A Success Story

SCM implementation for a Telecom customer

Initial Environment

Our services

Rollout process

Équipe Communications™ is building the only true next-generation ATM/MPLS multiservice core switch specifically designed for large-scale service providers. It is the most cost effective, high availability solution for scaling layer 2 services, transitioning from ATM to MPLS, and driving reductions in operations costs through integration with intelligent optical networks

Customer asked Roshi Tech to provide a Software Development Environment and Software Configuration Management  for the group.  RTI worked with customer in providing the same.

Customer is a new Telecom startup company and started to build every thing from scratch. They choose Rational's ClearCase and ClearQuest tools for Version Control and Defect Tracking system. Since it involved with Hardware and Embedded systems, client decided to use OSE 's Real Time OS and Green Hills Cross Compilers.  The initial simulation is done on Sun systems.

Roshi Tech discussed with all the  groups Software , Drivers, Design Verification, Network Management, Hardware and Testing group and defined a Software Development environment. Software, Drivers and Design Verification groups decided to use Unified Change Management (UCM), and Hardware group decided to use base Clearcase.

Development is done using various tools and languages like C / C++ / JAVA and using Windows and UNIX platforms.

RTI has started working with the customer right from the inception of the company. As customer is building a Multiservice Core switch product, they are focused and followed a well defined process right from the inception. Roshi Tech worked with the client in all phases of its SCM definition and implementation. Our tasks include

• Tools installation.
• Development environment
• Code management
• Development process
• Change Management
• Build Management
• Release Management
• Patch Management

Installed SCM  tools and configured 

Installed and configured Rational ClearCase V4.2 and ClearQuest V2001 and integrated them to provide an UCM environment in Mixed hardware environment. VOBs are configured on UNIX and provided access to clients on Windows systems using SAMBA and TAS.

Defined basic development environment.

 At that time UCM is a brand new feature released by Rational and we are one of the first people to implement UCM on UNIX systems. The success story is also published at Rational's Web Site. We have used ClearCase UCM for and added additional custom rules and implemented the same with the help of triggers. Trained users in using the new development environment.

Defined a similar development system for Hardware group. However H/W group doesn't need much of the branching and merging features, UCM was not apt for them. Hence developed scripts to support a simple development environment for the H/W group.

Code Management

• Defined directory structures and created multiple VOBs for various groups. 

• Imported third party code into VOBs and managed vendor branches.

• Documented the whole process.

• Defined naming convention and coding convention.

Development Process

• Network Management group uses JAVA for coding, Drivers and Software group uses C/C++.

• Defined directory structure to meet packaging needs.

• Developed Makefile system to support building on multiple platforms, including Sun OS, MPC 8250, PPC 755 and other platforms.

Change Management

• Defined a Defect and Changes Tracking system and customized ClearQuest to meet customer needs.

• Developed various forms and reports to meet provide needed reporting for Management.

• Since we are using UCM based development, developed scripts to interact with ClearQuest and integrated ClearCase into the environment. We didn't use the Rational's out-of-the-box UCM process to integrate the CC and CQ, as it was not available for UNIX platform. Hence developed our own scripts and triggers to achieve the same.

• Integrated Change reports into nightly build and release system.

Build Management

• Defined build management system.

• Identified the build order and dependent components.

• Developed Makefiles to build the whole product in multiple platform using Multiple environment and compilers.

• Developed Makefiles to compile NMS code on both UNIX and Windows Platforms.

• Used Clearmake utility to build the code in parallel on multiple systems.

• Used LSF to get the best benefits of the networked system resources.

Release Management

• Product is a complex set of individual images.

• Product includes Hardware, boot images, Device Drivers, Software, Network Management tools and Simulation tools and other tools.

• Each release is a complete set of deliverables.

• Supports multiple versions of Hardware

• Multiple development and Release streams.

• Versioning of each component and also complete product.

• Integrated Change report and Release Notes.

Patch Management

• Supports release of patches for any specific build.

• Patch clearly identifies the compatibility of the rest of the modules and images.

• Patch reproducibility and  delivery Release notes and change history.

• Versioning.