Dependability engineering

This volume deals with the state of the art in systematically developing dependable software systems. Dependability comprises the quality characteristics correctness, reliability, availability, performance, security and privacy. It deals with systematic approaches to dependability inasmuch we consider concepts, methods and techniques that do not take aspects of dependability into account accidentally or in late development phases, but rather consider these characteristics at least as much as functional aspects. For any software project, only limited resources will be available. Therefore, a trade-off of different characteristics will be inevitable. A process determining an adequate trade-off will lead to results depending of the characteristics of the project under consideration. In particular, the degree of dependability expected by users and other stakeholders can severely vary.