基于体系结构的网构软件演化关键技术研究

随着Internet的发展,网构软件的研究越来越受到人们的重视。研究者在网构软件的自适应演化方面虽然做了许多研究,取得了很多成果,但也有不足之处。针对网构软件的演化,文中提出了一种以主动连接器、规则库、构件选择推理机、构件描述库为核心的体系结构,在构件实体方面采用Web服务技术。在软件结构的基础上研究了规则库的建立过程、研究了推理机的推理算法和构件选择策略,这使得软件运行时能根据上下文环境动态选择调用Web服务构件。     

基于组织的网构软件程序设计语言及其实现

作为Internet环境下的一种新的软件形态,网构软件的自主性、协同性、适应性、演化性及柔性体系结构等特点对传统的程序设计模型、语言和支撑平台提出了一系列挑战.本文基于组织抽象和agent技术提出了支持网构软件构造的程序设计语言OragentL.首先,OragentL将软件agent作为网构软件中自主实体的抽象,并在这一层面设计和封装系统的自适应和自演化逻辑.其次,OragentL将组织、角色等组织抽象作为一级编程实体,提供了角色扮演、角色组合、角色演化、基于角色的交互、基于组织的自管理等机制为网构软件的动态性特点提供了显式的语言设施和机制支撑.我们设计了OragentL的语法和形式化操作语义,并开发了Oragentburg作为OragentL网构软件的运行时环境,支持OragentL程序的开发、编译、部署和运行     

面向网构软件的构件自适应机制研究*

结合软件agent技术,从构件角度出发,通过对传统构件进行包装,加入行为规则驱动和行为推导两大机制,提出了一种能够在运行时实时适应用户需求变化和运行环境变化的自适应构件。在自适应构件的运行和支撑方面,实现了一个可动态定制自适应构件行为规则的工具,改进了现有的构件支撑平台使得能满足自适应构件的运行需求;最后通过一个例子说明了自适应构件的设计、实现、运行和演化等一系列工作流程。初步实践表明,上述机制和整套框架为开发具有自适应性的网构软件提供了有效支持。     

一种情境驱动的网构软件体系架构与支撑环境

本文从网构软件Internet环境下涉及的各类事物和事件情境及情境的整个生命周期出发,以情境驱动为核心,对网构软件的体系结构与支撑环境展开研究,以支持服务实体的自适应、自演化行为。本文研究了Internet环境下服务实体交互与协同关系中的各种情境构成,给出了一个适合网构软件的情境本体定义。在此基础上,给出了一种基于情境感知的网构软件体系架构,并描述了在这一架构下网构软件按需聚合和动态演化的模型与机制。围绕该应用场景,结合服务实体实际运行时的特点及要素,给出了该体系架构下网构软件的支撑环境软件设计。最后,本文给出了一种基于OSGi服务平台的支撑环境参考实现。     

基于场景自动机的网构软件演化

网构软件是网络开放、动态和多变环境下软件系统基本形态的一种抽象,其演化性要求软件能根据应用需求和运行环境变化而动态演化。引入了软件需求工程中场景的概念,但不同的是不把场景作为一种静态的记录来使用,而是把场景作为一种动态记录来描述软件的动态演化特征。给出了场景的形式化定义及其互补、等价、子集等关系描述,提出了基于场景自动机的网构软件演化方法。软件的性质和行为可以由一系列应用场景来展现,系统的演化通过场景自动机来体现,这为系统自适应演化提供了一种新的解决方法,并支持系统更大粒度的复用。     

网络环境下的新型软件开发方法——网构软件

针对当前网构软件的研究与探索,从其支撑技术着手介绍网构软件的概念模型及运行机制,总结国内外在构件、软件Agent等技术所做的工作。     

自主构件自适应策略的在线定制及动态评估

开放分布式环境下自适应软件的研究已引起学术界、工业界的广泛关注.但分布在网络上的软件实体是由不同的组织独立开发并部署的,它们代表各自的组织(或所有者)自主地采取行动,在构造分布式环境下的自适应系统时,不能再将构成单元视为被动的受管对象,而应将其建模为具有主动行为能力的计算实体,并在这一层面设计和封装系统的自适应逻辑.然而,在现阶段对于自主计算实体的研究中,大多缺乏对于自适应策略的动态加载和动态演化的支持.提出了一种支持策略动态加载的自主构件模型,使得自主构件能够在运行时习得新的自适应策略和行为,实现了一种基于质量运行时动态评估的自主构件的自适应机制,使得自主构件能够自行评估自适应策略的优劣并选择最佳的策略加以适应,在保证自身目标得以实现的同时,提高了服务质量.另外,还详细描述了自主构件的实现方案及其运行支撑,通过实验展示了自主构件基于质量动态评估的自适应过程以及自适应策略的动态加载过程.     

