Software Configuration Management in Global Software Development: A Systematic Map

Many companies use Global Software Development (GSD) to access skilled people, reduce costs and utilize around the clock development. GSD has numerous social and technical difficulties, but most literature only examines social difficulties. Few studies concern technical difficulties or address Software Configuration Management (SCM) issues. SCM is widely used, and supports the infrastructure and practices that enable change management and version control. SCM has potential to support more effective GSD, but is more difficult in GSD, because coordination and synchronization are more complex. This paper presents our findings of a systematic mapping study of SCM in GSD. Systematic mapping is a methodology to discover and categorize research on a topic, and can be used to identify common themes and areas requiring further study. We find most research on SCM in GSD has used case studies, and there has been little empirical validation. The lack of coordination and group awareness causes difficulties for SCM in GSD, but no SCM process has been proposed to address this. More research is required on Software Configuration Control for GSD.