Software Requirements Specification

Software Requirements Specification

for

Automated Railway Reservation System

Huitang Li

Vahid Keshmiri

Yasin Esmail

Zaida M. Morales

Natasha Dunaeva

Rehan Khan

December 04, 2000

Version	Changes Made	Date
1.0	First Pass for Review	10/24/2000
1.2	Second Pass for Review	11/07/2000
1.3	Third Pass for Review	11/28/2000
1.4	CRM Review Version	12/04/2000

1. Introduction.

1.1 Purpose.

This document describes the software requirements for the Automated Railroad Reservation System built for the Chinese Railway Ministry (CRM).

1.2 Scope.

The CRM is requesting proposals to build a prototype of an Automated Railroad Reservation System (ARRS) for their current system. This new ARRS needs to be scalable enough so that it can accommodate the increase in reservations caused by new railroad building in China.

The system will be designed to provide an electronic version of the railway passenger reservation system in China. The system will have a user-friendly graphical interface and will be more cost effective compared to the current non-electronic version of the reservation system.

The objectives of this development effort are:

· To provide existing clerks with a new environment in which to make reservations for railroad travel.

· To provide an avenue for customers to get their tickets in a more convenient way.

· To regain control of the railway ticket sales to avoid scalping and overselling of tickets.

· To implement a prototype of a scaled down version of the final system to test the solution and further develop requirements.

· To collect statistics in a more efficient manner for future railroad development and construction.

· To increase efficiency of railroads.

1.3 Definitions, Acronyms, and Abbreviations.

APPM – AsiaPac Marketing Manager

ARRS – Automated Railroad Reservation System

CASE – Computer Aided Software Engineering

CITS – China International Travel Agency

CRM – Chinese Railroad Ministry

PP - Project Plan

SDD - Software Design Description

SRS - Software Requirement Specification

SDS – Software Design Specification

SPMP - Software Project Management Plan

GUI – Graphical User Interface

QAM – Quality Assurance Manager

PDM – Project Development Manager

PMP – Project Management Professional

TBD – To be determined

UML – Unified Modeling Language

1.4 References.

· Introduction – Chinese Railway Passenger Reservation System Prototype

http://www.cs.swt.edu/~donshafer/project_documents/5391_Case.html

· Situation Update – Chinese Railway Passenger Reservation System

http://www.cs.swt.edu/~donshafer/Marketing Update(1).html

· China 2000

http://www.china2thou.com

· Pressman, Roger S., Software Engineering: A Practitioner’s Approach, McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 1997.

1.5 Overview.

Chapter 2 of the SRS is a brief description of the characteristics of the software to be built, its functions, its users, its constraints and its dependencies.

Chapter 3 is about specific requirements, such as functional requirements, external interface requirements, performance requirements, and also design constraints and quality characteristics.

Finally, chapter 4 includes all the supporting information, such as the Table of Contents, the Appendices, and the Index.

2. The General Description.

This section describes the general factors that affect the product and its requirements. This section consists of five subsections that follow. This section does not state specific requirements. Each of the subsections makes those requirements easier to understand, it does not specify design or express specific requirements. Such detail is provided in section 3.

2.1 Product Perspective.

The Automated Railway Reservation System diagram showing the overview of the system’s modules and the relationship of the system to external interfaces is presented in Figure 2.1.

Figure 2.1 Overview Diagram of the ARRS

Functions of System Components:

Database:

· Stores data

· Creates reports

· Provides access to data

· Updates information

Server:

· Provides access to the database

· Authenticates users

· Processes reservations

· Performs backups

· Produces reports

External Interfaces:

Terminal

· Users use terminals to access the server

· Passengers and travel agents use terminals to reserve the tickets and to get information about the available seats on particular trains.

· Railroad administration may use terminals to see the reports generated by the database software.

Personal Computers

· Users (passengers, travel agents, and railroad administration) may use personal computers to obtain a remote access to the server and the reservation database via the Internet.

Cell Phones

· Serve as a medium of accessing the server and the reservation database.

· Passengers may use cell phones and the latest telecommunication technologies to access the server and the reservation database via Internet, or they may use cell phones to call travel agents to inquire about railroad and ticket information.

Computer Hardware and Peripheral Equipment to be used:

· 30 workstations, which include CPUs, monitors, keyboards, and mice

· Printers

· Network

· Terminals

· Cell phones to test connection to the server via remote access

2.2 Product Functions.

This section provides a summary of the functions that the software will perform.

