Stock Control System of a Rental Car showroom

Running head : STOCK CONTROL SYSTEM

Stock Control System of a Rental Car showroom Contents TOC \o "1-3 " \h \z \u

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc8 " Chapter 1 : Problem Analysis PAGEREF _Toc8 \h 3

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc9 " a . Introduction PAGEREF _Toc9 \h 3

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc0 " b . Objectives of the project : PAGEREF _Toc0 \h 4

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc1 " Chapter 2 : Literature Review PAGEREF _Toc1 \h 6

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc2 " 1 . Requirements analysis of the system PAGEREF _Toc2 \h 6

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc3 " 2 . Choice of a Process model PAGEREF _Toc3

\h 8

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc4 " 2 .1 Waterfall model : PAGEREF _Toc4 \h 8

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc5 " 2 .2 Spiral model : PAGEREF _Toc5 \h 9

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc6 " 2 .3 RAD and other techniques : PAGEREF _Toc6 \h 12

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc7 " 3 . Final decision making with regard to process model : PAGEREF _Toc7 \h 14

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc8 " 4 . Components of the design method PAGEREF _Toc8 \h 14

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc9 " 5 . Essential qualities of the stock control system : PAGEREF _Toc9 \h 16

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc0 " 6 . System development life cycle PAGEREF _Toc0 \h 16

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc1 " 6 .1 Systems requirements gathering PAGEREF _Toc1 \h 16

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc2 " 6 .2 Feasibility study : PAGEREF _Toc2 \h 17

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc3 " 6 .3 Planning and Analysis phase PAGEREF _Toc3 \h 18

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc4 " 6 .4 Systems analysis and Design PAGEREF _Toc4 \h 19

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc5 " 6 .5 Designing of the Conceptual model PAGEREF _Toc5 \h 21

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc6 " 6 .6 System implementation and maintenance : PAGEREF _Toc6 \h 21

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc7 " 7 . Databases PAGEREF _Toc7 \h 23

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc8 " 7 .1 Database functions for the proposed system : PAGEREF _Toc8 \h 24

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc9 " 7 .2 Consistency features of the stock control database : PAGEREF _Toc9 \h 26

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc0 " Chapter 3 : Design , Implementation and Testing PAGEREF _Toc0 \h 29

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc1 " i . Design techniques and strategies PAGEREF _Toc1 \h 29

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc2 " ii . Use Case Diagram PAGEREF _Toc2 \h 30

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc3 " iii . ERD PAGEREF _Toc3 \h 31 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc4 " iv . System testing : PAGEREF _Toc4 \h 32

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc5 " a . Testing strategy : Verification and validation process : PAGEREF _Toc5 \h 37

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc6 " b . Software inspections : PAGEREF _Toc6 \h 38

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc7 " c . Test cases PAGEREF _Toc7 \h 38

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc8 " Chapter 4 : Evaluation of the system PAGEREF _Toc8 \h 40

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc9 " i . Customer evaluation : PAGEREF _Toc9 \h 40

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc0 " ii . Support issues PAGEREF _Toc0 \h 41

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc1 " iii . Cutover strategy PAGEREF _Toc1 \h 42

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc2 " iv . Training requirements : PAGEREF _Toc2 \h 43

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc3 " v . Data conversion : PAGEREF _Toc3 \h 44

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc4 " vi . User documentation PAGEREF _Toc4 \h 45

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc5 " vii . Security issues : PAGEREF _Toc5 \h 45

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc6 " viii . Project progress : PAGEREF _Toc6 \h 47

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc7 " Chapter 5 : Conclusions and Further Work PAGEREF _Toc7 \h 48

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc8 " References PAGEREF _Toc8 \h 49

HYPERLINK \l "_Toc9 " Appendices PAGEREF _Toc9 \h 50

Chapter 1 : Problem Analysis

Introduction

The stock control system of a rental car showroom would facilitate the operations of the company Citi Rental Car (CRC . It would provide them with a system to generate user queries and make sure that all the various queries and indulgences are handled to its very extent . The system would reflect various updations and synchronization that is required to serve the customers better

The discussion is four fold . Firstly the various objectives of the system are taken to its full swing so as to identify the various advantages of the system

Secondly the literature review section discusses the variety of opinions and enough background for exploring and selecting a particular process model . It further discusses the various system analysis and design life cycle to explore the various tasks to be performed in getting the right judgment for the stock control system . Finally the database features and functionalities are outlined for getting the various tasks performed by the stock control system

Thirdly the design , implementation and the testing process would be taken up . The data model and the process model form a part of such steps . The design of the system is essential to provide a conceptual framework to the stock control system in designing the UML and the ERD for the system . It outlines the various principals which are taken to map the system requirements into the prototype of the system for getting the job done . Al the system prototypes are produced at this stage

Finally the evaluation by the client is done to test the system for the desired output . Prior to this the system implementation strategies are taken up so that one gets to feel the process of installing the system at the client side

The concludes the very mechanism of possessing the features required and how would it help the business to cater to its best and also to evaluate the stock of the CRC at any point of time . The further work in this area would be in the form of various other strategies that would be required for enhancing the accessibility , portability and other parts of the system

Objectives of the project

The objective of the stock control system of a rental car is as follows

The foremost advantage is the efficient storage of resources , as tracking of the inventory requires a system to capture the inflow and the outflow of the stock so that right advice can be provided to the customers

Provide highly revamped computerized systems for its franchises so that the era of digitization is spread and to a large extent the various perspectives are matched for greater detail . It would also provide better interface with the customers as the queries shot would have a defined result and would interpret the right kind of inventory details at any point of time

