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Requirements Engineering Process in Software

Engineering
Last Updated : 24 Jul, 2024

Requirements Engineering is the process of identifying, eliciting,

analyzing, specifying, validating, and managing the needs and
expectations of stakeholders for a software system.

Table of Content
What is Requirements Engineering?
Requirements Engineering Process
Tools Involved in Requirement Engineering
Advantages of Requirements Engineering Process
Disadvantages of Requirements Engineering Process
Stages in Software Engineering Process
Conclusion

In this article, we’ll learn about its process, advantages, and

disadvantages.

What is Requirements Engineering?

A systematic and strict approach to the definition, creation, and
verification of requirements for a software system is known as
requirements engineering. To guarantee the effective creation of a
software product, the requirements engineering process entails several
tasks that help in understanding, recording, and managing the demands
of stakeholders.

Requirements Engineering Process

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Requirements Engineering Process

1. Feasibility Study
2. Requirements elicitation
3. Requirements specification
4. Requirements for verification and validation
5. Requirements management

1. Feasibility Study

The feasibility study mainly concentrates on below five mentioned areas

below. Among these Economic Feasibility Study is the most important
part of the feasibility analysis and the Legal Feasibility Study is less
considered feasibility analysis.

1. Technical Feasibility: In Technical Feasibility current resources both

hardware software along required technology are analyzed/assessed
to develop the project. This technical feasibility study reports
whether there are correct required resources and technologies that
will be used for project development. Along with this, the feasibility
study also analyzes the technical skills and capabilities of the
technical team, whether existing technology can be used or not,
whether maintenance and up-gradation are easy or not for the
chosen technology, etc.
2. Operational Feasibility: In Operational Feasibility degree of
providing service to requirements is analyzed along with how easy
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the product will be to operate and maintain after deployment. Along

with this other operational scopes are determining the usability of
the product, Determining suggested solution by the software
development team is acceptable or not, etc.
3. Economic Feasibility: In the Economic Feasibility study cost and
benefit of the project are analyzed. This means under this feasibility
study a detailed analysis is carried out will be cost of the project for
development which includes all required costs for final development
hardware and software resources required, design and development
costs operational costs, and so on. After that, it is analyzed whether
the project will be beneficial in terms of finance for the organization
or not.
4. Legal Feasibility: In legal feasibility, the project is ensured to comply
with all relevant laws, regulations, and standards. It identifies any
legal constraints that could impact the project and reviews existing
contracts and agreements to assess their effect on the project’s
execution. Additionally, legal feasibility considers issues related to
intellectual property, such as patents and copyrights, to safeguard
the project’s innovation and originality.
5. Schedule Feasibility: In schedule feasibility, the project timeline is
evaluated to determine if it is realistic and achievable. Significant
milestones are identified, and deadlines are established to track
progress effectively. Resource availability is assessed to ensure that
the necessary resources are accessible to meet the project schedule.
Furthermore, any time constraints that might affect project delivery
are considered to ensure timely completion. This focus on schedule
feasibility is crucial for the successful planning and execution of a
project.

2. Requirements Elicitation

It is related to the various ways used to gain knowledge about the

project domain and requirements. The various sources of domain
knowledge include customers, business manuals, the existing software
of the same type, standards, and other stakeholders of the project. The
techniques used for requirements elicitation include interviews,
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brainstorming, task analysis, Delphi technique, prototyping, etc. Some of

these are discussed here. Elicitation does not produce formal models of
the requirements understood. Instead, it widens the domain knowledge
of the analyst and thus helps in providing input to the next stage.

Requirements elicitation is the process of gathering information about

the needs and expectations of stakeholders for a software system. This
is the first step in the requirements engineering process and it is critical
to the success of the software development project. The goal of this
step is to understand the problem that the software system is intended
to solve and the needs and expectations of the stakeholders who will
use the system.

Several techniques can be used to elicit requirements, including:

Interviews: These are one-on-one conversations with stakeholders

to gather information about their needs and expectations.
Surveys: These are questionnaires that are distributed to
stakeholders to gather information about their needs and
expectations.
Focus Groups: These are small groups of stakeholders who are
brought together to discuss their needs and expectations for the
software system.
Observation: This technique involves observing the stakeholders in
their work environment to gather information about their needs and
expectations.
Prototyping: This technique involves creating a working model of the
software system, which can be used to gather feedback from
stakeholders and to validate requirements.