2.2.1 Function Relationships

Figure 2.2 to 2.6 depict the relationships among the functions to be implemented by the system.

Figure 2.2 ARRS General Function Relationship Diagram

Figure 2.3 ARRS Ticket Reservation Function Relationship Diagram

Figure 2.4 ARRS Passenger Account Function Relationship Diagram

Figure 2.5 ARRS Train Information Function Relationship Diagram

Figure 2.6 ARRS Display Reports Function Relationship Diagram

2.2.2 Function Descriptions

2.2.2.1 Log In Function

Description: This function ensures that only authorized users gain access to the Reservation databases. An authorized user is a user who has an account on the system. Users include passengers, train officials, and CRM ministry officials. The user must type a valid username and password to gain access.

2.2.2 Make Reservation Function

Description: This function allows the user to make a reservation for a particular train on a particular date for a certain number of tickets. If the user does not already have a reservation, then a new reservation is created. If the user already has a previous reservation, a new reservation is added to the list of current reservations, and the passenger account balance gets updated.

2.2.3 Drop a Reservation Function

Description: This function allows the user to drop a reservation for a particular train on a particular date for a certain number of tickets. If the user does not already have a reservation, then all reservations are dropped. If the user already has a previous reservation, a chosen reservation is dropped from the list of current reservations, and the passenger account balance gets updated.

2.2.4 Display Current Reservation Function

Description: This function allows the user to see a list of all his/her current reservations. If the user does not have any reservations at the time (assuming that the user has a valid account on the Reservation system), and empty list with a message “No Reservations Have Been Made” is displayed.

2.2.5 Display Train Schedule Information Function

Description: This function allows the user to see a list of all scheduled train departures including train name, city from and to which the train is going, the number of seats available, and the prices for different ticket types.

2.2.6 Display Balance Function

Description: This function provides a listing of the current balance due and payments received in the past. This information is presented in an easy to follow format and separately displays each reservation.

2.2.7 Pay Reservation Function

Description: This function allows the user to pay his/her current reservation cost. The user may either pay entire balance due or select to pay in person within 48 hours. The user must also input a valid credit card number or CRM Credit account number.

2.2.8 Add a Train Function

Description: This function allows the user to add a train with a particular seat type on a particular date and time to travel between the cities specified. If the train does not already exist in the train schedule, then a new train route is created and the ticket availability for that route is updated. If the train already exists in the train schedule, the train schedule information is updated.

2.2.9 Drop a Train Function

Description: This function allows the user to drop a train of a particular seat type on a particular date and time that was traveling between the cities specified. If the train does not exist in the current train schedule, the request is ignored. If the train exists in the reservation database, the chosen train is dropped from the list of current train schedules, and the train schedule gets updated.

2.2.10 Display Report Function

Description: This function allows the user to display the following reports:

Number of Reservations for Each Departure Date/Train

Number of Customers Turned Away

Number of No-Shows

Number and Names of People who Showed Up

List of High Buyers

These reports are only available to Chinese Railway Ministry Employees.

2.3 User Characteristics.

The main users of the system will be the passengers buying train tickets, the travel agents that process reservations for passengers, and the CRM administration that access the reports generated by the system. The users are not required to have knowledge in the computer field. The graphical interface provides an easy way of using the ARRS system with minimum of training.

2.4 General Constraints.

The constraints for the project are:

· The number of trains from city Guangzhou to Shanghai and from Shanghai to Guangzhou is limited to 5 trains.

· The number of passengers that can be taking a train at once is limited to 1080 passengers.

· Two of the trains traveling from Guangzhou or Shanghai stop at Nanjing each day and one of the trains traveling from Guangzhou or Shanghai stops at Nanjing each day. No trains originate Nanjing.

· The functional prototype should be available after 30 days upon the arrival of the management team to China. This may prove to be a serious time constraint on the development of a successful prototype.

· Communication with the Chinese team members may prove to be difficult since some Chinese developers do not speak English and the management team does not speak Chinese. Even with the presence of a translator, communication may be difficult. Absence of the translator may severely affect project development.

· Team members are restricted from bringing their own equipment, and insufficient equipment supply may hinder project development.

· Team members are restricted to bringing only the analysts of the team to China. This might affect the project development if more people are needed or the required skills are not available.

· The majority of the Chinese population does not have or have a limited access to the Internet.

