The README file (usually a text or markdown file) should provide an overview of the project files and information about the environment in which they were created to run. A good README file contains the following elements:
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Brief overview or description of the project (abstract).
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Name and description of the different elements being archived.
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Instructions on how the different elements work together and the steps someone would need to take to reconstruct the project
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Information about the system that the project runs on, such as the operating system, database, web server, etc., and the versions required.
The README contains the vital information for the any future users of the project so that they know what the files are and what they were created to do. Installations instructions for the software layer should be included in its own README in the software zipped directory.
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