Mission-Critical Software Systems

Fail-continue.

One of the hallmarks of mission-critical systems is that they must continue to perform a (perhaps reduced) mission while encumbered with a failure. This requires a degree of fault tolerance that must be carefully engineered, specified, and tested. Can the airplane be safely landed with a failed engine (is there sufficient capacity to perform the reduced mission in light of the failure)?

This brings in the art and discipline of failure analysis.

Introduction