Course title: Software Reliability Course code: TA November 2012 Institution: Ecole Nationale Superieure des Techniques Avances Course address: ENSTA ParisTech. 32 Bd Victor, Paris City: Paris The ATHENS Programme Course catalog Professor Florin POPENTIU VLADICESCU The Technical University of Denmark Informatics and Mathematical Modelling, DTU-IMM, NATO Programme Building 305, Lyngby, DK 2800, Denmark Telephone: +45(0) Fax: +45(0)

Objectives Motto: “Prediction is very difficult especially of the future” ( Niels Bohr) The objective of this course is to answer the following questions: What is software reliability? Why are the statistical methods necessary? How do you measure and predict the software reliability? A computer is a deterministic machine - why can’t we predict when it will fail next? If software is such a problem why not build it in hardware?

There is evidence that defects have their origin in design errors. It becomes difficult or impossible to ensure that software contains no faults. The software reliability is currently a very sensitive area in telecommunications for example the introduction of new services. The course presents opportunities in the field of prediction of software reliability and the tools allowing to characterise the accuracy and quality forecasts. The theory is the best practice! Various methods and techniques that we approach based on collected data: the software reliability growth models, statistical tests, among which trend tests (graphic and statistics methods).

Programme to be followed Day 1: Key features of software systems Day 2: Measuring software reliability Day 3: Models for analysis of the software reliability growth. Day 4: Evaluation of software reliability predictions Day 5: Accuracy and quality of forecasts; Capabilities and limitations, Unanswered Questions, Case studies. Exercises: The students will experience teamwork. Project: Development of a software project by teams of students (usually five of them). Methodological References Alternation of the exposed paper based on the course support under electronic format with the involvement of the students into debates. The copy of transparencies on CD- ROM and the Web pages: Also the support of the course is accompanied by video illustrations and case studies with software tools. Prerequisites Basic knowledge in programming and statistics. Course exam Exam based on a mini-project programmed during the computer based sessions