Workaround

 ( Software Quality ) 

A workaround is a bypass of a recognized problem or limitation in a system or policy. A workaround is typically a temporary fix"IT: a temporary method for dealing with a computer or software problem until a more permanent solution is found: One easy workaround is to ..." that implies that a genuine solution to the problem is needed. But workarounds are frequently as creative as true solutions, involving outside the box thinking"It requires that social workers think 'outside the box' - outside their normal frames of ...

in their creation.

Typically they are considered brittle in that they will not respond well to further pressure from a system beyond the original design. In implementing a workaround it is important to flag the change so as to later implement a proper solution.

Placing pressure on a workaround may result in later system failures. For example, in computer programming workarounds are often used to address a problem or anti-pattern in a library, such as an incorrect return value. When the library is changed, the workaround may break the overall program functionality, effectively becoming an anti-pattern, since it may expect the older, wrong behaviour from the library.

Workarounds can also be a useful source of ideas for improvement of products or services.

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Legal workarounds When the legal system places an obstacle in the form of a restriction or requirement, the law may provide a possible workaround. Laws intended to tap into what may seem to be deep pockets may lead to what are at least temporary solutions such as:

• Since "most French workplace laws affect businesses with 50 or more employees... many French companies opt to employ only 49 people in avoidance of crippling legislations."
  Anurag Harsh (2026). 9781483595900 . ISBN 9781483595900
• An injunction against Microsoft regarding XML features and an easy technical workaround, a patent attorney suggested having two versions of MS Word, one with and one without the feature.

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Acronyms Some well-known acronyms were created to work around bureaucratic or contracting restrictions:

• PDP - The term was used to describe a computer by another name, due to contracting complications for purchasing or leasing computers. The term PDP (Programmed Data Processor or Programmable Data Processor) was a workaround.
  R Belcher (2026). 9781483285627, Elsevier. . ISBN 9781483285627
  "The term PDP is an acronym for Programmable Data Processor ... the series was introduced by their manufacturer, Digital Equipment Corporation ..." The name "PDP" intentionally avoids the use of the term "computer".
  (2026). 9780226326832, University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226326832
  (2026). 9781133607298, Delmar Cengage Learning. ISBN 9781133607298
  PDPs were aimed at a market that could not afford larger computers.
• GNU Project - GNU's Not UNIX. As AT&T's prices for academic licensing and use of UNIX increased, new restrictions on maximum number of concurrent users and limitations on types of userestricting " universities that wanted to use the system for their internal business (e.g. student registration) as distinct from teaching and research created a motivation for an alternative: a work-alike workaround. Among the better known ones are:
• Linux
• BSD
• System V
• PSAP. By contrast with Hearing aid, the sale of which is more regulatedSince a licensed audiologist is required and more expensive, a Personal Sound Amplification Product (PSAP) is lower in price albeit more limited in capability.

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See also

• Computer bug
• Coping skill
• Design around, to design or invent an alternative to a patented invention that does not infringe the patent's claims
• Hack
• Jury rig
• Kludge
• Planned obsolescence
• Preventive maintenance
• Program temporary fix (PTF)

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