Rapid Fielding Projects in CSCI 577

University of Southern California

Center for Systems and Software Engineering

Rapid Fielding Projectsin CSCI 577

Supannika Koolmanojwong



Outline• Phases and Milestones in ICSM for CSCI577• Tasks and activities in each phase• Process patterns in CSCI577 projects• NDI & NCS• Process Decision Drivers

@USC CSSE 2



ICSM: The Incremental Commitment Spiral Model

@USC CSSE 3

1

2

3

4

5

6

RISK-BASEDSTAKEHOLDER COMMITMENT REVIEW POINTS:

Opportunities to proceed, skip phases backtrack, or terminate

Exploration Commitment Review

Valuation Commitment Review

Foundations Commitment Review

Development Commitment Review

Operations1 and Development2Commitment Review

Operations2 and Development3Commitment Review

Cumulative Level of Understanding, Product and Process Detail (Risk-Driven)

Concurrent Engineering of Products and Processes

2345

EXPLORATION

VALUATION

FOUNDATIONS

DEVELOPMENT1FOUNDATIONS2

OPERATION2DEVELOPMENT3

FOUNDATIONS4

16

Evidence-Based Review Content- A first-class deliverable- Independent expert review- Shortfalls are uncertainties and risks

OPERATION1DEVELOPMENT2

FOUNDATIONS3

Risk

Risk-Based Decisions

Acceptable

Negligible

High, butAddressable

Too High, Unaddressable



The Incremental Commitment Model

4@USC CSSE

Commitment and accountability Incremental growth of system definition and stakeholder commitment

Concurrent engineering

Risk-based activity levels and milestones

Success-critical stakeholder satisficing

Iterative development cycles



ICSM in CSCI577

@USC CSSE 5



@USC CSSE 6



Activities in each phase• Take a look at details in ICSM-EPGhttp://greenbay.usc.edu/IICMSw/index.htm

@USC CSSE 7

http://greenbay.usc.edu/IICMSw/index.htm



Outline• Phases and Milestones in ICSM for

CSCI577• Tasks and activities in each phase• Process patterns in CSCI577 projects• NDI & NCS• Process Decision Drivers

@USC CSSE 8



4 focused ICSM Common PatternsProcess Patterns

Use Single Non-Developmental Item (NDI)AgileArchitected AgileFormal MethodsHW with embedded SW componentIndivisible IOCNDI- intensiveHybrid agile/ plan-driven systemMulti-owner system of systemsFamily of systemsBrownfieldServices- Intensive

9

Market –Driven,Services- Driven, NDI-Driven

@USC CSSE



ICSM Process PatternsProcess Pattern Example

10

Architected Agile Business data processing

Use Single NDI Small website

NDI- intensive Supply chain management

Services- Intensive Community Services

@USC CSSE

OR

AND/OR + at most 70% CUSTOM CODE

AND/OR +

at least30%

at most 70% CUSTOM CODE

at least30%



Different Risk Patterns Yield Different Processes

11@USC CSSE

Architected AgileE.g. Business data processing

Use Single NDIE.g. Accounting System

NDI-IntensiveE.g. Supply Chain Management

Services-IntensiveE.g. Community Services

Risk? Risk? Risk? Risk?Risk?



Outline• Phases and Milestones in ICSM for CSCI577• Tasks and activities in each phase• Process patterns in CSCI577 projects• NDI & NCS

– Definition– Common examples– Why, When is NDI/ NCS right for you ?– Pros and Cons of NDI, NCS– Differences between NDI/NCS– Lesson learned for NDI, NCS

• Process Decision Drivers

@USC CSSE 12



Definitions of NDI / NCS• Non-Developmental Item

– an item that is previously developed and available to use. – 2 kinds of NDI

• Application NDI : WordPress, Wiki• System NDI: MySQL, Apache

– Related terms• COTS, GOTS, ROTS, • Reuse Code, Reuse library, Customer-furnished package

• NCS or Net-Centric Services is an online service available to be accessed over the Internet such as Google services, Yahoo services, Google map, Twitter, Ning.com, Gmail, Facebook, Amazon payment, online currency converter and online dictionary. – Net-Centric Services is known as web service, web application,

online application, cloud computing, and software-as-a-service.