· Scalping of tickets is a popular activity in China, and CRM wants to discourage such practices.

2.5 Assumptions and Dependencies.

The assumptions for the project are:

· Ten trains transport the passengers between three cities known as Guangzhou, Shanghai and Nanjing. These trains originate only in cities Guangzhou and Shanghai, and they make a stop at Nanjing before arriving to their destination.

· Five trains travel from city Guangzhou or Shanghai each day and five travel from city Guangzhou or Shanghai each day. Two of the trains traveling from Guangzhou or Shanghai stop at Nanjing each day and one of the trains traveling from Guangzhou or Shanghai stops at Nanjing each day. No trains originate Nanjing.

· There are five classes of tickets as listed below

§ Sleeping (soft) - compartment style coaches - 4 passenger per compartment

§ Sleeping (hard) - compartment style coaches - 6 passenger per compartment

§ Sitting (soft) - typical first class coach

§ Sitting (hard) - tourist class couch

§ Standing (hard and soft sitting coaches only)

· Reservation can be made up to one month before a particular trip.

· Seats are assigned during reservation.

· Phone reservation involves tickets being purchased within 24 hours after making the reservation. Otherwise, the reservation will be cancelled.

· No reservations can be made 48 hours prior to the trip. Rather, it will be done on a first come first serve basis from that point on.

· Passenger lists will be provided for conductors at each stop.

· The trains will be assumed to be of a constant size that accommodates 1080 passengers at a time. They will consist of:

§ 2 soft-sleeping coaches (12 compartments each)

§ 2 hard-sleeping coaches (12 compartments)

§ 2 soft-seating coaches (60 seats)

§ 9 hard-sitting coaches (80 seats each)

· The following management reports will be available:

§ Number of reservations made for each departure date/train

§ Number of customers turned away because of full trains for each departure/train

§ Number of no-shows for each departure

§ Number and names of people who show up without reservation for each departure

§ List of high buyers of train tickets.

· The expected reservations during test period may amount to approximately 25,000 per day. This volume varies by hour, day, and season.

· Chinese Ministry will provide us with information about identification process used in China, so that it can be applied to the reservation system and scalping of tickets is avoided.

· Network connection will always remain established.

The dependencies, or external events, for the project are:

· CRM trains occasionally may become non-operational. In that case, a new train will be dispatched, but a delay of up to a few days could occur.

· 26 developers will be provided by the CRM.

§ 1 development manager who speaks and writes good English.

§ 3 analysts, who have had extensive experience in developing applications, none speak English, all read English, and all have a fair ability to write in English.

§ 1 Programmer/Analyst who has extensive telecommunications skills and communicates fairly well in English.

§ 11 Programmers with 5 or more years experience in developing extensive applications. 3 of this group have excellent English communication skills.

§ 10 Programmers with less than 5 years experience. The Ministry is extremely interested in these people receiving on-the-job training so they must be used. Only 2 of this group can communicate in English.

· The CRM will provide all the required hardware and software resources for the development of the project.

· A facilitator from CRM to help make arrangements with government authorities, make travel arrangements, and serve as a host to our country.

· The telecommunications channels available in China are sufficient for the development of a feasible client server system.

· Three analysts in the Bangalore software development center.

· Australian design center manager

· Two documentation specialists from company.

· Three field applications mangers from the Taiwan office.

3. Specific Requirements.

This section of the SRS contains design requirements for the Automated Railway Reservation System.

3.1 Automated Railway Reservation System Functional Requirements.

3.1.1 Log In Function

Rationale: Logging into the system provides security and confidentiality to the system. It reduces the chance that someone can taper any individual’s personal information and prevents unauthorized users from modifying the confidential information such as reports for CRM or train schedule information.

Specification:

Description	Allows access to online ARRS
Inputs	Username, password
Source	User inputs username and password
Outputs	Successful login; unsuccessful login
Destination	None
Precondition	Authorized User
Post Condition	No change to Passenger Accounts Database
Side Effects	Failures and successful logins are sent to Reservation Database

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.2 Make a Reservation Function

Rationale: A user must have the ability to add a reservation to his/her account. This function makes this process simple and easy.

