A significant finding from the secondary research studies was that software complexity and maintenance costs have a positive correlation. This argues that software developers should work to simplify their products in order to cut maintenance expenses and raise software quality. By using this approach, developers can reuse pre-existing software artifacts and components, saving time and effort compared to creating new ones from scratch. Customer that increased software quality was linked to cheaper maintenance costs, fewer faults, improved maintainability, and higher customer satisfaction was another significant discovery. This emphasizes the value of spending money on software maintenance to keep software systems dependable and effective over time. Developers should carefully examine the measurements to employ when analyzing Developers should carefully examine the measurements to employ when analyzing the influence of maintenance on software quality, according to the studies, which also revealed that different measures of software quality may have differing levels of association with maintenance.
With regards to the survey conducted in order to collect primary data, the analysis showed corrective, preventive, and adaptive maintenance as the most effective hence implying that, depending on the scenario, multiple forms of maintenance are required, and that a variety of approaches may be required to assure software quality. In addition to this, regular maintenance and testing were considered extremely critical to guaranteeing software quality since regular maintenance may prevent problems from happening and testing can discover problems that need to be fixed.
Adaptive maintenance followed by preventative maintenance being the most cost-effective maintenance techniques suggests that making modifications or upgrades to the software to adapt to changes in the environment or avoid future issues may be more cost-effective in the long term than repairing problems after they arise. To elaborate more on this, preventive maintenance is making alterations or updates to the program to maintain a strategic distance from future faults or issues. Developers can avoid expensive and time-consuming challenges afterward within the software development process by proactively tending to be planned concerns. This has influence to ensure that the program fits the requirements and details and that it runs easily and without mistakes. Preventive maintenance moreover ensures that the program is up to date and able of adjusting to changes within the working framework or equipment.to adjust to changes within the working framework or equipment. Adaptive maintenance, on the other hand, involves upgrading the program to suit changes within the environment, such as working frameworks or equipment adjustments. This can be noteworthy since, as the technological landscape advances, software must adjust to stay pertinent and effective. Software may remain useable, utilitarian, and high performing by responding to changes within the environment. Adjusting computer programs to fit unused necessities or guidelines is another case of adaptive maintenance.
Preventive and adaptive maintenance must work in pairs to guarantee software quality. They help with the anticipation of issues and ensure that the program proceeds to perform legitimately in changing settings. Without this sort of support, the program can before long end up old and out of date, coming about resulting in expanded costs, lower effectiveness, and decreased execution. Besides, by diminishing the prerequisite for remedial support, both shapes of maintenance can serve to lower the fetch of software advancement. Designers can avoid more exorbitant and time-consuming corrective maintenance endeavors down the line by tending to conceivable issues early on. This will inevitably assist in lower add up to software development costs and increase the program’s return on the venture. Increase the program’s return on the venture. Finally, preventative and adaptive maintenance is basic for moving forward program quality. They contribute to the software’s long-term ease of use, usefulness, and execution, indeed when the environment and requirements change. Designers may construct a program that is more steady, efficient, and cost-effective in the long term by prioritizing certain shapes of support.
Overall, the findings of the survey and research studies indicate that software maintenance is an important activity for ensuring the quality and reliability of software systems throughout time. Regular maintenance and testing are critical, and businesses may wish to consider spending more on preventive and adaptive maintenance in the future to lessen the need for corrective maintenance. To ensure that software systems stay dependable and performant over time, developers should seek to reduce program complexity, employ efficient maintenance techniques, and invest in continuous maintenance activities.

Limitations and Further Research

One restriction of the research studies presented in the literature review is that they may not be applicable to all types of software systems. The research mostly focused on large, complicated software systems and open-source software, which may not be representative of other software development situations. Furthermore, the questionnaire survey may have a sample bias because the sample of participants included undergraduate students who may not be representative of the population being studied because they are still unclear about the topic addressed, resulting in limited generalizability of the results. Response bias may also exist, in which participants may not respond accurately or choose the answer they believe the researcher wants to hear, resulting in erroneous results.
In terms of study limitations, one restriction of the studies presented in the literature review is that they may not be applicable to all types of software systems. The research mostly focused on large, complicated software systems and open-source software, which may not be representative of other software development situations. Furthermore, the questionnaire survey may have a sample bias because the sample of participants included undergraduate students who may not be representative of the population being studied because they are still unclear about the topic addressed, resulting in limited generalizability of the results. Response bias may also exist, in which participants may not respond accurately or choose the answer they believe the researcher wants to hear, resulting in erroneous results.
Researchers in the future could build on prior studies’ limitations by investigating software maintenance strategies and their impact on software quality in a larger range of software development situations. Smaller and less sophisticated software systems, proprietary software, and a broader range of quality criteria could all fall under this category. Future study could also look into new and innovative software maintenance approaches that could improve software quality while reducing maintenance costs and time. Subsequently, it might look into the impact of upcoming technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning on software maintenance and how they relate to software quality.