REVERSE ENGINEERING FOR INFORMATION SYSTEMS

C.T.I. COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY, INC. PROPOSES TO UNDERTAKE A RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROJECT WHICH DEVELOPS A DISCIPLINED REVERSE ENGINEERING METHODOLOGY. THIS EFFORT IS INTENDED TO DEMONSTRATE THAT A C.T.I. REVERSE ENGINEERINGMETHODOLOGY CAN DEVELOP COMPREHENSIVE SPECIFICATION TREES, REQUIREMENTS DOCUMENTS AND DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS USING EXISTING CODE, COMMENTS, AND THE AVAILABLE DOCUMENTATION OF A SELECTED SOFTWARE PACKAGE AS CURRENTLY IMPLEMENTED. THIS REVERSE ENGINEERING PROJECT WILL REQUIRE A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF MANUAL EFFORT, WHICH WILL BE SUPPORTED BY A PROPRIETARY TOOL. IF SUCCESSFUL, IT WILL RESULT IN A FULLY REDOCUMENTED PROGRAM PACKAGE CONTAINING COMPLETE AND CORRECT REQUIREMENTS DOCUMENTS, DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS AND CODE, CORRELATED WITH ONE ANOTHER WITHIN ONE DATABASE. BECAUSE OF RECENT PRIVATE-SECTOR TECHNOLOGY TRANSFERS FROM WEST GERMANY TO THE UNITED STATES, A TOOL IS NOW AVAILABLE IN THE U.S. WHICH MAY AID NASA IN SUCH REVERSE ENGINEERING OF EXISTING SOFTWARE. EXTRACTION OF SYSTEM DESIGN AND SPECIFICATION DATA FROM EXISTING CODE WILL BE ATTEMPTED BY C.T.I., USING THE EPOS (ENGINEERING AND PROJECTMANAGEMENT ORIENTED SUPPORT) SYSTEM.