In software requirement engineering, necessity checking, consistency checking, and feasibility checking are essential activities during the requirement analysis phase. These checks help ensure the quality, accuracy, and viability of the gathered requirements. Here's what each of these checks involves:
Necessity Checking:
Objective: Necessity checking aims to verify whether each requirement is truly necessary for the success of the software project. It ensures that the documented requirements are relevant and contribute to the achievement of project objectives.
Process:
- Review each requirement individually and assess its importance in achieving the project's goals.
- Consider whether the requirement addresses a genuine need, aligns with the project scope, and adds value to the final product.
- If a requirement is deemed unnecessary or redundant, it should be flagged for further evaluation, refinement, or removal.
Benefits:
- Eliminates unnecessary features or functionality, reducing development effort and cost.
- Streamlines the project by focusing on high-priority requirements.
- Helps prevent scope creep by identifying and removing superfluous requirements.
Consistency Checking:
Objective: Consistency checking ensures that the requirements are free from contradictions, conflicts, or ambiguities. It verifies that requirements do not contradict one another and that they can coexist harmoniously.
Process:
- Review the entire set of requirements, examining each requirement in relation to others.
- Identify conflicts, contradictions, or inconsistencies, such as requirements that specify conflicting behaviors or conditions.
- Resolve conflicts by refining or modifying the affected requirements to achieve consistency.
Benefits:
- Prevents misunderstandings and disputes among stakeholders.
- Enhances the clarity and comprehensibility of the requirements.
- Reduces the risk of costly errors and confusion during development.
Feasibility Checking:
Objective: Feasibility checking assesses whether it is technically and economically feasible to implement the specified requirements within the project's constraints, including time, budget, and available resources.
Process:
- Evaluate each requirement to determine if it can be realistically implemented within the project's limitations.
- Consider technical constraints, resource availability, and budgetary constraints.
- Assess potential risks and challenges associated with implementing specific requirements.
Benefits:
- Helps project stakeholders understand the potential limitations and challenges of the project.
- Identifies requirements that may need to be modified or re-prioritized to align with project constraints.
- Provides valuable input for project planning and risk management.
These three checks—necessity checking, consistency checking, and feasibility checking—contribute significantly to the quality of the requirements gathered during the requirement analysis phase. They ensure that the documented requirements are essential, free from conflicts, and feasible to implement, setting the stage for a successful software development project.
