COMDTINST 5230.66
4.
SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT LIFE CYCLE. The SDLC is a sequence of seven phases used to
produce, operate, and support C4&IT systems. These phases begin with the identification of need
and span all facets of a C4&IT system's life cycle, including planning, acquisition, deployment,
operation, and retirement of a system. The SDLC Practice is based on industry and government
best practices and shall be kept current through updates to the SDLC Practices. SDLC Practices
shall be promulgated separately and shall identify inputs, outputs, procedures, and products for each
phase. The Coast Guard's SDLC is defined by the following seven phases:
a. Conceptual Planning. This phase is the first step of any system's life cycle. It is during this
phase that a need to acquire or significantly enhance a system is identified, its feasibility and
costs are assessed, and the risks and various project planning approaches are defined.
b. Planning and Requirements Definition. This phase begins after the project has been defined and
appropriate resources have been committed. The first portion of this phase involves collecting,
defining, and validating functional, support, and training requirements. The second part involves
developing initial life cycle management plans, including project planning, project management,
configuration management, support, operations, and training management.
c. Design. During this phase, functional, support, and training requirements are translated into
preliminary and detailed designs. Decisions are made to address how the system will meet
functional requirements. A preliminary (general) system design, emphasizing the functional
features of the system, is produced as a high-level guide. Then a final (detailed) system design is
produced that expands the design by specifying all the technical detail needed to develop the
system.
d. Development and Testing. During this phase, systems are developed or acquired based on
detailed design specifications. The system is validated through a sequence of unit, integration,
performance, system, and acceptance testing. The objective is to ensure that the system
functions as expected and that the Sponsor's requirements are satisfied. All system components,
communications, applications, procedures, and associated documentation are
developed/acquired, tested, and integrated. This phase requires strong user participation in order
to verify thorough testing of all requirements and to meet all business needs.
e. Implementation. During this phase, the new or enhanced system is installed in the production
environment, users are trained, data is converted (as needed), the system is turned over to the
Sponsor, and business processes are evaluated. This phase includes efforts required to
implement/resolve system problems identified during the implementation process and to plan for
sustainment.
f. Operations and Maintenance. The system becomes operational during this phase. The emphasis
during this phase is to ensure that the Sponsor's needs continue to be met and that the system
continues to perform according to specifications. Routine hardware and software maintenance
and upgrades are performed to ensure effective system operations. User training continues
during this phase, as needed, to acquaint new users with the system or to introduce new features
to current users. Additional user support is provided, as an ongoing activity, to help resolve
reported problems.
g. Disposition (or System Retirement). This phase represents the end of the system's life cycle. It
provides for the deliberate termination of a system to ensure that vital information is preserved
for potential future access and/or reactivation. The system, when placed in the Disposition
Phase, has been declared surplus and/or obsolete and has been scheduled for shutdown. The
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