On the use of testability measures for dependability assessment
Bertolino, A. & Strigini, L. (1996). On the use of testability measures for dependability assessment. IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering, 22(2), pp. 97-108. doi: 10.1109/32.485220
Abstract
Program “testability” is informally, the probability that a program will fail under test if it contains at least one fault. When a dependability assessment has to be derived from the observation of a series of failure free test executions (a common need for software subject to “ultra high reliability” requirements), measures of testability can-in theory-be used to draw inferences on program correctness. We rigorously investigate the concept of testability and its use in dependability assessment, criticizing, and improving on, previously published results. We give a general descriptive model of program execution and testing, on which the different measures of interest can be defined. We propose a more precise definition of program testability than that given by other authors, and discuss how to increase testing effectiveness without impairing program reliability in operation. We then study the mathematics of using testability to estimate, from test results: the probability of program correctness and the probability of failures. To derive the probability of program correctness, we use a Bayesian inference procedure and argue that this is more useful than deriving a classical “confidence level”. We also show that a high testability is not an unconditionally desirable property for a program. In particular, for programs complex enough that they are unlikely to be completely fault free, increasing testability may produce a program which will be less trustworthy, even after successful testing
| Publication Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Additional Information: | © 1996 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other users, including reprinting/ republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted components of this work in other works. |
| Publisher Keywords: | Bayesian inference, error, fault, failure, reliability assessment, software testing, testability, test oracle, ultra-high reliability, FAULT-TOLERANT SOFTWARE, FAILURE |
| Subjects: | Q Science > QA Mathematics > QA76 Computer software |
| Departments: | School of Science & Technology > Computer Science > Software Reliability |
| SWORD Depositor: |
Metadata
MetadataActions (login required)
Admin Login