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Requirements Evolution: From Assumptions to Reality

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Enterprise, Business-Process and Information Systems Modeling (BPMDS 2011, EMMSAD 2011)

Abstract

Requirements evolution is a main driver for systems evolution. Traditionally, requirements evolution is associated to changes in the users’ needs and environments. In this paper, we explore another cause for requirements evolution: assumptions. Requirements engineers often make assumptions stating, for example, that satisfying certain sub-requirements and/or correctly executing certain system functionalities would lead to reach a certain requirement. However, assumptions might be, or eventually become, invalid. We outline an approach to monitor, at runtime, the assumptions in a requirements model and to evolve the model to reflect the validity level of such assumptions. We introduce two types of requirements evolution: autonomic (which evolves the priorities of system alternatives based on their success/failure in meeting requirements) and designer-supported (which detects loci in the requirements model containing invalid assumptions and recommends designers to take evolutionary actions).

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© 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Ali, R., Dalpiaz, F., Giorgini, P., Souza, V.E.S. (2011). Requirements Evolution: From Assumptions to Reality. In: Halpin, T., et al. Enterprise, Business-Process and Information Systems Modeling. BPMDS EMMSAD 2011 2011. Lecture Notes in Business Information Processing, vol 81. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-21759-3_27

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-21759-3_27

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-21758-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-21759-3

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

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