Software Engineering Institute Carnegie Mellon

Software Architecture Evaluation with ATAM in the DoD System Acquisition Context

John K. Bergey
Matthew J. Fisher
Lawrence G. Jones
Rick Kazman

Technical Note
CMU/SEI-99-TN-012

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Many modern defense systems rely heavily on software to achieve system functionality. Because software architecture is a major determinant of software quality, it follows that software architecture is critical to the quality of a software-intensive system. For a Department of Defense (DoD) acquisition organization, the ability to evaluate software architectures can have a favorable impact on the delivered system. This technical note explains the basics of software architecture and software architecture evaluation in a system-acquisition context. It also sets the context for applying software architecture evaluation based on the Architecture Tradeoff Analysis MethodSM (ATAMSM) in the DoD acquisition environment. Future versions of this technical note will expand upon this conceptual approach and provide additional details drawn from real experiences.