It’s important to document, organize, and prioritize the requirements

obtained from all these techniques to ensure that they are complete,
consistent, and accurate.

3. Requirements Specification

This activity is used to produce formal software requirement models. All

the requirements including the functional as well as the non-functional
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requirements and the constraints are specified by these models in

totality. During specification, more knowledge about the problem may
be required which can again trigger the elicitation process. The models
used at this stage include ER diagrams, data flow diagrams(DFDs),
function decomposition diagrams(FDDs), data dictionaries, etc.

Requirements specification is the process of documenting the

requirements identified in the analysis step in a clear, consistent, and
unambiguous manner. This step also involves prioritizing and grouping
the requirements into manageable chunks.

The goal of this step is to create a clear and comprehensive document

that describes the requirements for the software system. This document
should be understandable by both the development team and the
stakeholders.

Several types of requirements are commonly specified in this step,

including

1. Functional Requirements: These describe what the software system

should do. They specify the functionality that the system must
provide, such as input validation, data storage, and user interface.
2. Non-Functional Requirements: These describe how well the
software system should do it. They specify the quality attributes of
the system, such as performance, reliability, usability, and security.
3. Constraints: These describe any limitations or restrictions that must
be considered when developing the software system.
4. Acceptance Criteria: These describe the conditions that must be met
for the software system to be considered complete and ready for
release.

To make the requirements specification clear, the requirements should

be written in a natural language and use simple terms, avoiding
technical jargon, and using a consistent format throughout the
document. It is also important to use diagrams, models, and other visual
aids to help communicate the requirements effectively.

Once the requirements are specified, they must be reviewed and

validated by the stakeholders and development team to ensure that
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they are complete, consistent, and accurate.

4. Requirements Verification and Validation

Verification: It refers to the set of tasks that ensures that the software
correctly implements a specific function.

Validation: It refers to a different set of tasks that ensures that the

software that has been built is traceable to customer requirements. If
requirements are not validated, errors in the requirement definitions
would propagate to the successive stages resulting in a lot of
modification and rework. The main steps for this process include:

1. The requirements should be consistent with all the other

requirements i.e. no two requirements should conflict with each
other.
2. The requirements should be complete in every sense.
3. The requirements should be practically achievable.

Reviews, buddy checks, making test cases, etc. are some of the methods
used for this.

Requirements verification and validation (V&V) is the process of

checking that the requirements for a software system are complete,
consistent, and accurate and that they meet the needs and expectations
of the stakeholders. The goal of V&V is to ensure that the software
system being developed meets the requirements and that it is
developed on time, within budget, and to the required quality.

1. Verification is checking that the requirements are complete,

consistent, and accurate. It involves reviewing the requirements to
ensure that they are clear, testable, and free of errors and
inconsistencies. This can include reviewing the requirements
document, models, and diagrams, and holding meetings and
walkthroughs with stakeholders.
2. Validation is the process of checking that the requirements meet the
needs and expectations of the stakeholders. It involves testing the
requirements to ensure that they are valid and that the software
system being developed will meet the needs of the stakeholders.
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This can include testing the software system through simulation,

testing with prototypes, and testing with the final version of the
software.
3. Verification and Validation is an iterative process that occurs
throughout the software development life cycle. It is important to
involve stakeholders and the development team in the V&V process
to ensure that the requirements are thoroughly reviewed and tested.

It’s important to note that V&V is not a one-time process, but it should
be integrated and continue throughout the software development
process and even in the maintenance stage.

5. Requirements Management

Requirement management is the process of analyzing, documenting,

tracking, prioritizing, and agreeing on the requirement and controlling
the communication with relevant stakeholders. This stage takes care of
the changing nature of requirements. It should be ensured that the SRS
is as modifiable as possible to incorporate changes in requirements
specified by the end users at later stages too. Modifying the software as
per requirements in a systematic and controlled manner is an extremely
important part of the requirements engineering process.

