Establish and Document the Application's Sourcing Type and Hosting Model

This chapter explains how to establish and document who created an Application and where it is hosted, using the Sourcing Type and Hosting Model value sets described in the chapter “Sourcing Type vs. Hosting Model — Who Created an Application vs. Where It Is Hosted.”

Establish the Sourcing Type and Hosting Model

At intake, record the expected Sourcing Type and Hosting Model, and confirm or correct them as research, planning, and design proceed. Determine:

• The Sourcing Type, which describes who created the Application: Custom-Built (Internal), Vendor, Open Source Community, or Composite (or the enterprise’s customized equivalents).

• Every Hosting Model that applies, which describes where the Application is hosted and who operates it: On-Premise, Cloud <Platform Name>, SaaS <Vendor Name>, or Hosted <Vendor Name> (or the enterprise’s customized equivalents). Record one value for each hosting location in use.

• What each implies for documentation. For example, a Vendor Sourcing Type triggers the vendor information section of the template; a SaaS Hosting Model shifts documentation emphasis toward the enterprise’s configuration, data, Integrations, and the vendor’s obligations; and any part of the Application the enterprise builds, assembles, extends, configures, or integrates requires Build and Packaging documentation, whatever the Sourcing Type.

These value sets are common examples that IF4IT recommends; enterprises can customize them to their own needs.

Document and Share the Sourcing Type and Hosting Model

Record the Sourcing Type and every applicable Hosting Model in the Application Documentation and in the Application Record. In the per-Instance documentation, record which Instances run under which Hosting Model. Review both with every Release, since migrations and replacements change them.

Best Practice: Establish and Document the Application’s Sourcing Type and Hosting Model

It is a best practice to both establish and document the solution for an Application’s sourcing and hosting: record who created it and every place it is hosted, using the enterprise’s adopted value sets, map each Instance to its Hosting Model, and use the combination to determine which documentation sections apply.

Benefits: Recording sourcing and hosting precisely tells the enterprise exactly where it depends on vendors to create its Applications and where it depends on them to run them, which shapes contracts, exit plans, and security reviews. Using the combination to select documentation sections ensures that each Application documents what its particular situation requires, no more and no less.

Connections to Related IF4IT Practices and Inventories

The Vendors Inventory and Attributes describes how vendors are recorded. The Systems Development Lifecycle (SDLC) Best Practices addresses custom-built, acquired, and composite solution paths.