Reporting
By integrating the work item tracking, version control and build automation systems in Team Foundation Server, Microsoft has created a valuable store of linked information which over time becomes a useful source for generating reports. Before Team Foundation Server a lot of development teams really just estimated and reported their progress using a finger in the air approach but with Team Foundation Server it is possible to visualise exactly where you are.
As developers work with Team Foundation Server, information stored in the underlying relational databases is fed into an analysis cube, and this cube is then used as the source for a variety of reports exposed by SQL Server Reporting Services.
Each Process Template has a different set of reports that retrieve data relevant to that particular software development process. The graphs above are reports from the MSF for Agile Software Development template. The first graph shows work remaining on one project and the second shows bug creation, re-activation and resolution rates.
This really only scratches the surface of what is possible to extract using Reporting Services and the TFS analysis cube and it can be customised to meet your specific requirements simply by deploying a new report to the server.
One of the nice things about this tool is that you get the ability to e-mail reports to team members and project sponsors on a schedule which can significantly reduce the reporting burden on a team leader or project manager.
Wrapping it Up
In this two part article I've looked at the key feature areas of Team Foundation Server including process guidance, work item tracking, version control, build automation and reporting. Because TFS is such a large product it is impossible to give detailed coverage to each of these features in just one article, let alone introducing the specific client-side features that come with the various editions of Visual Studio 2005 itself. Hopefully I've given you a feel for the capabilities of the product and how they can benefit your team.
Before deciding to ring Microsoft and order a copy of the product you need to decide whether the tool is for you. For this reason I present this list of pros and cons.
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Pros |
Cons |
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Reliable version control store that scales. |
Can't just pick up and move like VSS and some of the sophistication can be initially confusing. |
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Collects metrics and presents them in an easy to understand format. |
Collects metrics and presents them in an easy to understand format to people that you might not want to have understand. |
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Frees up project managers and team leaders from time consuming tasks. |
Whilst the server itself is relatively inexpensive the client access licences and team editions of the product do come at a cost. |
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Reaches a level of integration not easily achieved by gluing together other products, for example tracking bugs to code to requirements. |
Once installed, it needs to be managed so expect one of the team members to have start building expertise. |
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Work Item Tracking means that developers have a plan for what they have to do next. |
Overall I feel that TFS has had a positive impact on all the teams that I've used it with. Finally, I want to mention a few resources that make my TFS experience more enjoyable.
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Resources |
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TeamPlain Web Access |
TeamPlain is a third-party product which provides a good looking web-based interface on top of Team Foundation Server. It is very good at extending the TFS experience to business analysts, project sponsors and helpdesk staff who don't necessarily want to learn the Visual Studio 2005 tools. |
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TFS Integrator |
TFS Integrator is a tool developed by Readify (the company that I work for) which gives TFS continuous integration and dependency replication support. This significantly improves the management of complex build scenarios and was developed after extensive experience in the field. http://notgartner.wordpress.com/2006/09/18/getting-started-with-tfs-integrator/ |
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TFS Deloyer |
TFS Deployer is another tool developed by Readify which allows release managers to drive the deployment of software into complex environments (multiple servers etc) simply by using the quality indicators in Team Build. http://notgartner.wordpress.com/2006/12/16/getting-started-with-tfs-deployer/ |
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Team Foundation Power Toys |
A set of useful routines packed into one package which allow you to do things which aren't exposed anywhere else in TFS. |
1
Jesse - 30/01/08
Branching in SVN and VSS are very different in that VSS performs an actual copy while SVN creates a virtual copy but there is no duplication of read-only stuff (eg big 3rd party libraries etc). So what does TFS do?
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2
Jesse - 30/01/08
Branching in SVN and VSS are very different in that VSS performs an actual copy while SVN creates a virtual copy but there is no duplication of read-only stuff (eg big 3rd party libraries etc). So what does TFS do?
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3
Jesse - 30/01/08
Branching in SVN and VSS are very different in that VSS performs an actual copy while SVN creates a virtual copy but there is no duplication of read-only stuff (eg big 3rd party libraries etc). So what does TFS do?
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4
Jesse - 30/01/08
Branching in SVN and VSS are very different in that VSS performs an actual copy while SVN creates a virtual copy but there is no duplication of read-only stuff (eg big 3rd party libraries etc). So what does TFS do?
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5
Jesse - 30/01/08
Branching in SVN and VSS are very different in that VSS performs an actual copy while SVN creates a virtual copy but there is no duplication of read-only stuff (eg big 3rd party libraries etc). So what does TFS do?
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6
Jesse - 30/01/08
by the way submitting the form in firefox tells me it still isn't submitted even though there are no errors. You're probably supposed to hide this form when you're not. hence the 5 submissions
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7
Rick O'Shay - 01/04/08
Branching and merging are not only available in most modern version control systems, it's a critical function. So why did it take until 2005 or later for Microsoft to offer it? Why isn't it offered in the professional version? They had to be dragged kicking and screaming to provide unit testing in Visual Studio Professional 2008. So much for "developers! developer! developers!". Is it any wonder Microsoft is the subject of scorn? Why not promote best practices like test-driven development on all levels? They've got enough money for God's sake.
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8
Daniel - 21/05/08
would be nice if the screenshots would be larger
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9
Catherine - 30/03/10
Thanks for the info.
You may also try SCM Anywhere, which is a SQL-based SCM solution with integrated source control, issue tracking and build automation.
http://www.scmsoftwareconfigurationmanagement.com/
Thanks.
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10
priya - 28/12/10
Hi,
In our project they are going to implement TFS. As i'm the admin of this project , I have no idea like how to start with.
Can you pleas ehelp me out?
Thanks in Advance,
Regards,
Priya.
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