Section 4.9. Checklist

4.9. Checklist

This section contains a short list of questions that you should feel comfortable answering about how you use an existing SCM tool:

• What is saved in your SCM system? What is not in your SCM system? Why?

• What have you overlooked? Often the only time this question is carefully answered is when a hard disk dies and you try to recreate your environment. List all the files, tools, and other pieces of your environment that you use to build a release.

• Can you still recreate older releases if a file is renamed?

• Can you still recreate older releases if a directory is renamed?

• How do you know the date on which a file was branched?

• How do you know the intended purpose of each branch?

• Who can change permissions for write and read access to the SCM tool?

• What happens with your SCM tool if two files in the same directory have the same name, but one is uppercase and one is lowercase? What happens if a filename has spaces in it?

• How does the backup size of your SCM tool's files change over time? When will you next fill up a key disk, CD, DVD, or tape?

• Can you develop on a laptop on an airplane? How much of your SCM tool still works, and how do you resynchronize when you reconnect later on?

• How would you add a process to your SCM toolfor example, requiring each change to be reviewed by other people?

• Do you have good integration between your SCM tool and your bug tracking system?

• How do you decide when to upgrade your SCM tool, whether it's to fix bugs in the tool or for extra functionality?

• What is the most common mistake that people using your SCM tool make? How could you help them to avoid doing that?