According to the PMBOK Guide and the Standard for Project Configuration Management, Configuration Verification and Audit is the specific activity that ensures the project ' s configuration items (CIs) are correct and that the actual product matches the documented requirements.
* Core Function: This process involves the functional and physical examination of a configuration item to verify that it has been developed in accordance with its requirements, drawings, specifications, or other descriptive data.
* The " Check " Mechanism: While other parts of configuration management focus on labeling or tracking, the Audit stage is where the project manager or an independent party confirms that the " composition " is accurate. It ensures that the right versions of components are being used and that no unauthorized changes have been made.
* Physical vs. Functional Audit:
* Functional Configuration Audit: Ensures the item ' s performance and functional characteristics match the specifications.
* Physical Configuration Audit: Ensures the item was built and assembled correctly according to the design documentation.
Comparison with Other Options:
* Configuration Identification (A): This is the initial stage where you select and name the CIs, define their characteristics, and document their boundaries. It sets the " baseline " but does not verify correctness later in the project.
* Configuration Status Accounting (B): This is the reporting and recording aspect. It tracks what happened to a CI (e.g., " Version 2.0 was approved on Tuesday " ). It tells you the history of the item but doesn ' t technically audit its composition for correctness.
* Configuration Quality Assurance (D): This is a distractor term. While configuration management is a subset of the overall Quality Management System, " Configuration Quality Assurance " is not a standard process name in the PMBOK Guide.