Configuration Management is the Process responsible for maintaining information about Configuration Items required to deliver an IT Service, including their Relationships.

GOAL

The goals of Configuration Management are to:

• define a model enabling the control of the CEF Building Block IT infrastructure and/or services using CIs;
• provide relevant information on system configurations and their corresponding documentations
• support the incident management, problem management, change management, release management and infrastructure management processes;
• verify the correctness of the information against the infrastructure and correct where needed.
• Configuration Management via the CMDB is fundamental to the other Service Support processes.

SCOPE

This process covers the organisation, management and protection of components of the IT infrastructure: the configuration items (software and documentation) which are delivering a service to the users.

The following artefacts are  covered for all the CEF Building Blocks:

• Software - applications developed and maintained within the CEF Building Block DSIs and released as open source or put in operation by the Commission;
• Hardware - CEF Building Block infrastructure components;
• Services - provided by the CEF Building Blocks;
• Documents - textual artefacts placed under a controlled life cycle management, e.g. specifications, project charters, rules of procedure.

THE PROCESS

Planning

The Configuration Management Plan should cover in detail the next 3 to 6 months and should give an overview of the next 6 to 12 months. This plan should be reviewed at least twice a year.

Identification

The Configuration Identification includes the selection, identification labelling and recording of all CIs. CIs should be recorded at a level of detail justified by the business need.

Control

The Configuration Control ensures that only authorised and identifiable CIs are recorded from receipt to disposal. It ensures that no CI is added, modified, replaced or removed in the CMDB without appropriate controlling documentation.

Status Accounting

The Configuration Status Accounting concerns the reporting of all data about the history of each CI. It enables to track the changes in the state of a CI.

Verification and Audit

The Configuration Verification and Audit comprises a series of reviews that verify the physical existence of CIs and their correct recording in the CMDB.

They have to be performed before and/or after a major release and at random and regular intervals.

BENEFITS

Harmonized and efficient Configuration Management brings benefits to the process, allowing to:

• provide accurate information on CEF Building Block configuration items and their corresponding documentation
• control CIs and their versions
• establish the relationship between CIs
• support Change, Release, Incident and Problem Management processes
• support security by providing the relevant information on security risks
• contribute to Contingency, financial, and capacity planning
• facilitate adherence to legal and contractual obligations by managing the licences

ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES

To be completed.