A study on software fault prediction techniques

Software fault prediction aims to identify fault-prone software modules by using some underlying properties of the software project before the actual testing process begins. It helps in obtaining desired software quality with optimized cost and effort. Initially, this paper provides an overview of the software fault prediction process. Next, different dimensions of software fault prediction process are explored and discussed. This review aims to help with the understanding of various elements associated with fault prediction process and to explore various issues involved in the software fault prediction. We search through various digital libraries and identify all the relevant papers published since 1993. The review of these papers are grouped into three classes: software metrics, fault prediction techniques, and data quality issues. For each of the class, taxonomical classification of different techniques and our observations have also been presented. The review and summarization in the tabular form are also given. At the end of the paper, the statistical analysis, observations, challenges, and future directions of software fault prediction have been discussed.