Configuration Management Models in Commercial Environment

A number of advances can be observed in recent commercial software development environments in support of configuration management (CM). These advances include configurations as managed objects, transparent access to repositories, and, in addition to the familiar checkout/check-in model, three CM models based on configurations. These CM models are the composition model, the long transaction model, and the change set model. Typically, one or two of the models can be found in a system. 

This report analyzes the models with respect to their potential impact on the software development process, resulting in several observations. Some of the models exist in a number of variations, each impacting the software process differently. CM capabilities can be found not only in CM tools and environment frameworks but also in development tools. Integration of such tools into environment raises the need for different CM models to interoperate. Therefore, it is desirable to evolve to a unified CM model that encompasses the full range of CM concepts and can be adapted to different process needs.