A Model Based Framework for Specifying and Executing Fault Injection Experiments

Dependability is a fundamental property of computer systems operating in critical environment. The measurement of dependability (and thus the assessment of the solutions applied to improve dependability) typically relies on controlled fault injection experiments that are able to reveal the behavior of the system in case of faults (to test error handling and fault tolerance) or extreme input conditions (to assess robustness of system components). In our paper we present an Eclipse-based fault injection framework that provides a model-based approach and a graphical user interface to specify both the fault injection experiments and the run-time monitoring of the results. It automatically implements the modifications that are required for fault injection and monitoring using the Javassist technology, this way it supports the dependability assessment and robustness testing of software components written in Java.