Best practices for writing and managing performance requirements: a tutorial

Performance requirements are one of the main drivers of architectural decisions. Because many performance problems have their roots in architectural decisions, and since poor performance is a principal cause of software project risk, it is essential that performance requirements be developed early in the software lifecycle, and that they be clearly formulated. In this tutorial, we shall look at criteria for high-quality performance requirements, including algebraic consistency, measurability, testability, and linkage to business and engineering needs. While focus of this tutorial is on practice, we shall show how the drafting of performance requirements can be aided by performance modeling. We shall show methods for presenting and managing performance requirements that will improve their chances of being accepted by architects, developers, testers, contract negotiators, and purchasers; and of their being successfully implemented and tested.

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