Commercial off-the-shelf [ COTS ]

Commercial off-the-shelf [COTS] describes software products is ready-made and available for sale to the general public.
COTS product is a packaged software solution for businesses.
COTS products are designed to be implemented easily into existing systems without the need for customization.
Commercial off-the-shelf describes software products is ready-made and available for sale to the general public.



COTS product is a packaged software solution for businesses.
Different COTS Products  are listed below

• Siebel CRM 8.1.X
• Clarify CRM
• SalesForce Dot Com,
• Microsoft CRM
• Metasolv ASAP,
• M6
• NM
• Amdocs Ensemble,
• Cramer,
• Remedy

COTS-based systems life cycle

 

The Evaluation Process

• Consists of determining the quality of a product in the context of its intended use
• Decision making
• Must accommodate uncertainty
• Evaluation activities can span the entire lifetime of systems

The Selection Process

• Critical activity for COTS-Based systems
• Oriented by evaluation criteria
• COTS candidates must satisfy user requirements
• Includes an accurate understanding of the features of each product

The Adaptation Process

• COTS are Plug and Play
• Development of all necessary software adapters and enhancements to the selected COTS
• Component Wrapping – includes a software barrier around the components which Limits to what it can do.

The Integration Process

• Includes all development efforts required to interconnect different COTS into a single integrated system
• Consists of developing additional parts not supported by available products
• Conventional development efforts

The Update Process

• Like other systems, COTS-based systems need successive updates
• Repair an error
• New required functionality
• Acquisition of new releases

COTS WorkFlows

• Workflows are business process management (BPM) software which is a software solution
• Create and automate throughout an enterprise system,
• Manage the life cycle of documents, and integrate with a SharePoint website.
• Workflows also include Provisioning, Inventory, Assurance and Activation processes

COTS Benefits/Advantages

• COTS products will save money.
• COTS products need not be tested
• No Change in architecture or engineering for COTS
• No Maintenance for COTS

Examples of COTS software components

Some of the examples of COTS software components are  shown below

• Business Rules
• Button and Cursor Design
• Data Compression
• Data Entry Verification
• Database Connectivity
• Localization
• Database Management
• Manufacturing