Specification:

Description	Adds a reservation to the user’s account
Inputs	From city, to city, seat type, travel date, return date and time
Source	User inputs from city, to city, seat type, travel date, return date and time
Outputs	Modified reservation
Destination	Computer screen Reservation database Passenger Account database
Precondition	Valid information; train route and tickets available; user does not have another reservation at the same time
Post Condition	Reservation added to passenger account
Side Effects	User’s current reservations adjusted Balance due adjusted

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.3 Drop Reservation Function

Rationale: A user must be able to remove a reservation from his/her account. This function makes this process simple and easy.

Specification:

Description	Remove a reservation from a user’s account
Inputs	From city, to city, seat type, travel date, return date and time
Source	User inputs from city, to city, seat type, travel date, return date and time
Outputs	Modified reservation
Destination	Computer screen Reservation database Passenger Account database
Precondition	Reservation must be a part of user’s current reservations
Post Condition	Reservation is removed from user’s account
Side Effects	User’s current reservations adjusted Balance due adjusted Ticket availability updated

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.4 Display Current Reservations Function

Rationale: This function will be used primarily as a device to verify reservations during and after the reservation process.

Specification:

Description	Allow user to check reservations
Inputs	Name, address, phone number
Source	Log In function
Outputs	Date, train #, from city, to city, seat type, # of tickets, total
Destination	Computer screen
Precondition	Successful login to secure network
Post Condition	Reservation balance is displayed on computer screen
Side Effects	None

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.5 Display Train Schedule Information Function

Description: This function allows the user to see a list of all scheduled train departures including train name, city from and to which

the train is going, the number of seats available, and the prices for different ticket types.

Rationale: A list of train departures helps the user to decide what information to enter to the Make a Reservation and Drop a Reservation functions.

Specification:

Description	Allow user to check train availability by city from and to which the train is going, number of seats available, and ticket price
Inputs	None
Source	Log In Function
Outputs	Train schedule and availability status
Destination	Computer screen
Precondition	Web Access
Post Condition	Reservation remains unchanged
Side Effects	None

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.6 Display Balance Function

Rationale: This function allows the user to keep accurate financial records on his/her total reservations payed. This information is also useful in figuring out how much the user has spent in train travel.

Specification:

Description	Provides a listing of current balance due and past payments received
Inputs	Log In Function
Source	Passenger Reservation Database
Outputs	Name, address, phone number, date, train #, City from, city to, seat type, # of tickets, subtotal, total
Destination	Computer screen
Precondition	Successful login to secure network
Post Condition	No change to payment information
Side Effects	None

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.7 Pay Reservation Function

Rationale: This function allows the user to pay online rather than to pay in person. To pay online is both more convenient and less time consuming, because the user is not subject to the hours of operation of the Travel Agent Office.

Specification:

Description	Allow user to pay reservation via a credit card or CRM credit account
Inputs	Type of credit card, credit card number or CRM credit account number, expiration date, cardholder name, cardholder phone number
Source	User provides all the necessary inputs
Outputs	Passenger balance
Destination	Computer screen and Passenger Account Database
Precondition	Valid credit card number or CRM credit account number
Post Condition	Account balance updated
Side Effects	None

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.8 Add a Train Function

Rationale: A user must have the ability to add a train to the available train schedule if new trains become available or existing trains are not operational. This function makes this process simple and easy.

Specification:

Description	Adds a train to the train schedule
Inputs	From city, to city, seat type, travel date, return date, time, and train number
Source	User inputs from city, to city, seat type, travel date, return date, time, and train number
Outputs	Modified train schedule
Destination	Computer screen Reservation database Passenger Account database
Precondition	Valid information; train route is valid; train is not scheduled for another trip at the same time
Post Condition	Train added to train schedule
Side Effects	Current reservations adjusted Current train schedule adjusted Ticket availability adjusted

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.9 Drop a Train

Rationale: A user must be able to remove a train from the train schedule if it is no longer operational. This function makes this process simple and easy.

Specification:

Description	Remove a train from the train schedule
Inputs	From city, to city, seat type, travel date, return date, time, and train number
Source	User inputs from city, to city, seat type, travel date, return date, time, and train number
Outputs	Modified train schedule
Destination	Computer screen Reservation database Passenger Account database
Precondition	Train must be a part of current train schedule
Post Condition	Train is removed from train schedule
Side Effects	User’s current reservations adjusted Current train schedule updated Ticket availability updated

Data Flow Diagram:

3.1.10 Display Report Function

Description: This function allows the user to display the following reports:

Number of Reservations for Each Departure Date/Train

Number of Customers Turned Away

Number of No-Shows

Number and Names of People who Showed Up

List of High Buyers

These reports are only available to Chinese Railway Ministry Employees.