一种面向自适应软件系统的体系结构描述语言*

从构件角度出发,结合软件agent技术,提出一种能表示根据需求和环境的变化实施自主行为的E-BDI构件模型。基于高阶多型π演算理论,在现有的动态体系结构描述语言D-ADL基础上,提出一种能从运行时角度描述自适应构件的动态行为的体系结构描述语言SOS-ADL。利用SOS-ADL形式化描述E-BDI结构的自适应构件行为,使构件能根据变化的环境和需求,自主推导自身的行为,达到实现软件自适应的目的。案例说明了面向自适应软件系统的体系结构描述语言SOS-ADL的应用。     

面向服务的网构软件中间件研究 *

网构软件是近年来提出的一种具有自底向上的自主性、协同性、反应性、演化性、多态性等特征的软件状态 ,主要用来解决 Internet下分散的构件体的共享、集成和复用 ,但网构软件还处于发展初始阶段。结合 SCA简化 SOA所构建的业务应用程序的设计和集成 ,以及 SDO和 DAS的数据访问模式来构建一种网构软件中间件框架 ,并用 UML对各个阶段建模 ;最后结合 Apache下 SCA系统的 Tuscany开源包的一个远程教育集成系统来应用该网构软件中间件。     

一种基于自主构件的网构软件协作框架

网构软件的协作具有真分布、无全局规划、非强制性等新的特征,这对协作提出了新的要求.在传统构件的基础上,借鉴Agent领域中对自主性的理解,使用自主构件这一概念来对具有自主性的计算资源进行建模,并描述了一种基于自主构件的协作框架.该框架中借助环境改变来引导自主构件间的协作行为,协作过程中没有直接干预其他自主构件的行为,更没有强迫其他自主构件参与,但自主构件却能采取所期望的行动最终实现协作目标.     

A software architecture centric engineering approach for Internetware

As a new software paradigm evolved by the Internet, Internetware brings many challenges for the traditional software development methods and techniques. Though architecture-based component composition (ABC) approach is originated in the traditional software paradigm, it supports the engineering of Internetware effectively due to its philosophy, rationales and mechanisms. ABC has three major contributions to the en- gineering of Internetware in detail. First, the feature oriented domain modeling method can structure the “disordered”“software entities” to “ordered Internetware” bottom-up in the problem space. Second, the architecture centric design and analysis method can support the development of self-adaptive Internetware. Third, the component operating platform is a reflective and self-adaptive middleware that not only provides Internetware with a pow- erful and flexible runtime infrastructure but also enables the self-adaptation of the structure and individual entities of Internetware.     

Internetware: An Emerging Software Paradigm for Internet Computing

The Internet is undergoing a tremendous change towards the globalized computing environment.Due to the open,dynamic and uncontrollable natures of the Internet,software running in the Internet computing environment has some new features,which bring challenges to current software technologies in terms of software model,software operating platform,software engineering approaches and software quality.Researchers in China have proposed the term "Internetware" to present the emerging software paradigm.Sponsored by the National Basic Research 973 Program,several research practices have been done on the Internetware in the past decade.This paper summarizes the progress and status of the Internetware researches.A technical solution framework for the Internetware paradigm is proposed from four aspects:the Internetware software model defines what the Internetware is to be;the Internetware middleware determines how to run the Internetware applications;the engineering methodology determines how to develop the Internetware applications;the Internetware quality assurance determines how well the Internetware applications can perform.The paper also discusses the ongoing research issues and future trends of Internetware.     

On environment-driven software model for Internetware

Internetware is envisioned as a general software paradigm for the application style of resources integration and sharing in the open, dynamic and uncertain platforms such as the Internet. Continuing the agent-based Internetware model presented in a previous paper, in this paper, after an analysis of the behavioral patterns and the technical challenges of environment-driven applications, a software-structuring model is proposed for environment-driven Internetware applications. A series of explorations on the enabling techniques for the model, especially the modeling, management and utilization of context information are presented. Several proto-typical systems have also been built to prove the concepts and evaluate the techniques. These research efforts make a further step toward the Internetware paradigm by providing an initial framework for the construction of context-aware and self-adaptive software application systems in the open network environment.     

Towards Software Architecture and Mechanisms for Improving Runtime Variability of Internetware System

As an emerging software paradigm, Internetware is proposed to handle openness, dynamism of software systems in the context of Internet, which implies that such software systems typically have runtime variability that can be improved dynamically to handle various or even unexpected changes of requirements and open environment. Though many progresses of Internetware software technologies have been made to support the adaptation, evolution, context-awareness, etc. of Internetware, how to construct Internetware systems with the ability to improve their runtime variability is still a great challenge in the literature of software engineering. In this paper, we propose software architecture and mechanisms for Internetware systems to support the improvement of their runtime variability by combining software variability and autonomic computing techniques. The Internetware system is organized as three levels that are consist of variable autonomic elements and Internetware entities, and architecture of these software entities is defined and discussed respectively. Moreover, we put forward a series of runtime mechanisms based on these levels, including module selection, intermediator and horizontal management, to realize operations upon the variation points and variants in software architectures and thus achieve the improvement of runtime variability. We develop a sample of Personal Data Resource Network to depict the requirements and scenario of improving runtime variability, and further study the case based on our proposed approach to show its effectiveness and applicability.     

