Purpose of the software support and maintenance guidelines

Software maintenance is carried out after a software product has been launched with the objectives of improving the software, correcting issues or bugs, boosting performance and more. Software maintenance is part of the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC).

The purpose of these guidelines is to provide Government institutions with recommendations on best practices for software support and maintenance. This ensures that software is kept usable and updated. It also ensures that support and maintenance is carried out using a well-defined process that ensures that additional risks are not introduced to software.

The objectives of software maintenance and support are to: 
-    Correct any faults, bugs or issues reported by users.
-    Improve the design of the software.
-    Implement enhancements required based on evolving organization needs.
-    Interface with other systems.
-    Accommodate programs so that different hardware, software, system features, and telecommunications facilities can be used.
-    Upgrade the software made on continuous product improvements and technology changes 
-    Migrate legacy software.
-    Retire software.