Rationale: The Chinese Railway Ministry must be able to generate reports to keep track of ticket sales and reservations. This function makes this process simple and easy.

Specification:

Description	Display a system report
Inputs	Log In Function
Source	Passenger Account Database and Reservation Database
Outputs	Requested report
Destination	Computer screen
Precondition	Successful login to secure network
Post Condition	No change to reservation information
Side Effects	None

Data Flow Diagram:

3.2. External Interface Requirements

3.2.1 User Interfaces.

The user interfaces are divided into two major components. One part includes the user accessing the system using a cell phone. The other portion involves accessing the system through a remote site or at a particular location specifically designed to access the system. For instance, the clerks and the CRM access the reservation system from the reservation or CRM office.

The diagrams and explanations below demonstrate the major transition from one user interface to another. This is a brief description. However, a more detailed demonstration is done in the prototype. The purpose of this interaction is to illustrate the overall view of the ARRS.

The diagram below illustrates the four major functionalities. These functionalities will be displayed depending on the user. For instance, the CRM will see all four functionalities while the normal user and the clerks will only see the Ticket Reservation and the Passenger Account.

Selecting one of these functions will take the user to a different user interface. For instance, choosing Ticket Reservation will display the following web page. The title of this page is consistent with the function selected, and since the Ticket Reservation was selected, the title displays Ticket Reservation. The purpose of this is to allow the user know what part of the system they are accessing. Furthermore, the user can select any of the four functions.

The user can select any of the four functionalities. For the sake of this demonstration, if the user clicks on the Make Reservation function the diagram below is displayed. Once again the title is the same as the main function and a subtitle indicates the second function selected. In addition, the person can fill up the following information and the date of travel or return if he/she wishes. The three buttons allow the user to navigate through the interfaces. For instance, the back button will take the user to the above page, and the clear button will clear the form of any selection he/she made before. The Display Available displays the available trains, seats and what city they want to travel to. However, before we get to the next page when clicking Display Available the picture below illustrates the Make Reservation function.

The Display Available function displays all the trains traveling from one city to another and the seats available on that train. Furthermore, the last list displays the number of tickets available for the particular train on the selected route. The back button will take the user to the above picture, and the confirm button takes the person to the payment page.

The following page allows the user to pay for the ticket as appropriate. Now, this page is part of the Passenger Account function, and it is used here to make payment for the ticket selected. This makes it easier for the user since they do not have to go back to the main menu and to access their account.

Finally, the submit button displays the appreciation page as shown below with a button to go to the main menu.

The above illustration has shown a brief overview of the user interfaces involved for the normal and clerk users. However, the CRM have specifically requested a number of reports, and they must be able to adjust their train schedule as the trains become unavailable. Therefore, the CRM interface is able to access all four functionalities as shown in the main menu (first diagram). Once the CRM selects the Reports function, a list of five reports is displayed as linked list. This is shown in the diagram below:

The report selected here shows the number of reservation for each departure. This report indicates the major traffic flow, and what trains are needed where during varying time and season. The diagram below shows the report format to be displayed.

As mentioned earlier, the system can also be accessed through the wireless phones. In that case, the overall system will be the same as the above presentation except that the format will be simplified, since the phones do not have graphic support. The phones will have access to the Make Reservation and Passenger Account, however it is difficult to display the reports and trains information on a small screen for the CRM.

The aspects of optimizing the interface with the person who must use the system are briefly described below:

· Allow new users to become members of the system.

· Allow current users to login into the system using a unique user id and password.

· Allow the users to build new itineraries, change and/or view existing itineraries, and pay for planned itineraries using different methods (credit cards, CRM credit account).

· Allow all users to access current train schedules. Allow administrative users to change train schedules.

· Allow administrative users to announce schedule changes.

· Provide administrative users with access to reports including number of reservations per train, number of passengers turned away, number of no-shows, number and names of passengers who showed up, and list of potential scalpers (high-volume ticket buyers).

· Provide an on-line help for all users of the system.

