How You Can Use Microsoft Repository

Microsoft® Repository is a product upon which to build tools. You do not use Repository by itself. It is a foundation for tools that manage the process of producing application software. This process has three steps:

1. Choose a kind of data you want Microsoft Repository to manage.
   
   
2. Create tools to insert, maintain, visualize, and analyze that data in the repository.
   
   
3. Use the tools to help you understand your software system and make decisions about it.

Microsoft Repository can provide a foundation on which to build tools for the following:

• Visualizing the structure of your applications.

  For example, the repository can contain information about your software projects. You can write programs to visualize, summarize, or maintain this data. Such programs can help you make decisions about the design and maintenance of your projects.

• Keeping track of the reuse of particular components.

  Suppose that your software projects include several fundamental class modules. Over time, you find that these class modules are reused in many different software applications. Repository can keep track of which software projects include which class modules.

• Analyzing the impact of a change to a reusable component.

  Suppose that you want to redesign a particular class module. You can use the repository to assess which software projects already use that class module. Such information can help you decide whether or not to redesign the module.