Modern Systems Analysis

and Design

Chapter 7

Structuring System Process

Requirements
 Learning Objectives

 Understand the logical modeling of processes by studying

examples of data flow diagrams (DFDs).

 Draw data flow diagrams following specific rules and

guidelines that lead to accurate and well-structured process
models.

 Decompose data flow diagrams into lower-level diagrams.

 Balance higher-level and lower-level data flow diagrams.

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 Learning Objectives (Cont.)

 Use data flow diagrams as a tool to support the analysis of

information systems.

 Discuss process modeling for electronic commerce

applications.

 Use decision tables to represent the logic of choice in

conditional statements.

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 Process Modeling

FIGURE 7-1
Systems development life cycle with the analysis phase highlighted
4
 Process Modeling (Cont.)

 Graphically represent the processes that capture, manipulate,

store, and distribute data between a system and its
environment and among system components.

5
 Process Modeling (Cont.)

 Utilize information gathered during requirements determination.

 Processes and data structures are modeled.

6
 Deliverables and Outcomes

 Context data flow diagram (DFD)

 Scope of system

 DFDs of current physical system

 Adequate or sufficient detail only

 DFDs of current logical system

 Enables analysts to understand current system

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 Deliverables and Outcomes (Cont.)

 DFDs of new logical system

 Technology independent
 Show data flows, structure, and functional requirements of
new system

 Thorough description of each DFD component

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 Data Flow Diagramming Mechanics

 Represent both physical and logical information systems

 Only four symbols are used

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Data Flow Diagramming Mechanics (Cont.)

 Useful for depicting purely logical information flows

 DFDs that detail physical systems differ from system

flowcharts which depict details of physical computing
equipment

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Definitions and Symbols

FIGURE 7-2
Comparison of DeMarco
and Yourdon
and Gane and Sarson
DFD symbol sets

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 Definitions and Symbols (Cont.)

 Process: work or actions performed on data (inside the

system)

 Data store: data at rest (inside the system)

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 Definitions and Symbols (Cont.)

 Source/sink: external entity that is origin or destination of

data (outside the system)

 Data flow: arrows depicting movement of data

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 Developing DFDs

 Context diagram is an overview of an organizational system

that shows:
 the system boundaries.
 external entities that interact with the system.
 major information flows between the entities and the
system.

 Note: only one process symbol, and no data stores shown

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 Context Diagram

FIGURE 7-4
Context diagram of Hoosier Burger’s food-ordering system
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 Developing DFDs (Cont.)

 Level-0 diagram is a data flow diagram that represents a

system’s major processes, data flows, and data stores at a high
level of detail.

 Processes are labeled 1.0, 2.0, etc. These will be

decomposed into more primitive (lower-level) DFDs.

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 Level-0 Diagram

FIGURE 7-5
Level-0 DFD of Hoosier Burger’s
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food-ordering system
 Data Flow Diagramming Rules

 There are two DFD guidelines that apply:

 The inputs to a process are different from the outputs of
that process.
 Processes purpose is to transform inputs into outputs.

 Objects on a DFD have unique names.

 Every process has a unique name.

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Data Flow Diagramming Rules (Cont.)
TABLE 7-2 Rules Governing Data Flow Diagramming

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Data Flow Diagramming Rules (Cont.)
TABLE 7-2 Rules Governing Data Flow Diagramming (cont.)

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 Decomposition of DFDs

 Functional decomposition is an iterative process of breaking

a system description down into finer and finer detail.

 Creates a set of charts in which one process on a given

chart is explained in greater detail on another chart.

 Continues until no sub process can logically be broken

down any further.

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 Decomposition of DFDs (Cont.)

 Primitive or old DFD is the lowest level of a DFD.

 Level-1 diagram results from decomposition of Level-0

diagram.

 Level-n diagram is a DFD diagram that is the result of n

nested decompositions from a process on a level-0 diagram.

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 Level-1 DFD
FIGURE 7-8
Level-1 diagram showing the decomposition of
Process 4.0 from the level-0 diagram for Hoosier
Burger’s food-ordering system

Level-1 DFD shows

the sub-processes of
one of the processes in
the Level-0 DFD.

Processes are labeled 4.1, 4.2, etc. This is a Level-1 DFD

These can be further decomposed in for Process 4.0.
more primitive (lower-level) DFDs if
necessary.

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Level-n DFD
FIGURE 7-9
Level-2 diagram showing the decomposition of Process 4.3
Level-n DFD shows
from the level-1 diagram for Process 4.0 for Hoosier Burger’s
the sub-processes of
food-ordering system
one of the processes
in the Level n-1
DFD.

This is a Level-2
DFD for Process 4.3.

Processes are labeled 4.3.1, 4.3.2, etc. If this is the lowest level of the
hierarchy, it is called a primitive DFD.

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Some Common
Errors

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 Balancing DFDs

 Conservation Principle: conserve inputs and outputs to a

process at the next level of decomposition

 Balancing: conservation of inputs and outputs to a data flow

diagram process when that process is decomposed to a lower
level

26
 Balancing DFDs (Cont.)

 Balanced means:

 Number of inputs to lower level DFD equals number of

inputs to associated process of higher-level DFD

 Number of outputs to lower level DFD equals number of

outputs to associated process of higher-level DFD

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 Balancing DFDs (Cont.)