3.2.2 Hardware Interfaces.

The ARRS includes two major hardware components: cellular phones and regular PC's. The cell phones require WAP (wireless application protocol) network protocol, which is already programmed in the latest phones. This is similar to the seven layers of network protocol, except that they are broken down into five protocols. The WAP protocol is able to communicate with the servers known as Gateway servers, which listen to requests made using these phone frequencies. The request is then transmitted to the regular server. Furthermore, the servers respond to these "air" requests and format the data to be displayed on the mini window that is available on the phone. The cellular phone has a processor, which is designed to process a language known as WML (wireless markup language). Therefore, the server formats the data in WML format, and passes these pages to the Gateway servers, which transmits the WML pages to the cellular phones. The processor on these phones then translates the WML into a simplified version of the actual web page.

The second component involves the regular PC’s, which communicate with the server. The server then communicates with the database. The protocol involved between the PC's and the server is the HTTP protocol, which allows communication between the PC's and the Server. The remote PC's, such as someone accessing the ARRS from home using the Internet, are able access the information through the CGI. The requests come in through the HTTP protocol, and using an ODBC the database results are returned and processed using Perl to give an HTML web page. The format of the output is displayed as web pages.

3.2.3 Software Interfaces.

An Oracle DBMS will be used to manage the database and any changes made to it. Furthermore, the DBMS will make regular backups of the database and generate reports regularly so that they can be accessed by the CRM. The Apache server between the client and the database will handle all communication, and the server will run on a Linux operating system. Furthermore, the HTML pages must be implemented such that they can be displayed on two common browsers: Netscape and Internet Explorer.

Information about the products used for the ARRS:

(1) Name: Oracle

(2) Mnemonic: Oracle

(3) Version Number: 8

(4) Source: Oracle

(1) Name: Linux

(2) Mnemonic: Linux

(3) Version Number: 6.2

(4) Source: Unix

(1) Name: Internet Explorer

(2) Mnemonic: IE

(3) Version Number: 5.00

(4) Source: Microsoft

(1) Name: Netscape Communicator

(2) Mnemonic: Netscape Communicator

(3) Version Number: 4.7

(4) Source: America Online

(1) Name: Apache

(2) Mnemonic: Apache

(3) Version Number: 1.3.14

(4) Source: Apache Software Foundation

3.3 Performance Requirements.

The following sections list the performance requirements for the system.

3.3.1 User Requirements

User Requirements	Description of Requirement For Design Environment
Location(s) and Number(s) of Users	Guangzhou, Nanjing, Shanghai
Expected Growth in Number of Users
After 1 Year	50%
After 2 Years	TBD
After 3 Years	TBD
User Expectation
Interactivity	User expect that it provides a very easy to use graphical user interface
Reliability	For some applications, reliability must be 100% during the application session
Adaptability	Network must adapt to user additions, deletions and changes
Security	Encryption software would be used for Credit Card transactions
Cost / Funding	Less than $250K

3.3.2 Application Requirements

Since no specified service is indicated, then we have listed the applications as best – efforts. This may change as we learn more about the application.

The communication package is determined to be bursty in nature, with small data sizes and frequent transmissions. We can consider this application to be interactive-burst, while the database transaction-processing application is described by the CRM as transferring large amounts of data (initial estimates are 1 MB/transaction), we have listed this application as interactive-bulk.

Categorizing Applications	Best-Efforts	Application Locations
Communication	100 Kb/s	Guangzhou and Nanjing
Database Access	400 Kb/s	All Locations
Database Transaction processing	1.5 Mb/s	All Locations

3.3.3 Host Requirements

	Type of Host or Equipment	Numbers and Locations
Host A	PC	Guangzhou (10), Nanjing(7), Shanghai(10)
Host B	Database Server	Shanghai
Host C	Application Server	Nanjing

3.4 Design Constraints.

3.4.1 Standards Compliance.

There are no design constraints that can be imposed by other standards limitations.

3.4.2 Software Limitations.

· must be able to run Internet Explorer or Netscape Communicator web browsers to access the system.

· must have cell-phone web based capability to access the system from a mobile phone.

3.4.3 Hardware Limitations.

· Input/Output: One or two-button mouse, keyboard, cell-phone, or touch screen required.

· Network card required at thin-client terminals to make communication with server possible.

3.5 Quality Characteristics.

There are a number of quality characteristics that apply to the ARRS software system.

3.5.1 Portability

The ARRS system will be developed using HTML and Java so that it can be accessed from any type of system using just a regular web browser. It will also be available to users that have web access on their cellular phones. The system will be tested on all types of hardware before being released to ensure that is it compliant with this requirement.