The manual system would be completely replaced which would reduce and eliminate to a great extent the data redundancy and duplication factors

Better networking would support the resources which would be used in the process for getting the job done

Digitization would create a brand for the company which would be looked for getting the goodwill of the customers

Better use of information for getting the right product across to the customer and to make the enquiry successful I getting the right information to the customer

The tracking of the damaged cars and the fines one is liable to pay for making the right information for the company . The payment facilities are met for getting the job done easily and to maintain records for future referencing

Report generation for management purposes and tracking resources is the biggest advantage for the stock control system

The management with ease reducing a lot of manual operations

The feedback system can also be added so that future caterings can be handled better

Finally the stock control system would track the satisfaction level of the customers with ease for future betterment and prosperity of the Citi Rental system

Chapter 2 : Literature Review

Requirements analysis of the system

The four types of requirements of a computer based system are

1 .Functional and non functional requirements : Functional requirements are statement of services the system should provide . It tells the systems behavior towards particular inputs and situations . It sometimes states what the system should not do . The non functional requirements offer the constraints on the services offered by the system . They include timing constraints , development process and standards constraint . It applies to the system on the whole

2 .Domain requirements : These are the requirements that come from the application domain of the system and reflect characteristics and constraints of that domain

3 .User requirements : These describe the functional and non functional requirements so that they are understandable by the system users without detailed technical knowledge

4 .System requirements and Interface specification : It adds detail and explains how the user requirements should be provided by the system . It includes software , hardware , interoperability and other critical system requirements . The types of interfaces that need to be defined are procedural interfaces , data structures and representation of data

5 . Development team requirements : The factors which need to be taken into account when selecting staff to work on a software development project are

Application domain expertise : For a project to develop a successful system , the developers must understand the application domain . This requires hiring the business analysts . They have a sound knowledge in a particular domain

Platform experience : This is important in the sense that people with such a characteristic can understand the loopholes of a platform with respect to portability and robustness of a system over the platform

Programming language experience : This is of greater significance as a certain level of expertise is demanded when working over a relevant project . That reduces project training cost and makes the project flow smooth

Problem solving ability : The developers should have a sharp logical aptitude and reasoning ability to understand and solve problems quickly and efficiently

Communication ability : This plays a very important role as communication must be swift with the customer to get the requirements , report progresses and training the end users

Adaptability : It is judged by looking at the working experience of people . It indicates the ability to learn

Attitude : The attitude determines to a greater extent the proactive ness and ownership of a particular task . The attitude towards work and system are very important attributes towards the success of a project

Personality : Being compatible with the technology and the other resources of the project is very much important

Choice of a Process model

Using a unique system design and model is utmost essential for getting the requirements on the particular software and would make sure that optimum utilization of time , effort and money is done at the same time The following sections evaluate the various system development paradigms which would be required to map the requirements of the system

Waterfall model

Follows a planned approach . It takes into account all the stages required to develop the project . The advantage of waterfall development is that it allows for departmentalization and managerial control . A schedule can be set with product can proceed through the development process in periodic manner and theoretically , be delivered on time . Development moves from concept through design , implementation , testing , installation , troubleshooting and ends up at operation and maintenance . Each phase of development proceeds in strict , without any overlapping . The challenges of waterfall development are that it does not allow for much reflection or revision . Once an application is in the testing stage , it is very difficult to go back and change something that was not well-thought out in the concept stage

It cannot satisfactorily handle the different types of risks that a real life software project is subjected to

To achieve better efficiency and higher productivity , most real life projects cannot follow the rigid phase sequence imposed by the waterfall model

Spiral model

The spiral model is an evolutionary software process model where the developer and the customer better understand and react to risks at each evolutionary level . The spiral model uses prototyping model as a risk reduction mechanism and enables the developer to apply the prototyping approach at any stage in the evolution of the product . This precisely helps to get a view of the system and get it approved by the customer to match his specifications . It uses the concept of waterfall model to maintain a systematic stepwise approach but in a little different way The waterfall model here helps in processing the individual steps before stepping into another one . It incorporates this stepwise approach into an iterative framework that more realistically reflects the real world The waterfall model is accommodated where there is low specification risk and no need for prototyping for risk resolution . Thus the activities of the second quadrant of the spiral model can be skipped . In another pass of the loop the same stages are revisited and both the waterfall and prototyping model works once again

The following analysis of the spiral model would contemplate the coverage of whether it can be taken up as a viable option in designing a system

The business environments are seldom volatile in nature where the requirements are ever changing and are adding every moment to expand their scope and stay competitive in the market . The spiral model would make sure that the proposed system is prone to changes . It provides enough mechanism to take into account the changes in the customers environment and act accordingly . Unlike other SDLC methods where the business requirements are completely taken as standstill when taking into account the building of the system . Unlike the waterfall model where the design stages are non-reversible in nature , once the stage is surpassed it cannot be revisited again

The weaknesses of the spiral model are that it is quite expensive in nature as every deployment is revisited with the spiral cycle once it receives a customer communication and feedback . It demands quite risk assessment expertise . The time taken to build the complete system is considerable high as for every new requirement is cycled all through from planning to implementation . The consumption of resources is substantially large as all the developmental stages are followed for creating a version of the system in every cycle

The opportunities of using the spiral model are relatively high in comparison to the other models in use . The business external environment is fast changing to the requirements and enveloping newer challenges to analyze their market and take risks to prosper . In this situation having a flexible system development strategy would make it easy to design and build a system susceptible to frequent changes with changing business requirements . Taking into account the other methods available in the market , the spiral model would stand out in the crowd

