Framework for Requirements Traceability

According to Sommerville & Sawyer [18] requirement engineering involves the activities for discovering, documenting and maintaining a set of requirements for a computer-based system. Requirement engineering activities are often divided into five categories. These categories include requirement elicitation, requirement analysis, requirement specification, requirement validation and requirement management.

Abstract

Requirements traceability provides support for many software engineering activities like impact analysis, requirements validation and regression testing. In addition requirements traceability is the recognized component of many software process improvement initiatives. Requirements traceability also helps to control and manage evolution of a software system.This thesis presents a systematic review and a framework for requirements traceability.

Contents

1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
1.2 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1.3 EXPECTED OUTCOMES
1.4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
1.5 RELATED WORK
1.6 STRUCTURE OF THE THESIS
2 SYSTEMATIC REVIEW
2.1 PLANNING THE REVIEW
2.1.1 The Need for a Systematic Review
2.1.2 Development of a Review Protocol
2.1.3 Evaluating a Review Protocol
2.2 CONDUCTING THE REVIEW
2.2.1 Identification of Research
2.2.2 Selection of Primary Studies
2.2.3 Study Quality Assessment
2.2.4 Data Extraction & Monitoring
2.2.5 Data Synthesis
2.3 REPORTING THE REVIEW
3 SYSTEMATIC REVIEW RESULTS
3.1 DEFINITIONS OF REQUIREMENTS TRACEABILITY
3.1.1 Analysis
3.2 CHALLENGES/ISSUES IN IMPLEMENTATION OF REQUIREMENTS TRACEABILITY
3.2.1 Analysis
3.3 REQUIREMENTS TRACEABILITY TOOLS
3.3.1 RETRO
3.3.2 Rational Requisite Pro
3.3.3 DOORS
3.3.4 DesignTrack
3.3.5 TRAM
3.3.6 Scenario Advisor Tool
3.3.7 Other Traceability Tools
3.3.8 Analysis
3.4 REQUIREMENTS TRACEABILITY TECHNIQUES
3.4.1 Value Based Requirements Traceability (VBRT)
3.4.2 Feature Oriented Requirements Tracing (FORT)
3.4.3 Pre-RS Requirements Tracing
3.4.4 Event Based Traceability (EBT)
3.4.5 Information Retrieval (IR)
3.4.6 Rule Based (RB) Approach
3.4.7 Hyper-text Based Approach (HB)
3.4.8 Feature-Model Based Approach (FB)
3.4.9 Scenario-Based Approach (SB)
3.4.10 Process Centered Environments
3.4.11 Design Patterns
3.4.12 Traceability Matrices
3.4.13 Keywords and Ontology
3.4.14 Aspect Weaving
3.4.15 Goal Centric Traceability (GCT)
3.4.16 Analysis
3.5 ANSWERING THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS STATED IN REVIEW PROTOCOL
4 INDUSTRIAL INTERVIEWS
4.1 COMPANY A
4.1.1 Introduction
4.1.2 Interviewee
4.1.3 Requirements Traceability
4.1.4 Tool Support for Traceability
4.1.5 Factors Influencing Requirements Traceability
4.1.6 Future Considerations
4.2 COMPANY B
4.2.1 Introduction
4.2.2 Interviewee
4.2.3 Traceability Practices
4.2.4 Tool Support for Traceability
4.2.5 Benefits of Implementing Traceability
4.2.6 Factors Influencing Requirements Traceability
4.3 ANALYSIS OF INTERVIEWS
5 A FRAMEWORK FOR REQUIREMENTS TRACEABILITY (TLFRT)
5.1 LEVEL 0: PRE-RS TRACEABILITY
5.1.1 Example
5.1.2 Issues solved by Level 0
5.1.3 Limitations of Level 0
5.1.4 Rationale for using Pre-RS Requirements Tracing
5.2 LEVEL 1: POST-RS TRACEABILITY WITH FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS
5.2.1 Requirements definition
5.2.2 Requirements prioritization
5.2.3 Requirements packaging
5.2.4 Requirements linking
5.2.5 Evaluation
5.2.6 Issues Solved by Level 1
5.2.7 Limitations of Level 1
5.2.8 Rationale for using VBRT
5.3 LEVEL 2: POST-RS TRACEABILITY WITH NON-FUNCTIONAL REQUIREMENTS
5.3.1 Goal Modelling
5.3.2 Impact Detection
5.3.3 Goal Analysis
5.3.4 Decision Making
5.3.5 Issues Solved by Level 2
5.3.6 Limitations of Level 2
5.3.7 Rationale for Using GCT
6 STATIC VALIDATION OF THE FRAMEWORK
6.1.1 Validation Design
6.1.2 Validation Feedback from Company ‗A‘
6.1.3 Validation Feedback from Company ‗B‘
6.1.4 Lesson Learned
6.2 ANSWERING THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS
7 VALIDITY THREATS
7.1 CONCLUSION VALIDITY (RELIABILITY)
7.2 CONSTRUCT VALIDITY
7.3 INTERNAL VALIDITY (CAUSALITY)
7.4 EXTERNAL VALIDITY (GENERALIZABILITY)
8 EPILOGUE
8.1 CONCLUSIONS
8.2 FUTURE WORK
REFERENCES
APPENDIX 1: LIST OF REJECTED ARTICLES
APPENDIX 2: QUESTIONNAIRE FOR COMPANY ‘A’
APPENDIX 3: QUESTIONNAIRE FOR COMPANY ‘B’
APPENDIX 4: FRAMEWORK VALIDATION QUESTIONNAIRE FOR COMPANY ‘A’
APPENDIX 5: FRAMEWORK VALIDATION QUESTIONNAIRE FOR COMPANY ‘B’

Author: Uzair Akbar Raja, Kashif Kamran

Source: Blekinge Institute of Technology

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