The CIM_SoftwareElement class is used to decompose a CIM_SoftwareFeature object into a set of individually manageable or ...

The CIM_SoftwareElement class is used to decompose  a CIM_SoftwareFeature object into a set of individually  manageable or deployable parts for a particular platform.   A software element's platform is uniquely identified by its  underlying hardware architecture and operating system  (for example Sun Solaris on Sun Sparc or Windows NT on Intel).   As such, to understand the details of how the functionality  of a particular software feature is provided on a particular  platform, the CIM_SoftwareElement objects referenced by   CIM_SoftwareFeatureSoftwareElement associations are organized   in disjoint sets based on the TargetOperatingSystem property.    A CIM_SoftwareElement object captures the management  details of a part or component in one of  four states  characterized by the SoftwareElementState property.