[Info-vax] VMS on x86-64 timescales, was: Re: x86 Update 4/22/19

[Dave Froble]

On 4/30/2019 1:44 PM, Simon Clubley wrote:
> On 2019-04-30, Jan-Erik Söderholm <jan-erik.soderholm at telia.com> wrote:
>> Den 2019-04-30 kl. 16:46, skrev Dave Froble:
>>>
>>> Well, if in testing serious problems are discovered, then no, one doesn't
>>> use the product.  But usually, the final testing is "use in production".
>>>
>>> Nor will testing be just an abstract project.  The goal will be to use the
>>> systems in production.
>>>
>>> So I don't really understand your comment?
>>>
>>
>> Maybe semantics, but one could call the activites done in a test
>> environment for "tests". Then many have a separate environment (still
>> not production but very similar) where "User Acceptance" activites
>> are done together, and in many cases, by the end users.
>>
>
> This is absolutely 100% true. By the time you get to production,
> you should be past the testing stage. If you are going into
> production with the idea that is the final test, then that's
> the wrong mindset IMHO.

Sorry, but that's reality.  No matter how well you test, production will 
stress a system more than any testing.  It happens.

>> When going to the true production systems, things shoulld work but
>> one obviously has to be prepared if something pops up. In that case
>> it is usually some functionallity that was missed, not any true
>> technical issues, that should have been caught earlier...
>>
>
> I agree.
>
> You will probably find small issues in production that got missed
> during the various levels of testing (that happens no matter how
> much you might wish it didn't) but they should be small enough to
> be addressed in one way or another rather quickly.

Usually.  Not always.  I've never had any such be a show stopper, but my 
attitude is "it can happen, don't be surprised, be prepared".  For those 
who believe in denial, I'll just say "737 MAX" ....

> As a last resort, if something major did get through testing and all
> the way into production, then there should be a backout plan to revert
> to the last known good application version or system configuration.

Well, yes ....


-- 
David Froble                       Tel: 724-529-0450
Dave Froble Enterprises, Inc.      E-Mail: davef at tsoft-inc.com
DFE Ultralights, Inc.
170 Grimplin Road
Vanderbilt, PA  15486