SAMPLE SRS

An  SRS  is  basically  an  organization's  understanding  (in  writing)  of  a  customer  or potential client's system requirements and dependencies at a particular point in time (usually) prior to any actual design or development work. It's a two-way insurance policy that assures that both the client and the organization understand the other's requirements from that perspective at a given point in time.

The SRS document itself states in precise and explicit language those functions and capabilities a software system (i.e., a software application, an eCommerce Web site, and so on) must provide, as well as states any required constraints by which the system must abide. The SRS also functions as a blueprint for completing a project with as little cost growth as possible. The SRS is often referred to as the "parent" document because all subsequent project management documents, such as design specifications, statements of work,  software architecture  specifications,  testing  and  validation  plans,  and documentation plans, are related to it.

It's important to note that an SRS contains functional and nonfunctional requirements only; it doesn't offer design suggestions, possible solutions to technology or business issues, or any other information other than what the development team understands the customer's system requirements to be.

A well-designed, well-written SRS accomplishes four major goals:

It provides feedback to the customer. An SRS is the customer's assurance that the development organization understands the issues or problems to be solved and the software behavior necessary  to  address  those  problems.  Therefore,  the  SRS should be written in natural language (versus a formal language, explained later in this article), in an unambiguous manner that may also include charts, tables, data flow diagrams, decision tables, and so on.

It decomposes the problem into component parts. The simple act of writing down software requirements in a well-designed format organizes information, places borders around the problem, solidifies ideas, and helps break down the problem into its component parts in an orderly fashion.

It serves as an input to the design specification. As mentioned previously, the SRS serves as the parent document to subsequent documents, such as the software design specification and statement of work. Therefore, the SRS must contain sufficient detail in the functional system requirements so that a design solution can be devised.

It  serves  as  a  product  validation  check.  The  SRS  also  serves  as  the  parent document for testing and  validation  strategies  that  will  be  applied  to  the requirements for verification.

SRSs are typically developed during the first stages of "Requirements Development," which is the initial product development phase in which information is gathered about what requirements are needed--and not. This information-gathering stage can include onsite visits, questionnaires, surveys, interviews, and perhaps a return-on-investment (ROI) analysis or needs analysis of the customer or client's current business environment. The actual specification, then, is written after the requirements have been gathered and analyzed.