The other prototyping methods like RAD and Incremental methods of SDLC pose a threat to spiral method . The incremental approach is quite complex in operation but its flexibility is quite high in solving discrepancies . The RAD methodology is quite popular in SDLC but is not prone to taking the frequent changes into consideration which is a drawback

The proponents of the spiral model are built up with risk assessment and management strategies which is not brought forward with any other SDLC methodology . It is risk driven approach rather than document or code driven (Boehm , 1998 . It follows a strategy to minimize risks with the repeated use of prototypes in every cycle it loops

Figure 1 : Spiral Model Template

The above diagram shows the risk assessment during the development of a software productivity tool . The risks of using this execution method are quite helpful as the changing business environmental events are taken into the picture

The choice of the design methodology is the understanding the business requirements and deciding the crucial methods to be used for implementation process . For large projects where the requirements are easily documented and are not likely to change over time usually employs waterfall model and other development methods (Sommerville , 2005 Specific situations where business external and internal factors are changing quite regularly , spiral model is taken as an execution process for analyzing the requirements correctly and framing the needs with risk analysis model and design techniques . Other SDLC methods also find a place where development time is less and time is not a luxury

RAD and other techniques

Information engineering is a technique which focuses on an organization 's information requirements and generic processes which are quite flexible for future changes . In contrast to waterfall model which involved method that did not take care much of the organization 's requirements but focused too much on the product development which makes it closed to changes , the former lays a good amount of emphasis to organization 's data

Rapid application development (RAD ) techniques reduce the time complexity of the waterfall methods by prototyping methods and other techniques . Unlike waterfall and information engineering methods it creates joint application development sessions to understand the user requirements better and decide on functionality for design and usability . In place , RAD addresses the above problems of not involving the users and makes sure that the stakeholders of the system are able to meet and discuss on all grounds including design and look and feel . RAD also encompasses methods which take care of the organizations current processes . The phased approach of RAD makes it unique to address the present and emergency requirements of the organization and segregating the entire system into sections for implementation . In other methods the information system is not broken into parts and developed as a whole . In comparison , RAD identifies the crucial components which the business requires urgently and develops them first and then takes care of other components in phased manner to complete the entire system

The object oriented approach makes the process modeling quite simpler in nature by constructing the objects which represents real life features It also brings forth data abstraction and encapsulation techniques . In comparison to other process models the organization 's data is given more importance with relation to its storage and security . The ability is also enhanced with the use of other object oriented features such as inheritance and polymorphism (Booch , 2003 . The reusability of the data and business processes is the prime feature of object oriented methods which makes it quite strong in comparison to other methods . In waterfall emphasis was more in modeling organizations processes , information engineering focuses on modeling organization 's data whereas object oriented methods envelope both the data and processes into wrappings called objects . Keeping data and processes together into a single unit would make handling of process modeling quite well in nature

The RAD methodology is quite suitable for building the stock control system . However if RAD is combined with object oriented approaches it becomes a strong process model for compliance

Final decision making with regard to process model

Among the various models in picture such as waterfall , evolutionary spiral which has their own strengths and weakness , RAD forms a principal model among them . Reusability factor is the biggest strength . Pressman (2005 ) mentions that the use of tools like database programming language , interface generator , links to office application and report generators make sure that time and effort investment is utilized in a quality fashion . It easily develops the system into components which are focused for a particular objective

Quite challenging to coordinate team based development . No explicit system architecture followed in practice . The tools make sure that ultimate product is derived at the least amount of time without much of development cost and effort . The parts of the software are into complex dependencies which ultimately causes maintainability

Components of the design method

The five components of the design method are

1 .Data design : It would transform the information domain model created during analysis into the data structures that will be required to implement the software . The data objects and relationships defined in the entity relationship diagram and the detailed data content depicted in the data dictionary provide a basis for data design activities

2 .Architectural design : It would define the relationship between major structural elements of the software , the design patterns ' that can be used to achieve the requirements that have been designed by the system It represents the framework of a computer based system and can be derived from the system specification , the analysis model and the interaction of the subsystems defined within the analysis model

3 .Interface design : It would describe how the stock control system communicates within itself , with systems that interoperate with it and humans who use it

4 .Component level design : It transforms structural elements of the software architecture into procedural of the stock control system components . Information obtained from the project specification control specification and state transition diagram serve as a basis for component design

5 .Algorithm design : It transforms the procedural

into algorithms to create the whole system . The algorithms depict the practical scenario at work and they are integrated to get the whole stock control system

Essential qualities of the stock control system

The four attributes which would be essentially possessed by the stock control system are as follows

1 . Maintainability : The stock control system is flexible to adopt itself to the changing demands of the customer and the services they are to deliver it lays importance to the design so that it can be modified to get the job done

2 . Efficiency : The stock control system should be more responsive optimize processing time , better use of memory , maintain stock requirements and various caterings they are to provide , etc

3 . Usability : Software must have a user friendly interface and proper documentation . The look and feel of the software would make sure that all the depth functionalities are understood and analyzed for performing the operations (Sommerville , 2005

System development life cycle

Systems requirements gathering

This is the stage where the requirements which need to be represented in the system must be gathered with the help of interviews , JAD sessions questionnaires and other formal and informal discussion with the business heads (Rajaraman , 2002 . Onsite view and talking with the ground level employees would make the scenario deep and information could be best represented and utilized . Enough planning would make the system greatly comply with feasibility studies , economic conditions and schedule maintenance

Feasibility study

The very first stage of proceeding when the proposed project is evaluated according to the various factors evaluating its very factor of proceeding with the project or not

ROI : The new proposed system and the present working system are analyzed so that the ROI (Return on Investment ) is obtained . Rental car showroom thinks in a very positive way when it comes to the returns which are depicted in their strategy for putting a stock control system

