System Development Life Cycle: Part 1

SDLC: System Development Life Cycle is the process of developing, implementing, and retiring information systems through a multistep process from initiation, analysis, design, implementation, and maintenance to disposal. It helps in establishing a system project plan, because it gives an overall list of processes and sub-processes required for developing a system, which means that it is a combination of various activities. In the System Analysis
and Design terminology, the system development life cycle also means software development life cycle.

OR

We can say that it is the conceptual model that describes the stages involved in an information system development project in project management.

Why SDLC is necessary?

Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) is recognized by different website and software developers all over the world. However there's always a question of the need to implement this type of planning. We all know that SDLC could help us answer specific needs of different users. That is a given. But could that problem be answered when you are already familiar with that specific difficulty? In-house developers could even create the software on their own without consultation to users since they are also a part of the user group and has a clear understanding of what is needed. Clearly, SDLC is not needed to create software in this environment.

Various SDLC methodologies have been developed to guide the processes involved including the waterfall model (the original SDLC method), rapid application development (RAD), joint application development (JAD), the fountain model and the spiral model.

Various System Development Life Cycle models are:

1. Waterfall Software Development Life Cycle Model
2. Prototyping Software Development Life Cycle Model
3. Iterative Enhancement Model
4. The Spiral Model
5. Object Oriented Methodology
6. V- Model Methodology
7. Joint application development (JAD)
8. Rapid application development (RAD)

From the above models first the SDLC method that describes the various phases involved in the development is the classic Waterfall model methodology which is shown below:

                                                                                            Continue to Part 2