Glossary · Automation software engineering and architecture
Software configuration
Also known as: Software settings
German: Softwarekonfiguration
In software engineering, software configuration is the set of settings, parameters and selected options that adapts a software product to a specific installation, machine variant or use, and, in configuration management, the identified combination of software items and versions.
- Software engineering
In one sentence
Software configuration is the settings and options adapting software to an installation, or the identified set of software item versions.
Example
The software configuration of machine 1047 records firmware 3.2.1, PLC project version 1.8 and the parameter set for the two-lane variant.
How it applies
- Engineering: Separating configuration from code lets one software version serve many machine variants. The configuration must be validated and versioned like code.
- Configuration management: For each delivered machine, the exact software configuration should be recorded as part of the Configuration baseline, so service can reproduce and support it.
- Documentation: Manuals for configurable products should mark variant-specific content. In DITA, conditional processing with attributes matching the configuration keeps one source for all variants.
Settings vs. configuration items
In everyday use, software configuration means settings. In configuration management, it means the identified set of items and versions that make up a system. Documentation should make clear which meaning is intended.