A non-parametric approach for survival analysis of component-based software

Reliability of a software or system is the probability of system to perform its functions adequately for the stated time period under specific environment conditions. In case of component-based software development reliability estimation is a crucial factor. Existing reliability estimation model falls into two broad categories parametric and non-parametric models. Parametric models approximate the model parameters based on the assumptions of fundamental distributions. Non-parametric models enable parameter estimation of the software reliability growth models without any assumptions. We have proposed a novel non-parametric approach for survival analysis of components. Failure data is collected based on which we have calculated failure rate and reliability of the software. Failure rate increases with the time whereas reliability decreases with the time.