3.5.2 Reliability

The system should be capable of processing a given number of reservations within a give time frame with no errors and the system should be available and operational all the time. During the development of the prototype for the 3 cities, the system will be tested in its actual environment to ensure that it can handle the load of reservations that occur during a regular workday.

3.5.3 Usability

The ARRS system will be developed so that it is an easy to use system that requires the least amount of user input possible. Every input will be validated. The user should only have general computer use knowledge. Error messages will be displayed if the user enters an invalid value or tries to access a function without the required permissions. An easy and well-structured user manual will be provided to the CRM and the system will include descriptive help for all operations allowed.

3.5.4 Correctness

The ARRS system will be considered correct when the CRM approves the prototype presented and agrees that all the functions they require are implemented as stated in the Software Requirements Specification.

3.5.5 Flexibility

The ARRS system should be developed in such a way that it is easily customizable. If new functions are required by CRM, there will be little effort required to update the system to support new cities or new transactions.

3.5.6 Security

The ARRS system should not compromise the customer information at any time. The user information will never be sold to other parties and will be kept secure at all times. Users will be authenticated to ensure that no unauthorized users gain access to private information.

3.5.7 Maintainability

The ARRS source code will be kept well structure and documented so that it is easier to maintain and extend the system. All changes to the system shall be documented.

3.6 Other Requirements.

Certain requirements may, due to the nature of the software, the user organization, etc., be placed in separate

categories such as those below.

3.6.1 Data Base.

The Automate Railway Reservation System will have two main databases. One is the Reservation Database, and another is the Passenger Account Database. These database will be created with Oracle8i (Client/Server) version 8.1.6.0.0 Release 2. The following are the requirements for these databases that are to be developed as part of the product. They include:

Reservation Database

Types of information	Schedule information for the trains, including date, time, departure city, destination city, ticket cost and ticket availability for a particular train
Frequency of use	Depends on the passenger demand, which may reach 25,000 per day during peak periods
Accessing capabilities	The database should allow access to at least 1,000 people at once; the users will have a general access to the information about the train schedule, and a secure access to the reports (available only to CRM officials) using a username and a password
Data element and file descriptions	To be determined
Relationship of data elements, records and files	To be determined
Static and dynamic organization	To be determined
Retention requirements for data	Train schedule information will be available as long as the train for a particular route is in use and at least one year after the train has been cancelled. The reports information will be available at least for 5 years

Passenger Account Database

Types of information	Passenger account information including their name, address, phone numbers, last reservations, balance owed, credit card number (if they paid by a credit card)
Frequency of use	Depends on the passenger demand, which may reach 25,000 per day during peak periods
Accessing capabilities	The database should allow access to at least 500 people at once; the users will have a secure access to the database using a username and a password
Data element and file descriptions	To be determined
Relationship of data elements, records and files	To be determined
Static and dynamic organization	To be determined
Retention requirements for data	Passenger account will be available for as long as a passenger is using the account, and at least for 6 month since the passenger logged on last time.

3.6.2 Operations.

The normal operations required by the user can be viewed as the following:

User-initiated Operations:

These operations include the login operation, which is initiated by the users. Also, the process of becoming a new user is in this category. Building, changing, and viewing itineraries, as well as paying for the itinerary are all initiated by the users. The user initiates the report generation activity, as well as changing train schedules.

Interactive Operations and Unattended Operations:

The users initiate all the operations mentioned above, and almost all of them are somehow interactive. Displaying the train schedule is non-interactive. The report display is a non-interactive operation, although selecting the desired reports will require user input.

Data Processing Support Functions:

The user account data is used to create new accounts, as well as to validate user id's during login functions. For building itineraries, user input, user account data, and train schedule data are used, and processed. User data along with final results of user interaction (whether the user purchased a trip, number of tickets bought, etc.) are collected, and used for report generation purposes. Administrative users' inputs are collected in order to modify and present schedules.

Backup and Recovery Operations:

Both databases used (passenger account database and reservations database) are production databases. The main operation used for the backup and recovery is Oracle's built-in cold backup, which is also known as the "archive mode". Depending on the customer's needs and budget, additional redundancy can be added using systems like RAID 5 and tape backup.

3.6.3 Site Adaptation Requirements.

There are no site adaptation requirements for this project.

4. Supporting Information.

There is no supporting information required for this project.

Version

Figure 2.1 Overview Diagram of the ARRS

Figure 2.2 ARRS General Function Relationship Diagram

Figure 2.6 ARRS Display Reports Function Relationship Diagram

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