Configuration control

Last updated: July 20, 2023

The process and procedures that manage how changes are proposed, reviewed, approved and recorded, and then incorporated into a object and its associated documentation.

Configuration control is a part of overall configuration management, and uses review and release processes which involve the systematic recording, proposal, evaluation, co-ordination, approval and implementation, or rejection of:

Proposed changes to data and/or documentation which underwrite the configuration of an item, or
Proposed variations to a configuration item and it's associated data and documentation.

Formal Configuration Control is only performed after approval of an item, the item's baseline, and/or the approval of a document.

The process of configuration control is summarized as follows:

Registration of a change proposal.
Identification of candidate items and/or documents subject to change control.
Performing a change request effects analysis to ascertain which other objects and associated data are possible candidates for change.
Performing an impact analysis which quantifies and qualifies the change impact on costs, schedule, performance, benefits, contracts, etc.
Formal identification of affected prime objects, associated data and documents.
Formal approval to proceed with change implementation.
Identification and tasking of resources to proceed with change implementation.
Expediting, monitoring and reporting of change implementation status.

See also BASELINE, CHANGE, CHANGE EFFECTS ANALYSIS, CHANGE ORDER, DATA, DOCUMENT APPROVAL, ITEM APPROVAL, and MODIFICATION.