Maintenance of large-scale software systems is a complex and expensive process. Large-scale software systems often possess both a set of functional and performance requirements. Thus, it is important for maintenance personnel to consider the ramifications of a proposed program modification from both a functional and a performance perspective. In this paper the ripple effect which results as a consequence of program modification will be analyzed. A technique is developed to analyze this ripple effect from both functional and performance perspectives. A figure-of-merit is then proposed to estimate the complexity of program modification. This figure can be used as a basis upon which various modifications can be evaluated.
['Stephen S. Yau', 'James S. Collofello', 'Thomas R. MacGregor']
Ripple effect analysis of software maintenance