Net present value (NPV : A positive NPV has a significant influence on the different project proposals . It is calculated as the difference between the initial investment and the present value of the future cash inflows . For Rental car showroom it is predicted to be quite high

Payback period : The payback period of any project is a meaningful way of judging its financial credibility as regards to the tenure the cash inflows take to meet up the initial investment

Profitability index (PI : It is the ratio of the aggregate present value of the cash inflows to the cash outflows . A PI greater than one is an indicator of higher future profitability of the concerned proposed project . Rental car showroom has a higher probability of attaining a PI greater than one after enveloping the IS system and hence promising good financial prosperity and credibility

Project time : This factor is the major element in the development of the project . The time required would quite moderate for Rental car showroom as it is using RAD model . They want a shorter payback period

Other : The proposed system is further analyzed for economical technical , schedule and other feasibilities so that it stands in front of all difficulties in the development of the project

Planning and Analysis phase

After the proposed system is thoroughly checked for all its inputs and outputs , the requirements phase takes the lead . All the key stakeholders of the departments and the users of the system must be taken into account for gathering the crucial departmental functions , requirements and its interaction with other departments to achieve the central goal of the enterprise

Input : It must be in the form of the users of the system who are better-off to understand and figure out the exact ground level happenings in the business . Their view of the workings of the enterprise must be captured so that appropriate implementation can be done

Output : The valuable information fetched from the users of the system must be given a representation and frame it accordingly to fix it into a system

Rental car showroom system requirements are studied and the system is analyzed and designed accordingly . The flow of data is analyzed so that the system captures the entire business cycle and their functions

Inputs : It would come from the requirements gathering phase and the of business flow

Outputs : It would result in helping the analysts and designers in the process of database handling and further development of the system

Systems analysis and Design

After all the requirements are gathered it must be placed in the right placeholder so that data in given a representation in the business scenario . The data must be analyzed keeping in mind the flow of the information in the context of business and among the departments . The exact track of data would make the system comply with the business processes . The design of the software begins at this stage , where the data flow diagram is the first instance of the design . After the DFD is developed it is broken down to further micro modules so as to get a birds eye view of the entire processes (Hoffer , 2002 . At this stage we compartmentalize the business functions into separate modules to get an inside of the workings of the process . It relates to the investigation of the following

The entities which are involved in the system are identified to a good extent with regard to the various properties they possess

Classification of the entities into strong , moderate and weak . The strong ones are sure to be part of the system , the moderate entities are either merged with the strong ones or shifted into the weak section . The weak ones are either pushed to the moderate section or followed process or are finally rejected . The process is quite challenging as all the information must be covered and less priority information is often rejected

The final entities are put together into a conceptual model which represents the skeleton of the proposed system . The logical model would follow with association between the entities according to the business scenario . The relational model follows which defines the relationship between the different entities and its association variables

Normalization of the intermediate relations follows and ultimately takes the form of tables in database . The various relationships between the entities which determine there interaction to obtain the final objective . The data flow in the Citi Rental Company which would determine the beginning and the end of the entire cycle are analyzed at the microscopic level to derive at the logical and conceptual level of the design method

Designing of the Conceptual model

Figure SEQ Figure \ ARABIC 1 : Context level diagram for the stock control system

: The customer makes request for the details of the car and selects one among them . The details are provided with the various attributes which further facilitates the decision making . For the situation of damaging and return of car the facilities are provided accordingly . Accordingly the car stock for rented and non-rented ones is updated in the system to service another customer . Finally the payment voucher is issued to the customer in accordance to the rental period car details and health after the return of the car

System implementation and maintenance

After the design is clear , the next process is the implementation phase where the entire system is put into action with the help of software tools and programming languages (Barry , 2000 . After the software is built it is tested for verification and validation where it is checked whether the requirements must be fulfilled . The system installation would be the next step where the fully tested system would be installed at the client side

The sequence of activities are as follows

Activity (Tasks ) Duration (Days ) Preceded By

A Working out the feasibility of the system 1 _

B Collection of information from different groups and creating data flow diagrams 3 A

C Internal review of information collected and its validity with the management 2 B

D Identifying the relationships between the entities 3 C

E Define the degree of interaction between entities 2 D

F Creating E-R Model and establishing cardinality ratios with distributed feature taken into account (as the Center has 5 sub locations in the city ) 2 D ,E

G Identifying Functional dependencies and others and then Normalization of relations 1 F

H Converting the normalized relations to tables in database 2 G

I Creating primary key and foreign key relationships and implementing business rules using integrity constraints 1 H

J Creating interfaces and report generation techniques 3 I

K Connecting the database tables with the interfaces and distributing the application to become geographical independent 3 J

L Testing the system 2 K

M Implementing the system across locations 2 L

N Create maintenance plans and documentations 1 L ,M

O Final review report after installation 1 L ,M ,N

Databases

Navathe (2003 ) defines database as a collection of programs that enables users to create and maintain a database . It can also be defined as general purpose software for defining , creating , fetching and sharing databases among various users

The flavors of the databases used for e-commerce websites follow a different pattern set for storing data and offer various storage patterns and features to enable it to be distinguished from the competitor

Database technology would make sure that all the data and information would be captured and retrieved accordingly . The various functionalities would include scalability of various operations , ease of performing updations and modifications of data , maintaining the integrity of data security of data is ensured , efficient recovery manager , maintains concurrency control and plan for recovery techniques and many more . All this would promote the functioning of the stock control system

