Table of ContentsSoftware Development Life Cycle DefinitionPlanningDeployment With digital technology so present in our daily lives, it's easy to take software for granted. If an app on our desktop, laptop, or mobile system works, that's all we care about. We may not even think of it as software at all. But when a system or application malfunctions, or there is an unwanted intrusion of viruses or other forms of malware, things take a different course. This is usually followed by an angry phone call or email to IT, technical support, or the software company. In an ideal world, this shouldn't be the case – and in fact, there is an underlying basis to every piece of software we use. , which aims to ensure the proper functioning of our applications and IT systems and a high level of resistance to attacks and malware: The Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”?Get an original essayDefine Software Development Life CycleThe software development life cycle or SDLC consists of a series of stages or phases which provide a systematic model for creating and managing a software application. There are several variations of the SDLC model and different methodologies are used at each phase of the process, depending on the organization or sector involved. There are also industry standards in place, such as ISO/IEC 12207, which in some cases define the processes for establishing the lifecycle of software, how it should be deployed, or how whose systems it runs on need to be configured. The different types of SDLC models (which we'll look at shortly) are sometimes called software development process models – and each follows a particular lifecycle in order to ensure a successful software development and delivery process. Beyond the goal suggested in our title – plan, develop, test, deploy and maintain secure software – a software development life cycle is also a business process whose goal is to reduce the cost and time required to software development, while improving the quality and robustness of the product itself. The SDLC achieves these sometimes contradictory objectives by strictly following the path traced by its different phases, each of which leads to the next. Although the software development life cycle varies, there are some fundamental steps common to all, as we will now describe. Planning Sometimes known as the analysis and definition phase or requirements analysis, the SDLC starts with a requirements analysis phase. collection and planning phase, during which key questions about the software are asked and a list of requirements is drawn up to define what it should be able to do. At this point, feedback from all stakeholders is considered: the software's intended user base, the developers, and the organizations or systems that support its production. Typical questions to ask here would include: "Who will use this app?" ", "How is data input/output from the system? and “What do we want/don’t want to happen?” » DesignThe specifications and considerations raised at the planning stage are then translated into a plan called a design specification, which also involves specifying hardware and system requirements.