CASRE is a Windows-based tool for estimating and forecasting the reliability of software systems during test and execution. Its development was funded by the U.S. Air Force Operational Test and Evaluation Center (AFOTEC) You can download the current version of CASRE and the CASRE user's guide from this site. Please read the system requirements and installation instructions given below, then click on the "Get CASRE" link in the left column to download the CASRE installation file and the user's guide.

System Requirements

CASRE has been designed to run in a Microsoft Windows™ 3.1 or higher environment. Computers on which CASRE will run must have the following characteristics:

1. Operating Environment - Microsoft Windows 3.1, Windows 3.11, Windows95, WindowsNT, or Windows2000.  CASRE has not been tested on Windows98 or WindowsXP.
   
   
2. CPU - 80386 with an 80387 math coprocessor, 80486 DX, or Pentium.
   
   
3. Disk space - You should have at least 2 MB of free space on your hard drive to install CASRE.  In addition, the data files used by CASRE can be up to 64KB long.
   
   
4. Pointing device - two-button Windows-compatible mouse.
   
   
5. Memory - at least 8MB of RAM is recommended.
   
   
6. Monitor - a 17" or larger monitor is highly recommended.
   
   
7. Printer - Any printer supported by Windows.
   
   

Installation Instructions

The CASRE executable and sample data files are packaged in a self-extracting WinZip file which contains 28 files. Six of these files are directly associated with the executable load. One of these is the executable file itself, CASRE.EXE. There is also the “stub” file, CASRSTUB.EXE. This is the executable file, copied into the Windows directory during installation, which notifies users trying to invoke CASRE from the DOS prompt that CASRE must be invoked from within Windows. Besides the executable file, there are three help files: CASRE.HLP, PLOT.HLP, and RSLTTABL.HLP. Each of these help files corresponds to one of the three CASRE windows. The sixth file, CASREV3.INI, defines the tool configuration as far as external applications and user-defined model combinations are concerned. The “README.TXT” file provides a summary description of the new features for CASRE, version 3.0. The installation program which you will use to install CASRE on your hard disk, “INSTALL.EXE”, is also included in the self-extracting WinZip file. Finally, the self-extracting file includes a subdirectory, "\data", which contains sample data files that you can use to explore CASRE's capabilities.

To install CASRE, follow the instructions below:

1. Copy the CASRE distribution file, CASRE30.EXE, into a working directory (e.g., C:\TEMP).
   
   
2. In Windows 3.1 or Windows 3.11, bring up the File manager and find the icon for CASRE30.EXE in the working directory. Double-click the icon to extract the CASRE files. You will be prompted for the name of a subdirectory into which the files will be extracted – enter the name of the directory into which you downloaded the distribution file.
   
   
3. Using the File Manager (Windows 3.1 or 3.11), or Explorer (Windows95, NT, or 2000), go to the temporary subdirectory into which the CASRE files have been extracted. This is the subdirectory you identified in step 1. Find the icon for the installation program, “install.exe”. Double-click the icon to start the install program.

Once the installation program has been started, select the “Start” item in the “Install” menu. CASRE will be installed on your machine. INSTALL.EXE, assumes that your hard disk is drive C:. It will make the C:\CASREV3 and C:\CASREV3\DATA directories on your hard disk. CASRE.EXE, the three *.HLP files, and the installation log, INSTALL.LOG, will be copied to C:\CASREV3. The installation program will then find the Windows subdirectory, and copy the CASREV3.INI file to that subdirectory, as well as the file CASRSTUB.EXE. The installation program finishes by making a CASREV3 program group if run in the Windows 3.1 and Windows 3.11 environments. In Windows95, WindowsNT, or Windows2000, you can create your own desktop folder for CASRE, or add CASRE to your Start menu programs. After installation has been completed, exit the installation program by selecting “Exit” on its “Install” menu.

After successfully installing CASRE, you can delete the distribution file and the files extracted from it from your working directory.

See the CASRE User's Guide (pdf format) for information on how to use CASRE.