ARCADE Framework for Architectural Dependability Evaluation

Organisation:	University of Saarbruecken (Germany) University of Twente (The Netherlands)
Functionality:	Model-based dependability evaluation.
Tools used:	CADP (Construction and Analysis of Distributed Processes) Dynamic Fault Tree
Period:	2008
Description:	With increasing dependence on computers and communications devices in our everyday lives, dependability requirements that were once confined to specific high-risk applications domains are now the norm in all applications. Therefore the cost of providing a high level of dependability must be kept to a minimum, and dependability must be achieved through sound design and implementation. This poses a requirement for simple modeling and analysis. A framework for modeling dependability must require low effort, provide high expressivity, have formal semantics and compositionality, and be supported by tools for both modeling and analysis. The ARCADE approach seeks to meet these needs by building on the strengths of other existing formalisms while avoiding their weaknesses. Based on an ARCADE specification, each component definition is translated into I/O-IMC model, a format that is readable by CADP. CADP can then compose and minimize the I/O-IMCs based on the compositional aggregation approach, and calculate the desired dependability measures. Case studies illustrate the advantage of using compositional modeling and analysis for high-level dependability profiling of a system. Two formalisms that use this approach, DFTs and ARCADE, both of which use CADP, demonstrate an increase in compositionality in both modeling and analysis.
Conclusions:	ARCADE provides a method for modeling and analysing dependability in a way that adds little overhead to the normal design and implementation phases of application development.
Publications:	[Boudali-Crouzen-Haverkort-Kuntz-Stoelinga-08-a] Hichem Boudali, Pepijn Crouzen, Boudewijn R. Haverkort, Matthias Kuntz, and Mariëlle Stoelinga. "Arcade - A Formal, Extensible, Model-Based Dependability Evaluation Framework", In Karin Breitman, Jim Woodcock, Roy Sterritt, and Mike Hinchey editors, Proceedings of the 13th IEEE International Conference on Engineering of Complex Computer Systems ICECCS'2008 (Belfast, Northern Ireland), pp. 243-248, IEEE Computer Society Press, March 2008. Full version available on-line from http://eprints.eemcs.utwente.nl/12996/01/04492898.pdf or from the CADP Web site in PDF or PostScript [Boudali-Crouzen-Haverkort-Kuntz-Stoelinga-08-b] Hichem Boudali, Pepijn Crouzen, Boudewijn R. Haverkort, Matthias Kuntz, Mariëlle Stoelinga. "Rich Interfaces for Dependability: Compositional Methods for Dynamic Fault Trees and Arcade models". In Kim G. Larsen, Andrzej Wasowski, and Ulrik Nyman editors, Proceedings of the 2nd International Workshop on Foundations of Interface Technologies FIT'2008 (Budapest, Hungary), April 2008. Full version available from the CADP Web site in PDF or PostScript
Contact:	Prof. Dr. Ir. Boudewijn R. Haverkort University of Twente Chair, Design and Analysis of Communication Systems Faculty for Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Science P.O. Box 217, 7500 AE Enschede, the Netherlands. Tel: +31 53 4898041 Email: brh [at] cs.utwente.nl
Further remarks:	This tool, amongst others, is described on the CADP Web site: http://cadp.inria.fr/software

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