Glossary

---

NOTE: This glossary was originally printed in the Systems Development Life Cycle Manual , dated July 2002, a product of the State of Maryland’s Department of Budget & Management (DBM) Office of Information Technology. It is freely available at URL: http://www.dbm.state.md.us.

–A–

Acceptance Test

Formal testing conducted to determine whether a system satisfies its acceptance criteria and to enable the customer to determine whether to accept the system. See User Acceptance Test .

Accreditation

Formal declaration by an accrediting authority that a computer system is approved to operate in a particular security mode using a prescribed set of safeguards.

Acquisition Plan

A formal document showing how all hardware, software, and telecommunications capabilities, along with resources, are to be obtained during the life of the project.

Activity

A unit of work to be completed in order to achieve the objectives of a work breakdown structure. See Work Breakdown Structure . In process modeling, an activity requires inputs and produces outputs. See input/ output .

Adaptability

The ease with which software satisfies differing system constraints and user needs.

Adaptive maintenance

Maintenance performed to change a system in order to keep it usable in a changed environment.

Alias

A name of a data entity or data attribute that is different from its official name.

Allocated baseline

The approved documentation that describes the design of the functional and interface characteristics that are allocated from a higher-level configuration item. See baseline .

Alternative work patterns

Work pattern that permits tailoring a project plan to meet the specific needs of the project and still conform to SDLC standards.

Application

A system providing a set of services to solve some specific user problem.

Application model

A model used to graphically and textually represent the required data and processes within the scope of the application development project.

Application software

Software specifically developed to perform a specific type of work (e.g., a word processor). Compare with system software .

Architecture

The structure of a computer system, either a part or the entire system; can be hardware, software, or both.

Audit

A formal review of a project (or project activity) to assess compliance with contractual obligations.

Availability

The degree to which a system (or system component) is operational and accessible when required for use.

---