a good attitude, which helps Disadvantages o user interface is too character-based o only available on UNIX platforms today o uses UNIX Bourne script language for forming special queries Summarizing their installation, one person said, "ClearCase is truly a productivity tool for the engineer/programmer and DDTs is a productivity tool for the project manager." KeepTrack! Consensus of responders was that KeepTrack! was rather restrictive and that it is no longer available on the market. Lotus Notes Not surprisingly, a Lotus representative replied that they use Lotus Notes for Tech Support Calls. All customer incidents are tracked from phone call through world-wide escalation. (Although Lotus claimed to market the application and customization they use, there was no response to an e-mail request for more information.) Others using Lotus Notes admitted they had not tried a commercial system built specifically for problem management. Most used e-mail and/or automatic e-mail from Lotus Notes as part of their implementation. Depending upon how each site builds the database and forms, a Lotus Notes form may include version, client, module, priority, status, additional text, and more. Prioritization and review can be handled, though the descriptions of some implementations sounded awkward. The current version runs only on PCs with Windows 3.1 or OS/2 and on Macintosh. Although some sites have made the Windows 3.1 version run on Windows/NT, Lotus considers that an unsupported platform. A Windows/NT port is expected in August, 1994. The Sun Solaris version is due to ship 1Q94; other UNIX versions (HP 9000 HP-UX and IBM RS/6000 AIX) are expected to ship several months after the Sun is in final shipment. Advantages o tailored to local process and style o better than lots of Post-It notes and yelling o tool already in use for other communication reasons o good means for wide area distribution and replication Disadvantages o difficult to extract metrics reports o performance issues (see below) o lack of integration with rest of development system Although reliability and up-time seems adequate, performance and scalability tended to be a problem when using Lotus Notes as a problem tracking system. Even on 50 MHz 486 machines, several users reported situations such as: o 20 second searches with fewer than 2000 records o over 5 minutes with 65000 records and two users o search time doubling with each new user added PCMS The configuration management tool PCMS from SQL Ltd. includes an embedded software development process management capability which can be used for problem management. Based on an Oracle database engine, it is SQL compliant. Though enhanced for version 4.0, its GUI is still trailing other implementations. One user reports they found the PCMS user interface to be one of the least intuitive and least pleasant they ever used. Furthermore, the system as a whole was very bureaucratic and time-consuming, adding a lot of overhead to the development process that couldn't be justified by the rewards. These comments have been disputed by several others in the newsgroup who claim PCMS imposes no more process overhead than the user/organization has itself chosen to use. The organizational policies are definable within the PCMS "control plan". Interactions with other tools is limited but being improved. It is integrated with a graphical desktop in Digital's COHESION Team/SEE. Q&A One location provided extensive customization to the PC database product Q&A in order to perform problem tracking. While the forms could be made to suit the project needs and fairly complex queries were possible, the DOS interface and lack of integration with other development tools were cited as problems. The system had no means of notifying users of new problems or status changes via e-mail nor of providing parent-child relationships between reports. QualTEAM and ProTEAM (Scopus) More users recommended the Scopus products than any other. Most were very satisfied with the tool set, which includes call tracking (ProTEAM) and problem management (QualityTEAM). A GUI based builder provides easy modification of the user interface and allows site-specific forms and data fields. Integrations exist with several configuration management systems such as Atria Software's ClearCase. The products are also integrated with Mercury's XRunner test product. A rather unique Scopus feature provides synchronization of databases located at remote locations when needed. Several people responded with the names of other companies (not their own) who were using the Scopus products. While this provides an interesting data point, this should not be taken as an endorsement of this product by these companies: o Atria Software (producers of the configuration management tool ClearCase) uses Scopus to track its customer calls o Mentor Graphics in Wilsonville Oregon selected Scopus Several sites had used both the Scopus and the QualTrak tool; some had both installed at the same time. Of those with both, the Scopus user interface was preferred. A few had started with QualTrak's DDTs since it was a lower cost solution in low volume. When call tracking was required, some migrated to Scopus while others added Scopus to the existing environment. Reportedly, the founders of Scopus are former Sybase employees. Thus, Scopus is very tightly integrated with Sybase, although it may be run on an Oracle database if a site so chooses. Advantages o integrated call / bug tracking / application notes o ad-hoc query builder / keyword search o ease of use o flexibility o easy to add/modify the system screens and functions o ease of customization (no programming) o ease of distribution of new customizations o get more functionality by buying than building o works well in a WAN across MAC, PC, UNIX o performance o reliability, stability, robustness o Sybase database is performing well o system support is minimal o the license "floats" o support is first-rate Disadvantages o price (particularly in low volume) o Scopus is growing and customer support has not kept up the pace o current Sybase does not have a rich set of admin tools o vendor does not provide much printing capability o you will have to buy a report writer o weak state model o invocation time is too long Some extensions users have added on their own o some of QualTrak's new XDDTS query capabilities added to Scopus o software license management Some