Optimal release times for software systems with scheduled delivery time based on the HGDM

The Hyper-Geometric Distribution software reliability growth Model (HGDM) was developed to estimate the number of remaining software faults after completing the test/debug phase. An important problem in the software development process is to determine when to stop testing and release the software to the users. In this paper, the cost optimal release policy, which minimizes the total expected software cost, is discussed. The total expected software cost here includes the penalty cost, which should be paid by the manufacturer if the software is delivered after the scheduled delivery time. The underlying software reliability growth model in our approach is the HGDM. Numerical examples are presented for illustration.