Automatic monitoring of software requirements

Abstract

Automatic run-time monitoring of software systems' design-/purchase-/installation- time requirements and assumptions is a key step towards making those systems more robust, maintainable, and self-evolving. A concise language has been designed to permit the convenient expression of a wide range of requirements and assumptions. A compiler automatically converts these expressions into run-time monitors to watch for, and report, all requirement and assumption violations. The mechanism is applicable to systems which have not necessarily been designed with monitoring in mind, permits addition of further requirements and assumption monitoring on-the-fly, and emphasizes usability by a wide range of end-users.