One of the important reasons for most of the software bugs is mistakes in requirements. Or, we can the mistakes found in the Software Requirement Specifications document.
Sometimes requirements are not clear and inaccurate which results in errors in code, ultimately leading to a bug
One of the important reasons for most of the software bugs is mistakes in requirements. Or, we can the mistakes found in the Software Requirement Specifications document.
Sometimes requirements are not clear and inaccurate which results in errors in code, ultimately leading to a bug. Even if the development team tries to write perfect code, if requirements have errors in them, the software will contain bugs.
Reviewing the requirements is also an important step in any software development life cycle. Usually, it is not given enough emphasis. It becomes very difficult to recode everything if certain missed requirements are found later in the development life cycle.
This tutorial discusses a Software Requirement Specifications (SRS) document, its importance, and things that should be tested or reviewed in the same.
What is Software Requirement Specifications?
A software requirements specification (SRS) is a description of an agreement between the customer and the supplier/contractor. This contains the functional and non-functional requirements of the software system to be developed. This document is used as a reference base for the development process.
Usually, the customers are not able to understand the development process and not clear on what they want from the system, at the same time the development team does not understand customers’ requirements. Usually, Business Analysts fill this communication gap by preparing an SRS document.
Typically, an Software Requirement Specifications document consists of following sections (this is based on IEEE guide to software requirements specifications and this list may vary from organization to organization)-
- Introduction – This section is written for the requirements document i.e. the purpose, scope, etc. of the requirements document is included.
- Definitions, Acronyms, and Abbreviations
- Overall Description – This section contains an overview of all the requirements of the system.
- Product Perspective
- Product Functions
- User Characteristics
- General Constraints
- Assumptions and Dependencies
- Detailed Requirements – This is the most important part of the document; it contains details of product requirements that the development team and testing team need to know in order to code and test the system respectively.
- External Interface Requirements
- User Interfaces
- Hardware Interfaces
- Software Interfaces
- Communication Interfaces
- Functional Requirements
- Module 1
- Functional Requirement 1.1
- Functional Requirement 1.2
- Module 2
- Functional Requirement 2.1
- Functional Requirement 2.2
- Module 1
- Performance Requirements
- Design Constraints
- Other Requirements
- External Interface Requirements
Advantages or Uses of SRS
The following are some important advantages or uses of an SRS:
- It is an agreement between the client and the supplier on what the software will do.
- It includes all the functional and non-functional requirements of the system.
- SRS works as a base for any further development and testing documents that need to be prepared for the development and testing processes. These documents include design documents, test plans, test scenarios, etc.
- It is used for the schedule and cost estimation process.
- SRS acts as a basis for any further enhancements in the product.
- It is used for validation of the final product i.e. once the final product is ready, the client, the development team, and the testing team can be assured that the product matches all the requirements in the document.
Desirable Characteristics of an SRS
This section discusses, in brief, some characteristics that describe a good SRS:
Correct – Requirements should be correct and should reflect exactly what the client wants. Every requirement should be such that it is required in the final product.
User review is used to ensure the correctness of requirements stated in the SRS. SRS is said to be correct if it covers all the requirements that are actually expected from the system.
Complete – SRS is said to be complete if everything the software is supposed to do is covered in the document. It should include all the functional and non-functional requirements, the correct numbering of the pages, any diagrams if required.
Unambiguous – All the requirements should have the same interpret