Software Development is a methodology or framework defining crucial tasks performed at each phase in the software development life cycle. It creates a structure for the developer to design, create and deliver high-quality software according to the user requirements. SDLC is a structure followed and executed by a development team within the organization.
The lifecycle defines a methodology for improving the quality of software and the overall development process.

Here are the different stages of Software Development Life Cycle that software developers use while developing software:

1. Start the Planning

The most important part of software development life cycle is planning the complete software process. It includes making reasonable estimates of the cost and size of the software product developed.

2. Analysis & Requirement Gathering

This step of software development lifecycle includes collecting maximum information from the client about the desired product. The main aim of requirement analysis is to collect the detailed requirements so that everyone can understand how each requirement is to be worked.

3. Design

In the design phase, developer recognizes whether the software to be developed can fulfil all the user requirements or not. The developer chooses the best programming language like Java, Python etc. that best suits your software development need.

4. Initiate the Development process

In this phase, development team performs the actual coding based on designed software and writes unit tests for each component. The developer may show the work done to the business analysts and the enhancements may be required.

5. Testing

The aim of the tester is to find out the loopholes or errors within the system and also to verify that the software works according to the requirements. It includes Unit testing, Integration testing and System testing.

6. Deployment

In this phase, once the product is tested and ready to deploy, it is released to consumers to use. The size of the project will determine the complexity of the deployment if required. The users can be trained on, with the documentation on how to operate the software. The testing is also performed on production to make sure in case of any environmental issues.

7. Maintenance

In the last phase of software development, when the customers start using the developed system, the actual problems comes up and needs to be solved from time to time. The software is to be maintained timely by regular updating the code according to user end environment changes.

Let’s discuss some software development models followed by various businesses:

1. Waterfall Model:

This model involves finishing each phase completely before initiating the next one. When each phase is completed successfully, it is checked to see if the project is on track and whether it is feasible to continue.

2. V-Shaped Model:

This model focuses primarily on the execution of processes in a serial manner. A system plan is developed before starting the development phase.

3. Incremental Model:

This model involves multiple development cycles that are divided into smaller iterations. These can be easily managed and go through a set of phases including requirements, design, implementation and testing.

Well, that is all you need to know and to do in case you want to understand the software development lifecycle before started developing a project.