一个适用于网构软件的信任度量及演化模型

网构软件的构建依赖于对开放协同环境中各种异构的、自治的软件服务实体间的有效协同.Internet的开放性与动态性,使得对于诚实的、具有可靠服务质量协同实体的选择难度较大,难以确保网构软件的可信性.软件实体间的信任关系对于保障网构软件的可信性具有重要的指导意义.软件实体间的信任关系通常随协作的进行而不断变化,但现有的信任模型缺乏对实体间信任关系的自动形成与更新的支持,从而无法刻画信任关系的动态性.针对该问题,提出了一个适用于网构软件的信任度量及演化模型.该模型不仅对信任关系度量过程和信任信息传递及合并过程进行了合理抽象,而且还提供了一种合理的方法,用于促进协同实体间信任关系的自动形成与更新.该模型有助于解决开放环境下网构软件的可信性问题.     

Preface

The vision of ''Internet as a computer'' motivates many technical trends, like pervasive computing, grid computing, service computing and recently, cloud computing, as well as some business trends, like modern service industry, digital economy and smarter planet. These evolutionary changes demand that the software systems which are running on the open and dynamic Internet have to be autonomous, context-sensitive, continuous-reactive, evolutionary, and proactive, and the software entities dispersed on distributed nodes over the Internet will be turned into self-contained, autonomous and adaptive. Thus, like the information Web, i.e. the World Wide Web, these Internet-based software entities will constitute a software Web. That gives birth a new software paradigm. A portmanteau term ''Internetware'' is used to denote the future software-web. An Internetware system will be able to perceive the changes of the open and dynamic environment, respond to the changes, and exhibit the context-aware, adaptive and trustworthy behaviors. The mission of Internetware may challenge many aspects of software technologies, from the operating platforms and the programming models to the engineering approaches. Internetware 2010, the second Asia-Pacific Symposium on Internetware, aims to provide an interactive forum where researchers and professionals from multiple disciplines and domains meet and exchange ideas to explore and address the challenges brought by Internetware. The symposium was held at Suzhou, China, during the 2-4 of Nov, 2010. Thirty three papers were submitted and each of them was reviewed by at least two members of an International Program Committee. Among them, 12 have been accepted (which means an acceptance rate of 36%) for their quality as well as for their interesting terms of discussions for the symposium attendees. This special issue contains 7 revised and substantially extended papers from the 12 based on presentations at the symposium: ......     

工作流驱动、面向服务的构件组装平台

通过分析基于构件组装的网构软件开发流程,设计了一种工作流驱动、面向服务的构件组装平台CCP-I,该平台在工作流引擎的支持下,可以实现服务构件的动态装配以及构件和Web表单间的松耦合。最后,介绍了基于开源项目的CCP-I平台的实现方案。该平台能够为网构软件支撑平台的研究提供参考和借鉴。     

基于服务更新的网构软件可靠性模型研究(英文)

网构软件是在开放、动态和多变的Internet环境下软件系统基本形态的一种抽象。这种新的软件系统,它的构建依赖于开放环境中各异构、自治的软件服务实体之间的有效协同。其可靠性不单取决于拥有自主性的软件服务实体本身,还取决于外部环境的动态变化,主要表现为开放环境下服务实体元素的更新,所以传统的软件可靠性的度量模型已不能适应这种新的软件形态。能否在网构软件形态下建立一个好的可靠性度量模型成为其中一个较为核心的问题。文章以服务更新过程中失效数(failurecounts)为基础,将服务更新强度引入Musa-Okumoto(M-O)模型中,作为M-O模型在新的软件形态下的一个推广。最后讨论了网构软件退化的情形和退化条件,为开放环境下网构软件可靠性研究提供一种思路。     

Software Evolution for Moving into and Moving within Internetware Paradigm

Internetware has been an emerging software paradigm to best support computing in the Internet era. Internetware emphasises accommodating the open, dynamic and uncontrollable natures of Internet, which directly and indirectly relates software evolvability. This paper observes that evolving non-Internetware software into the Internetware paradigm and evolving software within Internetware will be two main research and practical issues, and hence proposes an integrated approach to address these two issues. The proposed framework is based a three-dimension structure, with System Functions, System Quality and System models as dimensions. With this framework, evolving software into internetware paradigm can be viewed mainly as changing the qualities of existing software and evolving software within Internetware paradigm can be viewed mainly as changing software functions. The involved prototype tool, working examples and experiments conducted, are used to illustrate the proposed approach.