Glossary · Change, versions and configuration
Change propagation
In systems engineering, change propagation is the controlled transfer and evaluation of a change across dependent lifecycle items. It follows trace links from the changed item to every requirement, design, test, document and evidence item that depends on it.
- Systems engineering
- Technical documentation
- Integrated systems
In one sentence
Change propagation carries a change along trace links to every dependent requirement, test, document and evidence item and evaluates it there.
Example
When the reach distance of a conveyor guard changes, change propagation leads from the guard drawing to the risk assessment, the validation checklist, the spare parts list and the maintenance manual.
How it applies
- Traceability: Propagation depends on trace links. Without them, dependents are found by memory, and some are missed.
- Integrated systems: A change can cross system boundaries through interfaces. Include neighboring machines and their owners in the propagation.
- Technical documentation: Documentation often receives changes last. The delay is a form of documentation latency and should be tracked until closure.
- AI and retrieval: Where AI assistants retrieve content, propagate changes into the indexed sources as well. Otherwise the assistant keeps answering from the old state.
Change propagation vs. impact analysis
Impact analysis identifies what may be affected. Change propagation carries the change to those items and evaluates it at each one until the chain is closed.