BaselineRelease

BaselineRelease is a term used in project management and software development to denote a formally approved and frozen version of a product that serves as a reference point for future work. It represents a stable snapshot of the system, including scope, design, code, and documentation, that has passed a formal baselining process.

Purpose and scope

The baseline provides a controlled point from which changes are managed. By freezing the defined features, interfaces, and requirements, it enables reproducibility, traceability, and objective measurement of deviations in subsequent development. It also supports audits, compliance, and contractual or regulatory obligations in certain industries.

Contents

A baseline release typically includes a complete build of the product, a snapshot of the source code, dependencies, build and deployment scripts, installation instructions, release notes, user and technical documentation, test results, and traceability information linking requirements to implemented features and tests.

Creation and governance

BaselineRelease is created after a formal review and approval by stakeholders, often via a configuration management or change control process. Once approved, the baseline is considered frozen, and further changes are managed through controlled change requests. Any modification leads to a new baseline or incremental baselines.

Usage and lifecycle

Baseline releases are used to compare future work against the agreed scope, to reproduce builds and tests, and to support quality assurance and regulatory audits. They are distinct from ongoing development, which continues under version control and iterates toward subsequent baselines in a controlled release lifecycle.

Related concepts

Baselining, configuration management, release management, version control, and change control board are closely related, as they provide the governance and tooling surrounding a BaselineRelease.