Choosing a database model is of greater importance . Relational data model is based on relational data structures , integrity constraints and smooth access to Data Definition Language and Data Manipulation Language statements for creation and retrieval of data . It is based on relational algebra (Navathe , 2004 . The database for stock control system would include features like atomic values , primary and foreign key relationships , and normalization process to reduce redundancy and anomalies of insertion , modification and deletion errors , row and column structure of the database tables and all kind of relationships are possible , one-to-one , one-to-many , many-to-one and many-to-many

Database functions for the proposed system

The stock control database to be employed for the project would bear the following features

Consistency : The stock database must be changed by the transaction from one state to another state . Data can seem like it is consistent as long as it conforms to a set of variants , such as no two rows in the customer table have the same customer id and all s have associated customer row . While a transaction executes these invariants may be violated , but no other transaction will have access to view these inconsistencies , and all such inconsistencies will have been eliminated by the time the transaction ends . It is the role of the DBMS and application developers to ensure consistency

Isolation : Transaction runs on a database independently of each other Meaning the partial effects of transactions that are incomplete should be invisible to other transactions . It is the role of the concurrency control subsystem to ensure isolation

Atomicity : A transaction allows grouping of one or more changes to tables and rows in the database to form an atomic operation . This means either all of the changes are performed or not performed at all . If for any reasons the transaction cannot be completed , everything the transaction changed can be restored back to the way it was before the start of the transaction via a rollback operation . Ensuring atomicity is the responsibility of the recovery subsystem of the DBMS

Durability : When a transaction is committed , it is permanently stored on the database even in the event of subsequent system failure . The recovery subsystem has the responsibility to ensure durability

Database Recovery : This is the process of returning the database to its correct state when a failure occurs . There are a lot of different failures that can have an effect on the database processing . Some of these failures may affect the main memory , while others are involved in non-volatile storage . In a database system , transaction is the main unit of recovery . Having a recovery manager , so that the system can return the system to a consistent state after a failure . There are a few recovery techniques that can be used . Deferred technique , using this type of protocol , all updates are not written to the database until after a transaction has arrived at its commit point . Immediate update unlike deferred technique , updates are written to the database without having to wait to arrive at the commit point . The recovery manager is the one that is responsible for guaranteeing that two of the four ACID properties of transaction , atomicity and durability are used , when failure occurs . The DBMS should provide certain facilities to cater for recovery , like the following

Providing a backup mechanism , this makes periodic backup copies of the database . Logging facilities , that keeps track of the current state of transactions and database changes . Checking-point facilities , which make it possible for updates to the database to happen while in the progress of making it permanent

Consistency features of the stock control database

The consistency features of the stock control database make sure that all the various transactions of the database , including the read and write operations would function in a synchronized manner which would provide enough security and consistency among transactions to optimize on time , effort and cost

This is consistency protocol that is used by MS Access on databases Multi-version includes the following

1 . System change number

This used to maintain the correct of all operations . A system change number is maintained by the database engine . This is a logical timestamp that records the in operation occur . The SCN is stored in the redo log to allow the redo of transaction in the correct sequence . SCN is used to find out which version of a data item should be used within a transaction and to determine when information in the rollback segments should be cleaned out

2 . Rollback segments

These are structures in database that are used to store undo data , and they also use to undo transaction . When a data in a block is about to be changed by a transaction , it writes the before-image of the data to a Rollback segment . One or more redo logs are maintain and they are used to recover the database when system failure occurs

3 . Locks

It stores the row-locking information within the actual data block where the row is actual stored . Internal locks : This is used for the protection of shared data . Parallel Cache Management locks : This lock is used for the protection of the buffer cache , which are in a parallel server environment . DDL locks- This is used to protect schema objects like the definition tables and views . Distributed locks : The function of this lock is to protect data in a distributed and /or parallel server environment . DML locks : This is used for the protection of the base data , like table locks protecting all of the tables and the rowlocks protects certain rows . Internal latches : This is use to protect data dictionary entries , data s , tablespaces , and rollback segments

4 . Deadlock Detection

It automatically traces deadlocks and resolve them by rolling back the statement that is involved in the deadlock . The transaction receives a message and the transaction statement is rollback

5 . Backup and Recovery

A backup and recovery services and extra services to support high availability . The recovery manager provides a server-managed backup and recovery service , which includes backup one or more data s to disk or tape , backup to archived redo logs to disk or tape , restoring all data s from disks or tape , restoring and applying archived redo logs in to perform recovery . When a failure occurs and instant is restarted , it detects that a crash has happened with the use of information in the control and the header of the database s Using roll forward and rollback methods , it will recover the database to consistent state from the redo log s . The point-in-point recovery allows all data s to be restored from backups and redo information which is to be applied up to a certain time or system change number This is particular useful when an error occurs and the database has to be recovered to a certain point

A standby is allowed to be maintained if the primary database fails The standby database can be kept at an alternative place while it ship the redo logs to the alternative site as they are filled and then they can be applied to the standby database . All the above discussed strategies are applied for the full functioning of the stock control system

Chapter 3 : Design , Implementation and Testing

Design techniques and strategies

The design approach was to consult all the related customers and the processes they would interact with to fetch the requested item with the return of the final item , for creating the final design and it was in the following stages

Consulted with all the users of the system for the know-how : User consultation is done so that right information is obtained at the ground level for mapping the exact requirements for the system

A primary model was designed according to the rough ideas that were generated . This forms the first prototype of the system and the various communication is capitalized for getting the right model to communicate the requirements

The model was revisited and changes were noted well and model was redesigned . The model was reviewed and more granularity is obtained for the purpose . Requirements refinement is performed for matching the right function for the model and the stock control system model is designed

