USE CASE DIAGRAM

Definition
A use case diagram in the Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a type of behavioral diagram
defined by and created from a Use-case analysis. The use case diagram shows the position or
context of the use case among other use cases. A use case diagram at its simplest is a
representation of a user's interaction with the system and depicting the specifications of a use
case. A use case diagram can portray the different types of users of a system and the various
ways that they interact with the system. This type of diagram is typically used in conjunction
with the textual use case and will often be accompanied by other types of diagrams as well.
As an organizing mechanism, a set of consistent, coherent use cases promotes a useful picture of
system behavior, a common understanding between the customer/owner/user and the
development team
Aim/purpose of use case diagram
Its purpose is to present a graphical overview of the functionality provided by a system in terms
of actors, their goals (represented as use cases), and any dependencies between those use cases.
The main purpose of a use case diagram is to show what system functions are performed for
which actor.
Elements of use case diagram
UCDs have only 4 major elements: The actors that the system you are describing interacts with,
the system itself, the use cases, or services, that the system knows how to perform, and the lines
that represent relationships between these elements.

ACTORS: An actor portrays any entity (or entities) that performs certain roles in a given
system. The different roles the actor represents are the actual business roles of users in a given
system. An actor in a use case diagram interacts with a use case. For example, for modeling a
banking application, a customer entity represents an actor in the application.

USE CASE: A use case in a use case diagram is a visual representation of a distinct business
functionality in a system.

SYSTEM BOUNDARY: A system boundary defines the scope of what a system will be. A
system cannot have infinite functionality.
ASSOCIATION: An association is a connection between an actor and a use case. An association
indicates that an actor can carry out a use case. Several actors at one use case mean that each
actor can carry out the use case on his or her own and not that the actors carry out the use case
together:

When should I use UCDs

You should use UCDs to represent the functionality of your system from a top-down perspective
(that is, at a glance the system's functionality is obvious, but all descriptions are at a very high
level. Further detail can later be added to the diagram to elucidate interesting points in the
system's behavior.)

Example: A UCD is well suited to the task of describing all of the things that can be done with a
database system, by all of the people who might use it (administrators, developers, data entry
personnel.)
You should NOT use UCDs to represent exception behavior (when errors happen) or to try to
illustrate the sequence of steps that must be performed in order to complete a task. Use Sequence
diagrams to show these design features.