A software baseline is a formally approved version of a configuration item (regardless of media) that is formally designated and fixed at a specific time during the configuration item’s life cycle. The term is also used to refer to a particular version of a software configuration item that has been agreed on. In either case, the baseline can only be changed through formal change control procedures. A baseline, together with all approved changes to the baseline, represents the current approved configuration. Commonly used baselines include functional, allocated, developmental, and product
baselines. The functional baseline corresponds to the reviewed system requirements. The allocated baseline corresponds to the reviewed software requirements specification and software interface requirements specification. The developmental baseline represents the evolving software configuration at selected times during the software life cycle. Change authority for this baseline typically rests primarily with the development organization but may be shared with other organizations (for example, SCM or Test). The product baseline corresponds to the completed software product delivered for system integration. The baselines to be used for a given project, along with the associated levels of authority needed for change approval, are typically identified in the SCMP