6. System Specification

The user has agreed to the project through signing off the user requirement specification

The developers know what to do through the design specification,

Now the next document, called the 'system specification' describes *how* it is to be carried out.

Technical details typically include:

Software applications to be used These could be off-the-shelf applications modified to suit the project or they may be bespoke applications already available within the company
Storage requirements This includes local storage requirements such as hard disk size or it may be networked storage such as file servers
System memory How much RAM will be required by the system in order for it to run effectively
Input devices needed These include OMR devices, scanners, barcode readers, keyboards, mice, touch screens etc
Output devices to be used These could be printers, plotters, monitors and so on.
Computing/ processing power needed For a huge system it may need a mainframe level of computing power, on the other hand it may only need a standard personal computer to run
Security and Backup systems How the passwords are handled and controlled, authentication methods, how backups are to be handled and so on.
People required The system may need a full time network manager and a team of support technicians for example
Buildings and offices required The system may need a dedicated data room or even an external data centre.
Network configuration If it is a networked system then this includes topology, servers, router, hubs to be used
System feeds Many systems are inter-linked. For instance an accounting system may be connected to the production system to keep track of products being made and sold.

The overall purpose of the system specification documentation is to lay down exactly how the system is made up.

 

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Click on this link: System Specification