QSMReliabilityModel.PDFVIP

QSM Reliability Model (Model Explanation & Behaviors) Defect Creation Process in Software Development The software development process is a continuous process where functionality is designed and then is expressed in some language which we refer to as source code. Defects are introduced as the source code is created. In this context it would be appropriate to model the defect creation, discovery and elimination process as a function of time. From the time that we start to define, design, write, integrate and test source code, we have the capability of introducing defects in a product. In fact, at the beginning of a project there is nothing but a high level abstraction of what must be accomplished by this system. If we were to draw a graph of the defect discovery process at this point in time we would show no product and, of course, there would be no defects. As time progresses we complete some design and we start to generate some code. As the design and code are completed, problems that were introduced earlier are discovered and fixed. At some point in time the product reaches a maximum defect discovery rate. As work progresses the volume of remaining defects is reduced and the discovery rate gradually falls off. The Rayleigh Defect Model The QSM defect estimation approach uses the Rayleigh function to forecast the discovery rate of defects as a function of time throughout the software development process. The Rayleigh function is a specific instance of one of the models in the Weibull family of reliability models. QSM believes there is a solid theoretical basis for its use as a software reliability modeling tool. The Rayleigh function was discovered by the English physicist Lord Rayleigh in his work related to scattering of acoustic and electo-magnetic waves. In statistics it has been found that in processes with a large number of random sources of Gaussian noise, none of which are dominant, the Rayleigh function represe