SCRUM For Team System V3, Beta 2 released

Hi Brian,

I was very impressed with the SfTS V3 presentation I saw at PDC. For example, the capability to handle multiple workstreams by different teams with different cadences is impressive. I immediately downloaded the template and began an evaluation.  The results of my analysis surprised me.

First, let me say, aside from one glitch (see below), V3 installed and worked fine. The Scrum Master's workbench is a little bit jolting in that it deletes the WIT configuration and recreates it when you make a change.

The one glitch was the requirement to install the VS2010 client on the TFS server. Apparently, the use of MSSCCI won't do the trick. I actually ran into an install error on the VS2010 client due to an issue with a prior install of the VC 9.0 Redistributable (see my posting on the SfTS Community Forum).

I was interested in SfTS's new features hoping they would provide stringer support for product line development.  

My conclusion was that while SfTS is great, it is very prescriptive and confined to a strict use of Agile according to the process imbedded in the template. Also, having all this complexity (multiple releases, teams, workstreams, etc...) in one team project is very inflexible. While it provides a simpler overall view, it means a more complex and less focused view from the point of view of a single project both in VC and on the team portal.

We will likely go with the MSF Agile V5 template with some customization. That way we can spin up a team project for every new SW release. We can make changes to the process model and evolve the process template without affecting other projects.

Best regards, Bob