@USC CSSE 13



Common NDIs in CSCI577• Application-NDI

– MS office, WordPerfect– OCR software– Business Works– Coldfusion, Dreamweaver

• System-NDI– Language: PHP, C++, Java, – Database: MySQL– Server: Apache– Others: Java Libararies

@USC CSSE 14



Net-Centric Services (NCS)• an online service available to be accessed

over the internet • Net-Centric Services includes

– web service, – web application, – online application, and – software-as-a-service.

@USC CSSE 15



Common NCSs in CSCI577• Web services

– Google Services, Yahoo Services• Content Management System

– Drupal, Joomla• e-learning system

– Moodle, ILIAS, KEWL, Sakai, Dokeos• Payment Services

– Amazon payment, Paypal, Google Checkout• Calendar

– Google Calendar, liteCalendar, Vcalendar• Others

– OpenCollection, Jumpy Forum, Facebook, Google Map

@USC CSSE 16



Why use NDI/NCS?• Change in software development practice over the past 20

years• Build system with pre-existing software to reduce

development and maintenance costs• Involve less development time and lower development cost

by taking advantage of existing, market proven, vendor supported products.

• Could develop a better version yourself or outsource but generally incur more expense and take longer to begin to capitalize on its benefits

• Trade-off• Source code is not available to developers• Evolution is not under control of developers• Incompatibility, high volatility

@USC CSSE 17



Trade-Off’s for Tailoring• Tailoring effort can vary significantly depending on

NDI/NCS package used– Automated tailoring tools

• E.g. Microsoft Excel macro recorder• Extensive tailoring can cause much rework during

NDI refresh cycles– Oracle: “Use our Business Processes”

• Tailoring effort v/s functionality tradeoff– Minimum tailoring effort to obtain maximum possible

functionality– Tailoring “easy to redo” during NDI refresh cycles

@USC CSSE 18



When is NDI/NCS right for you (1/2)• When they lie at the

intersection of the three determinants of feasibility, and do so demonstrably better than could original code:– technical, – economic, – strategic constraints

@USC CSSE 19



When is NDI/NCS right for you (2/2)• Technical constraint

– Ability supply the desired functionality at the required level of reliability

• Economic constraint– Ability to be incorporated and maintained in the new

system within the available budget and schedule• Strategic constraint

– Ability to meet needs of the system operating environment--including technical, political, and legal considerations--now, and as environment is expected to evolve in the future

@USC CSSE 20



NDI/NCS is not a “Silver Bullet”• However, NDI/NCS is not a “Silver Bullet”

– Involving short-term & long-term cost, evolution and associated risks

– Requiring different processes w.r.t. new skill, knowledge, and abilities

– If not handled well, resulting in difficulties to meet expected economic objectives, even causing tremendous cost and schedule overruns

• Need for NDI/NCS-Oriented Processes

@USC CSSE 21



Selection of NDI/NCS Components• Assessment of:

• Functional Win Conditions• capability offered

• Performance Win Conditions• timing & sizing constraints

• Others• cost/training/installation/maintenance/

market trend / product line

@USC CSSE 22



NDI, NCS characteristics

@USC CSSE 23

Characteristics NDI NCSPlatform Independent Yes / No Yes

Required Internet Access Yes / No Yes

Common Standard No Yes

Option of rejecting next release* Yes No

Change / upgrade control Client /Server’s site Server’s site

End user has the latest version Yes / No Yes

Database Ownership Yes Yes/No

* Will you be able to freeze the version you are using?



