User Guide - MKS

Change
Package
Methodology
Change
Package
Commands
Change Package Feature Overview
When used across a development project, Apply CP and Resync CP are
powerful tools for managing changes and new content. However, the
effectiveness of the functionality ultimately relies on the following factors:
accurate and consistent use of change packages for logging issues
associating related changes into a single change package that
ultimately addresses the issue in question
Because issues, and their associated change packages, follow a workflow
progression, it is critical that each member of the development team record
and track all changes as they are made, from the initial phase to the
completion phase in which the associated problem is addressed. All
changes relating to a given issue must then be associated with the correct
change package. Once the problem is addressed, or the feature added, that
change package can be closed.
It is equally important that issues are clearly delineated so that each change
package addresses only one problem area or feature. Certainly, one
problem area or feature may require many files to address it, but if you
create a change package that is too wide in scope, it becomes difficult to
extract specific changes later on.
With accurate and consistent logging, Source Integrity can clearly identify
the specific member revisions (or files) that address the identified problem
or complete the required feature. Without this type of tracking, applying a
change package may not have the desired results and manual reviews may
become necessary.
Consider the following scenario at abcBusiness: A major customer
purchased version 2.0 of abcBusiness’ Aurora software. The customer now
wants a new feature—data compression—that they can use with Aurora
2.0. The development team at abcBusiness has already completed work on
a data compression feature, but the feature has been engineered only as
part of the upcoming Aurora 3.0 release.
To address the customer’s needs, abcBusiness would normally have to
assign a separate development team to create the new feature for Aurora
2.0. But how can abcBusiness take advantage of the work already
completed on the data compression feature and provide it to the customer?
If the development team has been using change packages, they can isolate
the files that relate to the new data compression feature. However, without
the functionality of Apply CP and Resync CP, the buildmaster at
abcBusiness would have to search the required change package(s)
manually and individually review all of the associated files to isolate the
changes related to the feature. The buildmaster would then have to add
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