ISTQB CTAL-TTA Exam - Topic 3 Question 41 Discussion

Actual exam question for ISTQB's CTAL-TTA exam

Question #: 41
Topic #: 3

Within an embedded software project, the maintainability of the software is considered to be critical. It has been decided to use static analysis on each delivered software component.

Which of the following metrics is NOT a maintainability metric typically used with static analysis?

ANumber of Lines of Code (LOG)

BNumber of Function Calls

CMean Time Between Failures

DComment Frequency

Show Suggested Answer

Suggested Answer: C

Maintainability metrics typically used with static analysis include measures that reflect the complexity and understandability of the code, such as Number of Lines of Code (LOC), Number of Function Calls, and Comment Frequency. These metrics help in assessing how easily the software can be understood, modified, and maintained. Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF), on the other hand, is a reliability metric. It measures the time elapsed between inherent failures of a system during operation. MTBF is used to predict the system's reliability and is not directly related to the maintainability of the code. Reliability metrics like MTBF would be used in the testing phase to measure the operational reliability of the system rather than during static analysis for maintainability assessment.

by Lavera at Nov 23, 2025, 04:48 AM

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Roselle

1 day ago

Agreed! It's more about reliability, not maintainability.

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Taryn

6 days ago

I feel like C) Mean Time Between Failures is the odd one out.

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Joanne

12 days ago

Yeah, it mixes different types of metrics.

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Noel

17 days ago

I think the question is tricky.

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Aimee

22 days ago

I’m surprised MTBF is even listed here!

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Kallie

27 days ago

B) Number of Function Calls is definitely a metric used.

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Harris

2 months ago

Wait, I thought comment frequency was less important?

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Moira

2 months ago

Totally agree, LOG is a common one.

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Carline

2 months ago

C) Mean Time Between Failures isn't a maintainability metric.

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Brandon

2 months ago

I wonder if they'll throw in a trick question about "Mean Time to Repair" or something like that.

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Barbra

2 months ago

B) Number of Function Calls is an interesting one, but I'm not sure if it's typically used for static analysis.

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Aliza

2 months ago

A) Number of Lines of Code (LOG) is a classic maintainability metric, but it's not the only one.

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Skye

3 months ago

D) Comment Frequency seems like a good metric to measure maintainability.

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Rolland

3 months ago

C) Mean Time Between Failures is not a maintainability metric typically used with static analysis.

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Leonora

3 months ago

I’m a bit confused; I thought all of these metrics could relate to maintainability in some way.

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Shizue

3 months ago

I practiced a similar question where we discussed metrics, and I think Comment Frequency is definitely a maintainability metric.

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Kayleigh

3 months ago

I feel like Mean Time Between Failures is more related to reliability than maintainability, so that might be the answer.

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Leanora

3 months ago

I'm a bit confused on this one. I'll have to carefully consider each option to determine which is not a typical maintainability metric.

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Luisa

4 months ago

I'm confident the answer is C. Mean time between failures is more of a reliability metric, not a maintainability one.

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Jeffrey

4 months ago

I think I remember that the Number of Lines of Code is often used to assess maintainability, but I'm not sure about the others.

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Erick

4 months ago

Haha, "Mean Time Between Failures" - that's more of a reliability metric, not maintainability!

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Mariko

4 months ago

Okay, let me think this through. I know lines of code, function calls, and comment frequency are all related to maintainability, so C seems like the odd one out.

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Haydee

5 months ago

Hmm, I'm not sure about this one. I'd need to review my notes on common maintainability metrics used in static analysis.

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Andrew

5 months ago

I think the answer is C. Mean Time Between Failures doesn't seem like a typical maintainability metric used in static analysis.

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Dan

4 months ago

I agree, C seems off for maintainability.

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