NDI Advantages and DisadvantagesAdvantages Disadvantages

Available now, earlier payback Licensing and procurement delays, Up front license fees

Avoids expensive development & maintenance

Recurring maintenance fees

Predictable license costs & performance Reliability often unknown/ inadequate

Rich in functionality Unnecessary features compromise usability, performance

Broadly used, mature technology Functionality, efficiency constraints

Frequent upgrades often anticipate organization’s needs

No control over upgrades/maintenance

Dedicated support organization Dependency on vendor

Hardware/software independence Integration not always trivial; incompatibilities among different COTS

Tracks technology trends Synchronizing multiple-vendor upgrades

@USC CSSE 24



NCS Advantages and Disadvantages

@USC CSSE 25

Advantages Disadvantages

Common Standard; Easy to be integrated Requires internet accessLess (minimal) maintenance required, Server side upgrade/change

Users have no control over updates; new version may break the systme

Users will always have the latest updates The availability and performance are not always guaranteed

Platform Independent Licensing fees (not all services are free)

Wide outreach Need Flexible requirements

Available now for faster turnaround time No control over direction of development Provide general services

Reduces the development time, Avoids expensive development cost

Database ownership and reliability is an issue of concern.

Don’t need to worry about local storage Security IssueThin Layer of Functionality needed at User end

Operational demos become a necessity to learn the functionality of the application



Differences between NDI and NCS (1)Category

Non-Developmental Item[ includes open source, customer-

furnished software]Net-Centric Services

Payment Non-commercial items usually have no monetary cost

Expensive initial costs, moderate recurring fee, training fee, licensing arrangement-dependent

Not all services are free Low initial costs, moderate marginal cost,

duration depending license

Platform Specific and limited to specific platform / language

Generally supported on a subset of platforms or multiple platforms but with different editions

Platform and language independent Server and client can work on different

platform Interaction between machines over a

networkIntegration Generally more tightly coupled

Not very flexible on existing legacy systems when proprietary standard is used

Difficult when platform dependent and different technologies involved

detailed documentation and on-site extensive support

More loosely coupled, Common web standards, flexible to integrate

Requires internet access Support forums and API documentation

available This integration could be done merely in

code, without additional installation of external components

@USC CSSE 26



Differences between NDI and NCS (2)

CategoryNon-Developmental Item

[ includes open source, customer-furnished software]

Net-Centric Services

Changes Able to freeze the version, under user control

Designed for specific use so costly for customization and change

Change on server side doesn’t impact the client side

Major releases once in while Requires end user intervention to upgrade

Changes are out of developers’ control Not easy to predict change, cannot avoid

upgrade The end-user has the latest version of the

service Change on server side result in client side,

not require user intervention Minor releases frequently (through patching)

Extensions Only if source is provided and the license permits

Extension delivered to the end-user by the producer and integrated into the end-user system.

Custom extensions may not be portable across COTS or compatible with future releases

Extension is limited to data provided by the web services

In-house extension such as wrapper or mashup

Little control over performance overhead

@USC CSSE 27



Differences between NDI and NCS (3)Category

Non-Developmental Item[ includes open source, customer-furnished

software]Net-Centric Services

Evaluation Criteria

Maintenance, extensibility, scalability, reliability, cost, support, usability, dependency, ease of implementation, maintainability, upgrades, size, Access to source and code-escrow considerations

Upfront costs opposed to subscription Platform compatibility, Feature controllability

Reliability, Availability, Cost, Available Support, Speed, Predicted longevity of the service provider, release cycle, Bandwidth

Recurring costs to use of the service and future functionality offered

Standards compatibility Feature and data controllability

Support Services

Vendor support for integration, training and tailoring/modification sometimes available for a fee

Help topics or FAQs would likely not be updated after installation

Upgrades/Patches and data migration support Sometimes can be customized for specific

user Upgrade through purchasing new releases,

self-install

Support for tailoring/modification, training generally not available

Help topics would generally be frequently updated; self-learning

Usually not customized for specific user

Patching on service provider’s side; mostly does not require installation on client side

@USC CSSE 28



Differences between NDI and NCS (4)

CategoryNon-Developmental Item

[ includes open source, customer-furnished software]

Net-Centric Services

Data Data often stored locally. Backups is the responsibility of the user

Data access is generally fast Possible variety of proprietary formats,

Platform-dependent May be inflexible for change but more

secure Can process data offline

Data stored on service host’s servers. Backups by the provider. Introduces privacy and data-retention

