Editing Use case (section)

{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2020}}
{{Short description|Potential scenario for use of a system}}
[[File:UseCase actor Edit an article scenario.svg|400px|thumb|right|alt=UseCase Actor Edit an article scenario|A very simple [[use case diagram]] of a [[Wiki]] system. Registered user of Wiki edits an article.]]
{{for|a personalized fictional character created to represent a potential end user|Persona (user experience)}}
{{Software development process}}
In both [[software engineering|software]] and [[systems engineering]], a '''use case''' is a structured description of a system’s behavior as it responds to requests from external actors, aiming to achieve a specific goal. It is used to define and validate functional requirements<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Saurabh |first1=Tiwari |last2=Atul|first2=Gupta|title=A systematic literature review of use case specifications research |journal=Information and Software Technology |date=2015 |volume=67 |page=128-158 |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0950584915001081 |access-date=28 May 2025}}</ref> A use case is a list of actions or event steps typically defining the interactions between a role (known in the [[Unified Modeling Language]] (UML) as an ''[[Actor (UML)|actor]]'') and a system to achieve a goal. The actor can be a human or another external system. In systems engineering, use cases are used at a higher level than within [[software engineering]], often representing missions or [[Project stakeholder|stakeholder]] goals. The detailed requirements may then be captured in the [[Systems Modeling Language]] (SysML) or as contractual statements.