Techniques for evaluating the robustness of Windows NT software

Windows NT is rapidly becoming the platform of choice for organizations engaging in commerce, engineering, and research. The Windows NT operating system and its software are being relied upon for an increasing number of critical applications in both the military and civilian arenas. It is essential that software testing techniques are created that will enable the development of software that is capable of functioning in such roles, This paper presents two approaches that can be used to aid in the robustness testing of Windows NT software. The first approach uses a test data generator to analyze the robustness of Windows NT Dynamic Link Libraries. The second approach uses binary wrapping and fault injection techniques to study the effects of operating system failures on an application. A Failure Simulation Tool has been developed to this end.