This book is meant for research scholars, scientists and practitioners involved with the application of computer-based systems in critical applications. Ensuring dependability of systems used in critical applications is important due to the impact of their failures on human life, investment and environment. The individual aspects of system dependability—reliability, availability, safety, timeliness and security are the factors that determine application success. To answer the question on reliance on computers in critical applications, this book explores the integration of dependability attributes within practical, working systems. The book addresses the growing international concern for system dependability and reflects the important advances in understanding how dependability manifests in computerbased systems.

The measurement of dependability attributes on real systems is a very time-consuming and costly affair, making analytical or simulation modeling the only viable solutions. Dependability of Networked Computer-based Systems explores reliability, availability and safety modeling of networked computer-based systems used in life-critical applications such as avionics, nuclear power plants, automobiles and chemical process industries. Dependability of Networked Computer-based Systems gives an overview of basic dependability modeling concepts and addresses new challenges in dependability modeling of networked computer-based systems, as well as new trends, their capabilities and limitations. It covers a variety of dependability modeling methods: stochastic processes,Markov and semi-Markov models,response-time distribution,stochastic Petri-net-based modeling formalisms, andMonte Carlo simulation models.Dependability of Networked Computer-based Systems provides students and researchers with a detailed overview of dependability models and analysis techniques. Practicing engineers will also find this text a useful guide to decision-making based on system dependability at the design, operation and maintenance stages.