I've always wondered how to apply agile methods really are in large complex embedded system software (100+ engineers). Firmware development has some unique characteristics that make it difficult to do agile (ie. Hardware is not available until late in the dev cycle; Once product is released, can't easily update firmware; etc…)
The norm in this kind of development is thick documentation and grueling peer reviews. You can't get a simple code fix like renaming a variable without 2-3 signatures. (I exaggerate a little but this is typical. Additionally, a lot of people do take shortcuts and the Project Managers even approve them especially in the face of hard market deadlines.)
I would like to hear any tips or guidelines on how to adopt agile methodology for firmware development projects.
Best Answer
I think two techniques are key:
Develop a complete simulator or test-environment for the hardware, so that you can develop the software as if you have real hardware. Don't skimp or take shortcuts here: developing a good simulator will pay off.
Write lots of unit tests against the simulator.
Once you have these things going, and people are confident that the simulator and unit tests will give an accurate idea of how things will work with the hardware, it will be easier to adopt other agile techniques (short iterations, relentless refactoring, etc.).