Software Inspections are an effective way to track down defects in a large application. An inspection is done by gathering a team of individuals to analyze the code developed for a certain requirement of the program. There are five main roles in a software inspection: author, moderator, reader, recorder, and inspector.

The author of the code will update the work to reflect any changes determined by the rest of the inspection team, and the author is there to answer any questions about the code. The moderator is there to ensure the inspection process is followed. The reader's job is to read aloud the logical aspects of the code during the inspection meeting. The recorder documents all of the defects discovered during the meeting, and the inspector is responsible for analyzing the code for defects. All members of the inspection team play the role of inspector.

There are several stages that comprise a complete inspection. First, the inspection process must be planned out and the code to be inspected must be chosen. Second, all team members conduct an individual inspection of the code. Third, the team meets for the official inspection where defects are discussed. The reader will read through the code and when a defect is found the team discusses it. Fourth, the code author reworks the code. Finally, a follow up meeting is done to ensure that the code has been reworked correctly.