The final model was taken to all the stakeholders of the system for approval and further improvement . Only after that the model was presented for the design of the system and finally for implementation of the system

Use Case Diagram

Figure SEQ Figure \ ARABIC 2 : Use Case Diagram Explanation of the Use Case diagram

The figures represent the actors or the external agents who are required to interact with the system for achieving the desired objectives of the system

The ovals represent the processes the actors perform to further influence the various decision making of the business agents for achieving the goal

The customer is the first external who initiates the entire process . The customer interacts with the administrative staff to obtain their requests and to check with the system if the requests can be fulfilled

The administrative staff in turn interacts with the system to fulfill the request of the customer

The basis of the interaction is to utilize all the processes involve to service the customer for his request . The accounts clerk is responsible for getting the various payments done and to collect the various defaults made by the customer in the process of using the car

ERD

The ERD is the basic representation of the various entities considered and their properties in conjunction with the detail provided

The various entities of the stock control system for the rented car company are listed so that they are depicted in interaction . The various properties and the relationships which link the various tables among themselves

The various assumptions taken into consideration are as follows

A customer is able to take more than 1 car and can return them at various dates

1 car can be issued to only one customer at one point of time and would generally mean that they are to be returned for renting it out to the other customer

The damaged car is identified only after the customer returns , the customer is also privileged to report a case of damaged car and the related fine is charged for any losses

The ERD is as follows

Figure SEQ Figure \ ARABIC 3 : ERD

System testing

Testing is used for verification and validation of the system

Only exhaustive testing can show a program is free from defects However , exhaustive testing is impossible Testing policies define the approach to be used in selecting system tests , all functions accessed through menus should be tested , combinations of functions accessed through the same menu should be tested , where user input is required all functions must be tested with correct and incorrect input

Unit test : The individual modules of the stock control system are tested will be tested individually for correct working and functional implementation . All the individual modules of the system are validated according to their details and made sure that all the following details are verified and validated . The following are the results of the test cases for unit testing TEST CASE 1 Author /Analyst Umer Date 20-02-2008

Test-case name Check customer details

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief All the various customer details are verified

Test case ID 1 .1

Tester name Umer

Test type Unit testing

Test Role System user , analyst

Data Customer properties

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started to validate the customer details

Step 2 : All the related customer properties and its data types are checked for their verification

Step 3 : If the values are misprinted , they are checked are corrected

Special requirements All the data types like number , date must be present and done wellTEST CASE 2 Author /Analyst Umer Date 20-02-2008

Test-case name Check car details

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief All the various car details are verified

Test case ID 1 .2

Tester name Umer

Test type Unit testing

Test Role System user , analyst , program manager

Data Car properties

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started to validate the car details

Step 2 : All the related car properties and its data types are checked for their verification

Step 3 : If the values are misprinted , they are checked are corrected

Step 4 : All the various things like car engine number , reference must be present

Special requirements All the data types like number , date must be present and done wellTEST CASE 3 Author /Analyst Umer Date 19-02-2008

Test-case name Check car return details

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief All the various customer details are verified

Test case ID 1 .3

Tester name Umer

Test type Unit testing

Test Role System user , analyst , unit manager

Data Car Return details

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started to validate the car return details

Step 2 : All the related car return properties and its data types are checked for their verification

Step 3 : If the values are misprinted , they are checked are corrected

Step 4 : The various validations regarding the engine number and others are taken into account

Special requirements All the data types like number , date must be present and done wellTEST CASE 4 Author /Analyst Umer Date 19-02-2008

Test-case name Check car damage details

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief All the various customer details are verified

Test case ID 1 .4

Tester name Umer

Test type Unit testing

Test Role System user , analyst , unit manager

Data Car Damage details

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started to validate the car damage details

Step 2 : All the related car damage properties and its data types are checked for their verification

Step 3 : If the values are misprinted , they are checked are corrected

Step 4 : The relevant fines and other details are taken to its full advantage

Special requirements All the data types like number , date must be present and done well Integration test : All the modules will be tested after the system is integrated for a complete system . For the stock control system , the following are the various integration tests performed TEST CASE 1 Author /Analyst Umer Date 20-02-2008

Test-case name Check inventory levels

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief All the various customer and car details are verified

Test case ID 1 .1

Tester name Umer

Test type Integration testing

Test Role Umer

Data Car details

Test Result SUCCESSFULL

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started to validate inventory levels

Step 2 : All the car issuance and customer details are checked for their availability

Step 4 : The relevant fines and other details are taken to its full advantage

Special requirements NOTEST CASE 2 Author /Analyst Umer Date 21-02-2008

Test-case name Check customer holdings levels

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief All the various customer and car details are verified

Test case ID 1 .2

Tester name Umer

Test type Integration testing

Test Role Umer

Data Car and Customer details

Test Result SUCCESSFULL

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started to validate inventory levels

Step 2 : All the car issuance and customer details are checked for their availability

Step 4 : The relevant fines and other details are taken to its full advantage

Special requirements NO Data capture test : This type of testing will ensure that all the data inserted into the system are properly stored and not inconsistent . The data must be able to get retrieved on demand and no information should be lost in the way TEST CASE 1 Author /Analyst Umer Date 21-02-2008

Test-case name Check customer entries

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief All the various customer details are verified

Test case ID 1 .1

Tester name Umer

Test type Data capture testing

Test Role Umer

Data Customer details

Test Result SUCCESSFULL

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started to validate customer levels

Step 2 : All the car issuance and customer details are checked for their availability

Step 4 : The relevant fines and other details are taken to its full advantage

Special requirements NOTEST CASE 2 Author /Analyst Umer Date 21-02-2008

Test-case name Check car entries

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief All the various car details are verified

