CSM Software Development Lifecycle & Methodologies 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the key difference between 'velocity' and 'throughput' as Agile metrics?
- Velocity measures story points completed per sprint; throughput measures the number of items completed per time period (Correct answer)
- Velocity counts defects found; throughput counts defects fixed
- Velocity is a team metric; throughput is an individual performance metric
- Velocity applies only to Scrum; throughput applies only to Kanban
Correct answer: Velocity measures story points completed per sprint; throughput measures the number of items completed per time period
Velocity sums story points completed per sprint while throughput counts the number of work items delivered per unit of time regardless of size.
Question 2: During which SDLC phase is a Feasibility Study typically conducted?
- Design
- Implementation
- Planning/Initiation (Correct answer)
- Maintenance
Correct answer: Planning/Initiation
A Feasibility Study is conducted during the Planning or Initiation phase to evaluate whether a project is technically, economically, and operationally viable before committing resources.
Question 3: Which DevOps practice ensures that infrastructure is provisioned and managed using code rather than manual processes?
- Blue-Green Deployment
- Infrastructure as Code (IaC) (Correct answer)
- Feature Toggles
- Chaos Engineering
Correct answer: Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
Infrastructure as Code (IaC) uses configuration files to provision and manage infrastructure, enabling version control and repeatability.
Question 4: In RUP (Rational Unified Process), which phase focuses on establishing the project's architecture and proof-of-concept?
- Inception
- Elaboration (Correct answer)
- Construction
- Transition
Correct answer: Elaboration
The Elaboration phase in RUP establishes the architectural baseline and resolves the highest-risk technical issues through executable prototypes.
Question 5: A software manager must choose between 'fail fast' and traditional error handling. What does 'fail fast' promote?
- Suppressing exceptions and continuing execution to maximize uptime
- Detecting and surfacing errors immediately when they occur rather than allowing corrupted state to propagate (Correct answer)
- Deploying untested code quickly to meet deadlines
- Deferring error resolution to the maintenance phase
Correct answer: Detecting and surfacing errors immediately when they occur rather than allowing corrupted state to propagate
Fail-fast systems halt and report errors immediately upon encountering a problem, preventing corrupted state from spreading and making debugging easier.
Question 6: Which document formally marks the transition from the system design phase to the implementation phase in a traditional SDLC?
- Software Requirements Specification (SRS)
- System Design Document (SDD) (Correct answer)
- Test Plan
- Project Charter
Correct answer: System Design Document (SDD)
The System Design Document (SDD) captures architectural and detailed design decisions and serves as the blueprint developers follow during implementation.
Question 7: What Scrum ceremony is explicitly designed to inspect the process and create a plan for improvements in the next sprint?
- Sprint Review
- Daily Scrum
- Sprint Retrospective (Correct answer)
- Sprint Planning
Correct answer: Sprint Retrospective
The Sprint Retrospective focuses on how the team is working together and produces actionable improvements to be applied in the next sprint.
CSM Software Development Lifecycle & Methodologies 3
What is the key difference between 'velocity' and 'throughput' as Agile metrics?