(a) Context diagram

1 input
This is unbalanced
1 output because the
process of the
(b) Level-0 diagram context diagram
has only one input
but the Level-0
diagram has two
2 inputs inputs.
1 output

FIGURE 7-10 An unbalanced set of data flow diagrams 28

 Balancing DFDs (Cont.)

 Data flow splitting is when a composite data flow at a higher

level is split and different parts go to different processes in the
lower level DFD.

 The DFD remains balanced because the same data is involved,

but split into two parts.

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Balancing DFDs (Cont.)
FIGURE 7-11
Example of data flow splitting

(a) Composite data flow

(b) Disaggregated data flows

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Balancing DFDs: More DFD Rules

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Balancing the DFD

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 Four Different Types of DFDs

 Current Physical
 Process labels identify technology (people or systems) used
to process the data.
 Data flows and data stores identify actual name of the
physical media.
 Current Logical
 Physical aspects of system are removed as much as
possible.
 Current system is reduced to data and processes that
transform them.

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 Four Different Types of DFDs (Cont.)

 New Logical
 Includes additional functions.
 Obsoleteoutdated functions are removed.
 Inefficient data flows are reorganized.

 New Physical
 Represents the physical implementation of the new system.

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 Guidelines for Drawing DFDs
 Completeness

 DFD must include all components necessary for system.

 Each component must be fully described in the project

dictionary or CASE repository.

 Consistency

 The extent to which information contained on one level of

a set of nested DFDs is also included on other levels
 Example of inconsistency would be a data flow that appears on a higher-level DFD but not on lower levels(violation of
balancing)

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 Guidelines for Drawing DFDs (Cont.)
 Timing

 Time is not represented well on DFDs.on a given DFD ,there is no indication of whether
a data flow occurs constantly in real time,once per week,or once per year.

 Best to draw DFDs as if the system has never started and will
never stop.

 Iterative Development

 Analyst should expect to redraw diagram several times

before reaching the closest approximation to the system
being modeled.

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 Guidelines for Drawing DFDs (Cont.)

 Primitive DFDs

 Lowest logical level of decomposition

 Decision has to be made when to stop decomposition

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 Guidelines for Drawing DFDs (Cont.)

 Rules for stopping decomposition

 When each process has been reduced to a single decision,

calculation or database operation

 When each data store represents data about a single entity

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 Guidelines for Drawing DFDs (Cont.)

 Rules for stopping decomposition, cont.

 When the system user does not care to see any more detail

 When every data flow does not need to be split further to

show that data are handled in various ways

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 Guidelines for Drawing DFDs (Cont.)

 Rules for stopping decomposition, cont.

 When you believe that you have shown each business form
or transaction, online display and report as a single data
flow

 When you believe that there is a separate process for each

choice on all lowest-level menu options

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 Using DFDs as Analysis Tools

 DFDs can also be used in a process called gap analysis.

 Gap Analysis is the process of discovering discrepancies

inconsistencies between two or more sets of data flow diagrams or

discrepancies within a single DFD.

 Inefficiencies in a system can often be identified through

DFDs.

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 Using DFDs in BPR

FIGURE 7-16
IBM Credit Corporation’s primary work process before BPR
(Source: Based on Hammer and Champy, 1993.)
42
Using DFDs in BPR (Cont.)

FIGURE 7-17
IBM Credit Corporation’s primary work process after BPR
(Source: Based on Hammer and Champy, 1993.) 43
 Modeling Logic with Decision Tables

 Decision table: a matrix representation of the logic of a

decision which specifies the possible conditions for the
decision and the resulting actions.

 Best used for complicated decision logic.

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Modeling Logic with Decision Tables (Cont.)

FIGURE 7-18
Complete decision table for payroll system example
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 Modeling Logic with Decision Tables (Cont.)

 Condition stubs: that part of a decision table that lists the

conditions relevant to the decision

 Action stubs: that part of a decision table that lists the actions
that result for a given set of conditions

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 Modeling Logic with Decision Tables (Cont.)

 Rules: that part of a decision table that specifies which

actions are to be followed for a given set of conditions

 Indifferent condition: in a decision table, a condition whose

value does not affect which actions are taken for two or more
rules

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 Modeling Logic with Decision Tables (Cont.)

 Procedure for Creating Decision Tables

 Name the condition and the values that each condition can
assume.
 Name all possible actions that can occur.
 List all possible rules.
 Define the actions for each rule.
 Simplify the table.

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Modeling Logic with Decision Tables (Cont.)

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 Electronic Commerce Application: Process
Modeling using Data Flow Diagrams

 Process modeling for Pine Valley Furniture’s Webstore

 Completed JAD session.

 Began translating the Webstore system structure into data
flow diagrams.

 Identified six high-level processes.

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Electronic Commerce Application: Process
Modeling using Data Flow Diagrams (Cont.)

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Electronic Commerce Application: Process
Modeling using Data Flow Diagrams

FIGURE 7-22 52
Level-0 data flow diagram for the Web Store
 Summary

 In this chapter you learned how to:

 Understand logical process modeling via data flow
diagrams (DFDs).
 Draw data flow diagrams of well structured process
models.
 Decompose data flow diagrams into lower-level
diagrams.

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 Summary (Cont.)
 Balance high-level and low-level data flow diagrams.

 Use data flow diagrams for analyzing information

systems.

 Use decision tables to represent the logic of choice in

conditional statements.

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