Test case ID 1 .1

Tester name Umer

Test type Data capture testing

Test Role Umer

Data Car details

Test Result SUCCESSFULL

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started to validate car levels

Step 2 : All the car details are checked for their availability

Step 4 : The relevant fines and other details are taken to its full advantage

Special requirements NO Testing strategy : Verification and validation process

Verification is "Are we building the product right . The software should conform to its specification . Validation is "Are we building the right product . The software should do what the user really requires Verification is demonstrating conformance to the specification whereas validation is checking that the system meets the customer 's needs Validation is difficult because there are many different stakeholders who may use the system with different needs . Therefore , a system that meets one user 's needs may not meet the needs of a different user Furthermore , needs change as a system is developed so the needs as identified when the system was specified may be different by the time that the system is tested . V V process involves the whole life-cycle process it must be applied at each stage in the software process . It has two principal objectives namely the discovery of defects in a system and the assessment of whether or not the system is useful and useable in an operational situation . V V should establish confidence that the software is fit for purpose . This does NOT mean completely free of defects . Rather , it must be good enough for its intended use and the type of use will determine the degree of confidence that is needed . For the stock control system verification and validation was done to a very good detail

Software inspections

These involve people examining the source representation with the aim of discovering anomalies and defects . Inspections not require execution of a system so may be used before implementation . They may be applied to any representation of the system (requirements , design , configuration data , test data , etc . They have been shown to be an effective technique for discovering program errors

Inspections and testing are complementary and not opposing verification techniques . Both should be used during the V V process . Inspections can check conformance with a specification but not conformance with the customer 's real requirements . Inspections cannot check non-functional characteristics such as performance , usability , etc

Test cases

The following are the various test cases for the system TEST CASE 1 Author /Analyst Umer Date 23rd Feb 2008

Test-case name Service request by the customer

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief The time when a customer is requesting for service

Test case ID 1 .5

Tester name Camini smith

Test type Acceptance testing

Test Role User

Data Customer rating record , customer details

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started when customer applies for car hire

Step 2 : The customer provides all the details and is checked with the system for his rating for repeat s

Step 3 : The rating of the customer is fixed as normal

Step 4 : The customer is shown a screen that he is denied service

Special requirements NoTEST CASE 2 Author /Analyst Umer Date 23rd Feb 2008

Test-case name Making a service booking by a repeat customer

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief The time when a customer is requesting for service

Test case ID 1 .6

Tester name Pratim Ghosh

Test type Acceptance testing

Test Role User

Data Customer rating record

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started when customer applies for car hire

Step 2 : The customer provides all the details and is checked with the system for his rating for repeat s

Step 3 : If the rating is found to be negative he is denied to hire the car

Step 4 : The customer is shown a screen that he is denied service

Special requirements NoTEST CASE 3 Author /Analyst Umer Date 23rd Feb 2008

Test-case name Returning the car by the customer

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief The time when a customer is returning the car

Test case ID 1 .7

Tester name Clay Smooth

Test type Acceptance testing

Test Role User

Data Customer records , car records

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started when customer applies for car hire

Step 2 : The customer provides all the details and is checked with the system for his rating for repeat s

Step 3 : If the car is damaged the customer is liable to pay a fine

Step 4 : The customer is shown a screen that he is denied service

Special requirements No Chapter 4 : Evaluation of the system

Customer evaluation Evaluation Case 1 Author /Analyst Umer Date 23rd Feb 2008

Test-case name Checking of the customer data entry details

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief The time when a customer desires to enroll with the system

Test case ID 1 .1

Tester name Customer 1 (Mary Mehra

Test type Acceptance testing by the customer

Test Role Customer

Data Customer records , car records

Test Result SUCCESSFULL

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started when customer enroll for providing his details

Step 2 : The customer provides all the details he is asked for and checks whether the data is stored in the right fashion

Step 3 : The query displays all the customer details which he has entered

Special requirements NoEvaluation Case 2 Author /Analyst Umer Date 24th Feb 2008

Test-case name Checking of the car details

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief The time when a customer desires to take the car on rent

Test case ID 1 .1

Tester name Customer 2 (Robert Kar

Test type Acceptance testing by the customer

Test Role Customer

Data Customer records , car records

Test Result SUCCESSFULL

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started when customer applies for car hire

Step 2 : The customer provides all the details he desires in the car and obtains the feedback from the system

Step 3 : The query displays all the car according to the customer queries

Special requirements NoEvaluation Case 3 Author /Analyst Umer Date 24th Feb 2008

Test-case name Checking of the car return details

Test Location

C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test .doc

Brief The time when a customer desires to take the car on rent

Test case ID 1 .1

Tester name Customer 3 (Purnima Kar

Test type Acceptance testing by the customer

Test Role Customer

Data Customer records , car records , car return details

Test Result SUCCESSFULL

Test log output report location C :\test cases\Classic car Hire\test_report .doc

Test Procedure

Step 1 : The test is started when customer gives back the car

Step 2 : The customer enquires the car he has taken for rent to check for any fines he is liable to pay at the return

Step 3 : The query displays all the fines according to the customer queries

Special requirements No Support issues

Onsite help desk will be located at the head Office . It will provide help desk support to all of their branches via a toll-free number and /or website . When a problem has occurred at a franchisee , the franchisee staff needs to log a call through to their helpdesk over phone or website . The help desk will try to troubleshoot over phone first and if that does not fix the problem , subsequently they will organize for a technician to attend ASAP

