Capacity Planning Issues That Travel Tours Should Consider

Modeling the real users is a critical issue for performance and workload consideration in the expansion of the Travel Tours. This is given the fact that the web application users are heterogeneous or rather very different in various ways. However, it is important to note that modeling the real users for a Web application is the most challenging concept of planning. In this case, therefore, the following should be observed: grouping of users should be based on the nature of actions they perform, and users should always be addressed with regard to their user community (Grechanik, Fu & Xie, 2012). A similar set of transactions can be accomplished by users from different groups. The account number and passwords for different users should be different and unique, and user to user transactions sequencing should be different. 

Secondly developing test strategy should be considered. This should entail generating detailed information on how the performance test should be conducted once the performance requirements have been captured and analyzed.  Nonetheless, it is important to note that the cost and time may limit the possibility of conducting detailed and exhaustive performance tests. The following factors, however, need to be considered for successful development of effective test strategy.

Criteria for performance pass or failure should be well defined for every critical performance objective. This should entail clarifying what it means to have achieved the objective and what involves having not achieved the goal. Secondly, the measurement criteria should be well identified for purposes of comparison of the results or achievement of the goals with the laid down pass or fail criteria. Thirdly, tools should be selected for purposes of identifying a more appropriate performance test automation tool. At this particular point, it should be carefully noted that more attention is required before the finalization of the tool as performance automation tool is very expensive. Next, there is the need for finalizing the performance measurement matrix before the test begins. This should involve a collection of transactions response time per every defined workload, measuring of responses consistency among various runs of the tests and consequently calculating the throughput, and finally, there should be a measurement of the resource utilization during testing as well as measuring utilization of the server and client/server.

Minimizing risk factors is the final consideration in achieving successful test strategy. Risks can be largely managed when the conduct of the performance test is built on the appropriate methodology.

2. Capacity planning issues that Travel Tours should consider

Capacity planning issue in adopting a software package for the expansion of the company should entail consideration of adaptability, flexibility and easy-to-customize off-the-shelf tours management package. To achieve this, some other factors have to be put into consideration which comprises of:

Client/server optimization

 Flexibility is very evident in client/server optimization architecture as it uses a set of moderate inexpensive components which entail file servers, workstations, network interface cards, database server software as well as hard drives among others. As a result, configuration changes can be achieved in small increments without necessary changing the centralized mainframe which is large and expensive. Moreover, the benefits of client/server architecture can be optimized by designing the software in a way that it can take advantage of the modular design (Ruhe, 2004). In addition, the architecture allows various offices located in different locations to be electronically connected as well as allowing adaptation to the dynamic physical location of the hardware as a result of the restructuring of the organization and office movements. It is also important to note that client/server architecture allows logical growth path where more users can be added to the system as the company grows.

Handling of source code

Source code handling allows the possibility of software package modification and significant rewrites. This means that Travel Tours can easily modify its software package to accommodate more preferences of its products and services.

Enhanced security

The network operating system is fundamental to the security of the network of the software package. Security of the software package can be achieved through client/server architecture as the execution of the application usually happens on one machine and another machine there is database execution. Dictionary is common to most database servers which enable developers or users to define screens, fields, and tables while allowing them to read and update. 

3. System baseline integration decision

Yes, the company should establish a system baseline before the integration of the six new sites. This is because the establishment of the baseline has multiple positive implications such as the starting of the formal change control which provides every proposed change with a point of reference while ensuring that the process of change control and players are okay before the definition of any project baseline (Dewdney et al., 2013). Moreover, the project managers can determine the needs for budgets and staffing levels in addition to enabling them to make commitments to the schedule. It is therefore important to establish a system baseline to leap these profound benefits.

References

Dewdney, P., Turner, W., Millenaar, R., McCool, R., Lazio, J., & Cornwell, T. (2013). SKA1 system baseline design. Document number SKA-TEL-SKO-DD-001 Revision, 1(1).

Grechanik, M., Fu, C., & Xie, Q. (2012, June). Automatically finding performance problems with feedback-directed learning software testing. In Proceedings of the 34th International Conference on Software Engineering (pp. 156-166). IEEE Press.

Ruhe, G. (2004). Hybrid intelligence in software release planning. International Journal of Hybrid Intelligent Systems, 1(1-2), 99-110.