Requirements management is the process of managing the

requirements throughout the software development life cycle, including
tracking and controlling changes, and ensuring that the requirements
are still valid and relevant. The goal of requirements management is to
ensure that the software system being developed meets the needs and
expectations of the stakeholders and that it is developed on time, within
budget, and to the required quality.

Several key activities are involved in requirements management,

including:

1. Tracking and controlling changes: This involves monitoring and

controlling changes to the requirements throughout the development
process, including identifying the source of the change, assessing the
impact of the change, and approving or rejecting the change.
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2. Version control: This involves keeping track of different versions of

the requirements document and other related artifacts.
3. Traceability: This involves linking the requirements to other elements
of the development process, such as design, testing, and validation.
4. Communication: This involves ensuring that the requirements are
communicated effectively to all stakeholders and that any changes or
issues are addressed promptly.
5. Monitoring and reporting: This involves monitoring the progress of
the development process and reporting on the status of the
requirements.

Requirements management is a critical step in the software

development life cycle as it helps to ensure that the software system
being developed meets the needs and expectations of stakeholders and
that it is developed on time, within budget, and to the required quality.
It also helps to prevent scope creep and to ensure that the requirements
are aligned with the project goals.

Tools Involved in Requirement Engineering

Observation report
Questionnaire ( survey, poll )
Use cases
User stories
Requirement workshop
Mind mapping
Roleplaying
Prototyping

Advantages of Requirements Engineering Process

Helps ensure that the software being developed meets the needs
and expectations of the stakeholders
Can help identify potential issues or problems early in the
development process, allowing for adjustments to be made before
significant
Helps ensure that the software is developed in a cost-effective and
efficient manner

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Can improve communication and collaboration between the

development team and stakeholders
Helps to ensure that the software system meets the needs of all
stakeholders.
Provides an unambiguous description of the requirements, which
helps to reduce misunderstandings and errors.
Helps to identify potential conflicts and contradictions in the
requirements, which can be resolved before the software
development process begins.
Helps to ensure that the software system is delivered on time, within
budget, and to the required quality standards.
Provides a solid foundation for the development process, which helps
to reduce the risk of failure.

Disadvantages of Requirements Engineering Process

Can be time-consuming and costly, particularly if the requirements-
gathering process is not well-managed
Can be difficult to ensure that all stakeholders’ needs and
expectations are taken into account
It Can be challenging to ensure that the requirements are clear,
consistent, and complete
Changes in requirements can lead to delays and increased costs in
the development process.
As a best practice, Requirements engineering should be flexible,
adaptable, and should be aligned with the overall project goals.
It can be time-consuming and expensive, especially if the
requirements are complex.
It can be difficult to elicit requirements from stakeholders who have
different needs and priorities.
Requirements may change over time, which can result in delays and
additional costs.
There may be conflicts between stakeholders, which can be difficult
to resolve.
It may be challenging to ensure that all stakeholders understand and
agree on the requirements.

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Stages in Software Engineering Process

Requirements engineering is a critical process in software engineering
that involves identifying, analyzing, documenting, and managing the
requirements of a software system. The requirements engineering
process consists of the following stages:

Elicitation: In this stage, the requirements are gathered from various

stakeholders such as customers, users, and domain experts. The aim
is to identify the features and functionalities that the software system
should provide.
Analysis: In this stage, the requirements are analyzed to determine
their feasibility, consistency, and completeness. The aim is to identify
any conflicts or contradictions in the requirements and resolve them.
Specification: In this stage, the requirements are documented in a
clear, concise, and unambiguous manner. The aim is to provide a
detailed description of the requirements that can be understood by
all stakeholders.
Validation: In this stage, the requirements are reviewed and
validated to ensure that they meet the needs of all stakeholders. The
aim is to ensure that the requirements are accurate, complete, and
consistent.
Management: In this stage, the requirements are managed
throughout the software development lifecycle. The aim is to ensure
that any changes or updates to the requirements are properly
documented and communicated to all stakeholders.
Effective requirements engineering is crucial to the success of
software development projects. It helps ensure that the software
system meets the needs of all stakeholders and is delivered on time,
within budget, and to the required quality standards.

Conclusion
As the project develops and new information becomes available, the
iterative requirements engineering process may involve going back and
reviewing earlier phases. Throughout the process, stakeholders in the
project must effectively communicate and collaborate to guarantee that

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