Design Guidelines for a Monitoring Environment Concerning Distributed Real-Time Systems

While the dependability requirements of distributed real-time systems are expanding, there is currently no framework for defining and mapping these requirements into the system design and operation. A method of controlling and achieving the dependability level is real-time monitoring, which measures the degree of requirements fulfilment, relates it to the pre-defined, measurable system-level expectations and dynamically adapts the system, based on quality metrics, risk analysis, cost evaluation, control theory, neural networks, data acquisition and system knowledge management. The book deduces a framework to reveal, define, quantify, measure, analyse, design, implement, test, monitor and enhance dependability (functional and non-functional) requirements of a distributed system with real-time constraints. It is presented how the framework can be applied throughout all life-cycle stages, under varying constraints and with maximised cost effectiveness. An overview of the tools and methodologies applicable has been given and an integrated and generalised architecture for ensuring continuous fulfilment of system requirements, proposed. The framework provides a multilevel specification mechanism to establish the preservation of system requirements. This ensures the correct functioning of system through adaptations at run time. Among the benefits are controlled access and coordinated resource sharing in accordance with service-level agreement policies, multi-stakeholder interest preservation, transparency with respect to location, naming, performance etc., achievement of quality of service on demand, decentralisation, seamless integration of resources and applications, as well as increased predictability. READERSHIP: The intended audience is broad: real time and distributed systems scientists and developers, software engineers, students, quality assurance managers, contractors, users, service providers and all those searching for an alternative approach to handling and ensuring automated control of fulfilment of system requirements. Moreover, those needing a handbook on contract negotiations and a method of tracing operational results back into system requirements of long lived projects with high dependability and integrity demands.