usage statistics reported o 250 concurrent users with satisfactory performance o 200 MB of report data o 8000 new problems per month o 20,000 data records on line The training classes (held at Emeryville) come highly recommended. Implementations could be done without it, but having the class will save a lot of time. It was also suggested that new sites put together a strong, well focused team to work with Scopus consultants during installation. Relying too heavily on a vendor consultant increases your risk when they leave. One former user said that generating reports was troublesome, with data conversion being the primary compliant. Another satisfied user reported, "overall the product is filling our needs nicely." Razor Razor from Tower Concepts, Inc. is an easily tailored configuration management system with an integrated problem tracking system. It offers control and coordination of file versioning and product build management, sitting on top of RCS, SCCS, or your choice of a different core. The current product is available only on Sun workstations with a graphical interface built on OpenLook. HP & SGI versions are due early in 1994 with others to follow. It's easily parsed ASCII database encourages users to generate their own scripts for report generation and process control. The heart of the Razor package is issue tracking. Issue form templates are defined and tailored by each work group to contain information that will meet their needs. These forms present themselves on screen as OpenLook windows, employing text fields, textedit windows, check boxes, choices etc, for such information as... o The estimated effort/cost involved o Whether the issue is approved for resolution o The systems to be affected by the proposed change o Which product release it relates to o Its priority and phase in schedule o None, all, others, or variations of the above Each new form is automatically numbered and entered into the Razor database. These forms can then be edited and routed to team members electronically, avoiding the clumsy paper and homegrown systems that have become the norm in many companies. Every change to the form is recorded and time stamped with the user's login name, providing complete accountability for changes. Approval and signature lists can be configured into the system to make the package as open or restrictive as each site deems necessary for their process. A company representative stressed that it is extremely easy to try out their product. Both documentation and a full copy of the product for evaluation are available by FTP. New releases and patches are handled in the same manner. Contact razor-info@tower.com for a detailed description. SMS The configuration management system, SMS, from Intasoft includes a Modification Request tracking system. No responders had personal experience with this tool. Based upon cursory review of the literature, one responder considered this tool restrictive and unimaginative. TrackRecord UnderWare, Inc.'s TrackRecord allows PC users to keep track of bug reports, new feature requests, documentation, and more. Displaying information in an outline format permits manipulation in an overview manner, while still keeping all data up to date. A calendar view provides a quick look at what work items need to be addressed. Vantive Quality Vantive Quality by Vantive Corporation is an integrated change management system with links to several configuration management systems. In addition to status tracking, it integrates with popular e-mail packages, providing automatic routing of problems. Vantive Quality is integrated with other Vantive tools to provide such features as Help Desk support. 6. Other Tools There are other such tools available today as well as new ones entering the market. Check the appropriate industry periodicals for additional listings. Appendix A. References and Sources of Information For additional information about the topic discussed here, consider the following sources of information in addition to various industry periodicals and new data from the vendors themselves. Usenet Newsgroup [1] The Usenet newsgroup comp.software-eng articles and associated Frequently asked Questions (FAQ) lists comments on software tools from newsgroup readers world-wide. The FAQ is archived at site rtfm.mit.edu in the directory pub/usenet/news.answers/software-eng under the names part0 through part3. Windows NT Tools [2] Microsoft Win32 Products & Services Catalog. Published in 1993 by Microsoft Corporation as part number 098-5230. Copies may be requested from Microsoft Corporation; Systems Marketing; One Microsoft Way; Redmond, WA 98052 or e-mail: win32cat@microsoft.com Open Systems Tools [3] 1994 Open Systems Products Directory. Published in 1994 by UniForum for their members. ISBN: 0-936593-28-8. Uniforum; 2901 Tasman Dr., Suite 205; Santa Clara, CA 95054-1100. Various products mentioned in this message are the trademarks of their respective companies. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Appendix B. Problem Management Tools With World Wide Web Sites As the popularity and accessibility of the World Wide Web (WWW) has grown, tool vendors and dedicated users have begun providing tool information on their WWW servers. The content may vary widely, and some will contain significant marketing information, rather than technical details. On any particular attempt, network traffic, server traffic, or server outages may prevent access to the information. All servers may not be accessible from all sites. The related WWW servers which have been reported to this FAQ editor are: -Vendor/Supplier WWW Servers o Qualit, Inc. at ftp://ftp.netcom.com/pub/qualit/qualit.html o Intersolv, Inc. at http://www.intersolv.com -User Information WWW Servers o (None at this time) If you are aware of other WWW Servers which should be added to this list (or any which should be retired), please notify the FAQ editor. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------- End Of This Document------------- (This message does not represent an official position of Honeywell Inc.) -- +----------------------------------+----------------------------------+ |Dave Eaton | e-mail: dwe@eng.iac.honeywell.com| |Honeywell Inc. - IAC | FAX: (602)789-4064 | |16404 N Black Canyon Highway | voice: (602)863-5094 | |Phoenix, AZ 85023 | HED: AZ15/2E8 | +----------------------------------+----------------------------------+