GOST R ISO/IEC 9126-93 PDF

Full title and description

GOST R ISO/IEC 9126-93 — Information technology. Software product evaluation. Quality characteristics and guidelines for their use. (Russian title: ГОСТ Р ИСО/МЭК 9126-93 — Информационная технология. Оценка программной продукции. Характеристики качества и руководства по их применению.)

Abstract

This standard specifies a quality model for software products by defining six primary quality characteristics — functionality, reliability, usability (or human factors), efficiency, maintainability, and portability — and provides guidance on using these characteristics for software evaluation across the lifecycle. It sets the conceptual framework for describing and comparing software quality but does not prescribe detailed metrics or measurement methods.

General information

• Status: Active as a GOST R adoption in Russian practice; internationally the ISO/IEC 9126 family has been superseded by ISO/IEC 25010:2011.
• Publication date: Adopted/approved in Russia in late 1993 (decision by Gosstandart) and put into effect 1 July 1994 (designation includes -93). The underlying ISO/IEC 9126 original publication date is 1991.
• Publisher: Published as a GOST R (Russian national) standard under the national standards system (Rosstandart / GOST R adoption of ISO/IEC).
• ICS / categories: Information technology / software engineering — ICS classification around 35.080 (software).
• Edition / version: GOST R adoption of ISO/IEC 9126 (designation 9126-93); corresponds to the ISO/IEC 9126 quality-model family (original ISO publication 1991, national adoption indicated by -93).
• Number of pages: Typically published as a short technical document — commonly listed as 12 pages in available catalogs.

Scope

Defines a conceptual model and six principal characteristics to be used when evaluating software product quality; provides guidance on applying those characteristics to acquisition, development, operation, maintenance and verification activities. The standard intentionally does not define detailed subcharacteristics, metrics or measurement procedures — it supplies the high-level vocabulary and structure for quality assessment that organizations can refine for their context.

Key topics and requirements

• Definition of the six primary software quality characteristics: functionality, reliability, usability, efficiency, maintainability and portability.
• Quality-model structure and hierarchical organization of characteristics and subcharacteristics (conceptual, not prescriptive).
• Guidance on applying the characteristics for product evaluation across lifecycle stages (acquisition, development, operation, support).
• Clarification that the standard does not mandate specific metrics, measurement methods, ranking or scoring procedures — these are left for implementers.
• Compatibility with the international ISO/IEC 9126 family and its role as the basis for later quality-model standards (notably ISO/IEC 25010).

Typical use and users

Used by software developers, quality engineers, testers, procurement specialists, system integrators, certification bodies and researchers who need a common, documented vocabulary and top-level model for software product quality. Typical applications include requirements definition, vendor evaluation, acceptance testing, quality planning and academic studies of software quality. In Russian practice the GOST R version is frequently referenced in national technical documentation and procurement specifications.

Related standards

Related documents include the parts of the ISO/IEC 9126 family (quality model and the separate parts addressing external, internal and quality-in-use metrics), and the successor model ISO/IEC 25010:2011 (SQuaRE quality model). Other related standards are general software-quality and life‑cycle standards and national GOST documents that reference software quality characteristics in procurement and certification activities.

Keywords

software quality, product quality, ISO/IEC 9126, GOST R, functionality, reliability, usability, efficiency, maintainability, portability, quality model, software evaluation, SQuaRE.

FAQ

Q: What is this standard?

A: It is the Russian GOST R adoption of the ISO/IEC 9126 software product quality standard (designated GOST R ISO/IEC 9126-93) that defines a high-level model and guidance for evaluating software product quality.

Q: What does it cover?

A: It covers a conceptual quality model composed of six primary characteristics (functionality, reliability, usability, efficiency, maintainability and portability) and guidance on using those characteristics to assess software products; it does not prescribe exact metrics or measurement techniques.

Q: Who typically uses it?

A: Software developers, QA/test teams, procurers, integrators, certification bodies and researchers who require a standardized framework for describing and discussing software quality — particularly in Russian national practice where the GOST R designation is referenced.

Q: Is it current or superseded?

A: As a GOST R document it remains listed in Russian catalogs and is used in practice; internationally the ISO/IEC 9126 family was superseded by ISO/IEC 25010:2011, which updated and expanded the quality model. Users should be aware of the international successor standard when defining modern measurement and evaluation processes.

Q: Is it part of a series?

A: The ISO/IEC 9126 material was published as a family of interrelated parts (quality model; external metrics; internal metrics; quality in use metrics). The GOST R adoption corresponds to that international family and is commonly cited alongside those parts.

Q: What are the key keywords?

A: Functionality, reliability, usability, efficiency, maintainability, portability, software quality model, software evaluation, GOST R, ISO/IEC 9126, SQuaRE.