In addition to that there will a full time technician at the web server location at the head office providing 24CH7 support . User support will be provided in number of methods , such as online documentation and troubleshooting , a help desk , technical support , end user satisfaction resolving service request quickly and seamlessly , increase productivities , online document , online enquiry facilities , online transaction facilities and others

Cutover strategy

Cut over strategy defines the strategies and decision for the system installation . Once a system has been developed and tested , it must be installed and placed into operation . Installing a system and making it operational is complex as there are many conflict constraints . Some of important issues when planning installation are to be considered like cost , customer relations , employee relations , logistical complexity , and overall exposure to risk (Silvia , 2000 . Some of the most important issues to be considered when planning installation include incurring costs of operation both systems in parallel , detecting and correct the errors in the new system , potentially disrupting the company and its IS operation and training personnel and familiarizing customers with new products

Different approaches to installation represent different trade-offs . The most commonly used installation approaches are

Direct installation in a direct installation the new system is installed and quickly made operational and any overlapping system are then turned off . This is also called as immediate cut over . The primary advantage of direct installation is it simplicity the primary disadvantage of this is its risk . Because legacy systems are not operated in parallel , there is no backup in the event that the new system fails . This installation is typically used under the new system is not replacing a legacy system or downtime of days or weeks can be tolerated

Parallel installation : In this the new system is implemented and run in parallel with the new one but not completely implemented at a stance The old system is kept in place and slowly replaced . The cost factors are high but efficiency is derived from it

Phased installation : The system is installed and get into operation in a series of steps and phases . Each phase is well observed before and after implementation . The new system is not operating completely at this time but is replacing the old system in phases . It is time consuming but very effective in the long run

Our installation strategy for the stock control system would be the phased approach . It marks the continuity of the present business and also taking into account the changes the new system is about to begin The business requires to flow and cannot be halted for installation of the system therefore phased installation is the most suitable

Training requirements

The function of training is to teach the user of the system the process of data flow within the system and the various operational procedures for correct and timely implementation of the knowledge for better productiveness

All the required user of the system will be given training and to provide know-how of the system working procedure and the involved business process

The effective use of business function needs to be well understood for the correct utilization of the system for the required purpose (Laudon 2003

They are also required for learning the technical issues which would come up in the process of handling the system

The disaster recovery plan is also required to be provided so that risk can be managed well and the user of the system will not have to halt the operations of the business in case of failure or exceptional situations

All the users of the system will be trained in the following manner namely Face to face , Group manner , Individual training , Video audio conference and many other methods . All the techniques will be used for successful training of personnel of Rental Car showroom

Data conversion

Data conversion is a process of converting the existing data in raw format for storing it in the system for further processing , its better use and retrieval . For the stock control system the manual data must be converted from the present system to the new system

Date will be converted to system date format so that all processing can be done accordingly

Data extraction and cleaning : Data needs to be extracted from the current storage dump with tools for its fetching . Cleaning means reducing all the extraneous attributes so that there remains no redundancy

Reformatting and loading : Data requires to be reformatted for matching the storage pattern of the new system . Data loading needs to be done from the reformatted data to the existing database in the form of tables which will be finally accessed for storing and retrieving of data

Test the data conversion : The data conversion must be tested so that there is no loss of data in the process and no valuable information is left out in the transfer process and data loading process

User documentation

The user documentation for the stock control system is provided and includes all the functionalities of the system and the system behavior to inputs and outputs . It will also include user help documents for correctly implementing a business purpose and for smooth functioning of the system . It acts as a backup document for any sort of help required for getting a job done

Security issues

The security issues are the primary issues which an organization must take care to protect their data which is king to any organization . In particular as the system implements payment system , security is very much required as that would ensure safe communication with financial information . The following are the identified issues and their correct implementation process

Login /Access Issues : Every customer would be asked to sign up with the company before any services are provided . That would ensure safety of transactions made with the company . It could be similar to Pay Pal where a person can get verified by giving his Credit card number

Back up : Periodic backups can be taken of the database in magnetic tapes so that data remains safe and is not lost . The saved data also ensures continuity of business and good recoverability options

Anti virus software : The system needs to be protected against all vulnerabilities and threats like viruses . Good anti-virus software would ensure that the system is well protected and operations will not halt for any external threat

Access control : This ensures that every one is not allowed to access all information and all business functions . Access control is a mechanism which creates views for every type of user . Views are used for giving an user a specific access area out side which nothing is available . Such as an accounts officer should not be able to view reports of the profits in the business which is meant for Susan and Lucy , the owners and higher management

Project progress

Figure SEQ Figure \ ARABIC 5 : The overall system development process

Figure SEQ Figure \ ARABIC 6 : Gantt chart for Stock control system

Chapter 5 : Conclusions and Further Work

The stock control system 's fundamental goal was to manage the inventory and ascertain at any point of time the availability of the cars to be rented out . Another intention is to check the various calculations of the firm based on their earnings and profit in the long run . Content should be maintained and produced for scan-ability

Engineering principles were a necessity in the complexity /diversity surrounding online activity . Legal and ethical issues are vital to security conscious users

Further work can be in the form of an web based system to spread its operation and functionality over the internet to increase its usability acceptance , workability and many other factors . The systems development model based on the web technologies would make sure that the complete supply chain of the business is managed thoroughly by the system and would take care of the process of getting the products to their warehouse to ultimately selling to the customers (Laudon , 2003

Online tracking options can be implemented to reinforce visual symbols such as Best Buys , Add to Basket ' and instructions to proceed to Basket and Checkout ' which are reminders of physical store environments "providing familiarity to customers (Weick , 2001

References

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Boehm , B (1988 "A Spiral Model of Software Development and

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