Rule-Based Impact Analysis for Heterogeneous Software Artifacts

Abstract

Typical software engineering activities, such as program maintenance or reengineering, result in frequent changes of software which are often accompanied by unintended side effects. Consequently, research on impact analysis put forth approaches to assess the adverse effects of changes. However, understanding and implementing these changes is often aggravated by inconsistencies and dependencies between different types of software artifacts. Likewise, most impact analysis approaches are not able to detect the possible side effects of changes when different types of software artifacts are involved. We present an approach that combines impact analysis and multi-perspective modeling for analyzing the change propagation between heterogeneous software artifacts. Our approach assists developers with understanding the consequences of changes by identifying impacted artifacts and determining how they are affected. We utilize a model repository for combining UML models, Java source code, and JUnit tests by mapping them on a unifying meta-model. We introduce a novel impact propagation approach that analyzes dependencies between software artifacts according to the type of change which is applied upon them. Our approach is implemented by a set of impact propagation rules which are evaluated by a case study.

Managing Traceability Links with MaTraca

“…Finally, the model is the data to be edited and submitted which is described inside the <model> tag. 6 Notice that the submission resource can refer to variables defined in the XForm (i.e., the XML is dynamically built), and therefore MaTraCa cannot rely on string matching across entities. …”

“…First, the implementation of traceability links as queries in a database that enable the validation of design and requirement constraints over source code [5]. Second, using a meta-model to link source code, UML, and unit tests, plus adding manually propagation rules to identify whenever a change in any of these artifacts would impact any of its related artifacts [6]. And third, converting heterogeneous source code artefacts to a GraphML representation (via XML) and specifying the links with XML to have a semiautomatic change impact detection [7].…”

“…5). The domain was defined the XForm-submission resource in xhtml files 6 . The codomain was defined as the concatenation of the location of web-services, then it looks for the class that implements the web application (defined in an XML file) which contains the simple name of the class that implements the web service called by the html page, once that file is located it concatenates the value of the @Path annotation at the class and method level.…”

Rule-Based Change Impact Analysis Method in Software Development

“…And it does not take into account the temporality of the entity. Reference [10] presented an approach combining impact analysis with the concept of multi-level modeling, to assist with maintaining software through impact analysis of different UML models, Java source code, and related JUnit tests. However, it is also not considered the temporality of the entity.…”

Handling the differential evolution of software artefacts: A framework for consistency management

“…These techniques include source code analysis approaches (such as call graphs, dependency analysis, program slicing and probabilistic models) [6], and techniques aimed at a combination of artefacts, such as rule-based approaches [14]. As part of consistency checking, the tool will provide functionality to pinpoint inconsistencies and to suggest solutions to resolve them.…”