Portability (software)

Portability in high-level computer programming is the usability of the same software in different environments. The prerequirement for portability is the generalized abstraction between the application logic and system interfaces. When software with the same functionality is produced for several computing platforms, portability is the key issue for development cost reduction.

Software portability may involve:

When operating systems of the same family are installed on two computers with processors with similar instruction sets it is often possible to transfer the files implementing program files between them.

In the simplest case the file or files may simply be copied from one machine to the other. However, in many cases, the software is installed on a computer in a way which depends upon its detailed hardware, software, and setup, with device drivers for particular devices, using installed operating system and supporting software components, and using different drives or directories.

In some cases software, usually described as "portable software" is specifically designed to run on different computers with compatible operating systems and processors without any machine-dependent installation; it is sufficient to transfer specified directories and their contents. Software installed on portable mass storage devices such as USB sticks can be used on any compatible computer on simply plugging the storage device in, and stores all configuration information on the removable device. Hardware- and software-specific information is often stored in configuration files in specified locations (e.g. the registry on machines running Microsoft Windows).

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