Avoidance of Feature Configuration Faults in Software Product Lines

Abstract

This paper presents a validation approach to feature selection in software product lines (SPL). SPLs consist of similar products tailored to different needs, while SPLs sharing a common platform where feature configurations define product families. Validating feature configurations is critical to avoid defective shipments, recalls, and disposal. Exhaustive, pairwise, and combinatorial testing, among others, aim at ensuring configuration correctness. This paper introduces a novel method for improving feature selection and validation in SPLs by minimizing redundancy while ensuring configurations align with customer needs. The method emphasizes uncovering the differences in feature structures through "complex"and "simple"models, which helps identify and helps identify and tolerate potential errors arising from incorrect feature configurations. This ensures broader coverage while effectively managing dependencies. A case study using the Access Point (AP) SPL model, which is a networking device designed to enhance the strength of an existing wireless signal and expand its coverage area. The AP can enable or disable specific features on AP SPL depending on the characteristics of the third-party gateway with which it is integrated. AP SPL model with 66 features lead to 266 configurations, generated by Exhaustive Testing. Pairwise testing achieves 87% coverage with 132 test cases, while combinatorial testing reaches 94% with 45,760 cases. Our method ensures 100% feature coverage with just 3 test configurations. Thus, the approach introduced in this paper enhances product quality while reducing costs by avoiding redundant tests, making the approaches valuable for large-scale SPLs. © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.