Which SDLC phase is primarily concerned with stating system requirements and determining what the system should do?

• A. Phases involving needs analysis and system specification
• B. Phases involving production of alternative conceptual systems
• C. Phases involving a system being physically constructed
• D. Phases involving choosing a programming language

Answer: (A)

Defining what the system must do begins with gathering and analyzing requirements. In this phase, you collect the needs of users, business rules, and constraints, then translate those into detailed, testable requirements. The output, a system specification, clearly documents what the system should do, how it should behave, and the criteria for success, serving as a blueprint for design and development. This keeps the project aligned with stakeholder expectations and provides a basis for validating the final product.

Other SDLC activities involve different goals: exploring alternative conceptual approaches to meet needs (design exploration), actually building the system (construction), or choosing how to implement the solution (such as selecting a programming language). The requirements-and-specification phase is the one focused on stating what the system should do.