Data access could be slower since internet based, Process data online

Common XML using web standard protocols

Data from different web services can be used by a single client program

@USC CSSE 29



Lessons Learned Using NDI (1/6)• Problems with vendors

– Vendors promise and don’t deliver– Products don’t work as advertised– Don’t assume a quantity discount, negotiate price upfront

• Need for flexibility in defining requirements– Distinguish between essential and negotiable

requirements. Be flexible where you can.– What we did right - spent 14 out of a total of 22 months

iterating between requirements, business processes and the marketplace

– If you can bend your requirements, NDI is cheaper. Otherwise you’re better off with custom developed. (Not all projects may be flexible)

@USC CSSE 30



Lessons Learned Using NDI (2/6)• Importance of operational demos

– Spend a lot of time in detailed performance demonstrations with real users.

– Up-front time is critical. That’s when you have leverage with vendors. Once you buy their product, they are a lot less willing to help out.

• Assessment of specific attributes– Projects (COCOTS), in the past have expressed

regret that they did not spend more time assessing portability, inter-component compatibility, flexibility (of user interface), and installation ease.

@USC CSSE 31



Lessons Learned Using NDI (3/6)• Life-cycle issues

– Supportability of NDI viewed as a major issue for safety-critical systems

– Out of service is a critical problem• contractor purchased source code and will maintain

NDI software– Projects, in past have expressed the view that

NDI saved money during development but shifted costs to operational side of the life cycle

– On-line software maintenance• How do you upgrade systems once they are in place

and operating?

@USC CSSE 32



Lessons Learned Using NDI (4/6)• Life Cycle Issues (Upgrading)

– What is an effective strategy for upgrading? Products reach end of life in two years.• Freeze and redo the system in 10 years?• Incorporate all versions from all vendors whenever

they come out?• Refresh every 2 years?• Refresh a selected set of components every 2 years?

– Should have an environment set up so you can load new versions onto the existing configuration and decide whether or not to upgrade.

– Look at the entire life cycle realistically - not just development

@USC CSSE 33



Lessons Learned Using NDI (5/6)• NDI integrator experience

– Important that they have experience integrating NDI.

– Look carefully at their credentials. They will oversell themselves

• Product maturity– Never use an untried OS– Maturity of the software was very important in

NDI selection– If you have a safety-critical system, you don’t

want state-of-the-art NDI

@USC CSSE 34



Lessons Learned Using NDI (6/6)• Training on NDI packages

– Significant learning curve• Need for technology and market watch to

keep up with vendors and technologies• Impacts of volatility during development

– redo the tailoring with new releases

@USC CSSE 35



NDI Systems Definitions• NDI-Intensive Systems

– Any system that uses NDI

• NDI Based Applications– A system for which – At least 30% of the end-user functionality is provided by

NDI products and– At least 10% of the project effort is devoted to NDI related

activities– The numbers 10% and 30% are approximate behavioral

NDI boundaries observed in the USC e-services projects

@USC CSSE 36



Types of NDI-based systems

@USC CSSE 37

System with no NDI product

System with just a single NDI product

% ofCapabilityRequirementsImplementedby NDI products

100%

0%

30%

NDIBasedApplications



NDI/NCS based development: Key Concepts

• Process happens where the effort happens• Don’t start with requirements• Avoid premature commitments, but have

and use a plan• Buy information early to reduce risk and

rework• Prepare for NDI/NCS change• Use Bottom up rather than top down

approach@USC CSSE 38



Outline• Phases and Milestones in ICSM for

CSCI577• Tasks and activities in each phase• Process patterns in CSCI577 projects• NDI & NCS• Rapid-Fielding Projects Flow

@USC CSSE 39


Center for Systems and Software Engineering NDI/NCS based system development process

In OCD

Use Architected Agile ProcessEmphasize on

Application NDIs, not System NDIs

In FED

Use NDI, or Net-Centric Services Process

Use NDI-intensive or Net-Centric

Services Processes

40@USC CSSE



NDI/NCS based system development process

41@USC CSSE




42@USC CSSE




43@USC CSSE



44@USC CSSE




45@USC CSSE

Documents

Rapid Fielding Projects in CSCI 577