Editing Derived object

{{short description |Files that are created but not maintained}}
{{Use American English |date=February 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates |date=February 2024}}
{{More citations needed |date=February 2024}}
In [[computer programming]], '''derived objects''' are files (intermediate or not) that are not directly maintained, but get created.
The most typical context is that of compilation, linking, and packaging of source files.<ref name="wu06" />

Depending on the [[revision control]] (SCM) system, they may be 
* completely ignored,
* managed as ''second class citizens'' or
* potentially considered the [[archetype]] of configuration items. 

The second case assumes a reproducible process to produce them. The third case implies that this process is itself being managed, or in practice [[Audit|audited]]. Currently, only ''builds'' are typically audited, but nothing in principle prevents the extension of this to more general patterns of production. Derived objects may then have a real identity. Different instances of the ''same'' derived object may be discriminated generically from each other on the basis of their [[Dependency theory|dependency]] tree.

==References==
{{reflist |refs=
<ref name="wu06">{{cite web |title=whouses(1) - Linux man page |first=David |last=Boyce |year=2006 |website=die.net |url= https://linux.die.net/man/1/whouses |access-date=2024-02-16 }}</ref>
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Derived Object}}
[[Category:Version control]]