This presentation summarizes my personal experience and some of my research on using MDE for Software Architecture Descriptions.

1. Henry Muccini - henry.muccini@univaq.it
DISIM
Dept. of Information Engineering, Computer Science and Mathematics
University of L’Aquila, Italy
The role of MDE in Software
Architecture Descriptions
slides available at
http://www.slideshare.net/henry.muccini

2. On theOn theOn theOn the managingmanagingmanagingmanaging ofofofof
Software ArchitectureSoftware ArchitectureSoftware ArchitectureSoftware Architecture
descriptionsdescriptionsdescriptionsdescriptions needsneedsneedsneeds andandandand
challengeschallengeschallengeschallenges bybybyby customizingcustomizingcustomizingcustomizing
andandandand extendingextendingextendingextending MDEMDEMDEMDE
technologiestechnologiestechnologiestechnologies

3. SEA Group
Which architectural styles?
RQ1: How Software Architecture are being
described?
RQ2: which is the role plaid by MDE in SA
Descriptions?
Keywords:
• Architecture Description
Languages
• Industrial practices
• UML vs formal ADLs
• Needs
• Our solutions:
Interoperability,
megamodeling, DLSs
for domain-specific SA

4. SEA Group
5
Darwin
FSP
Rapide
AADL
ACME
box-and-line
UML

5. SEA Group
6
Darwin
FSP
Rapide
AADL
ACME
box-and-line
UML
Type of spec.
Language
today1990 2000
Formal
Box and Line
UML
MDE

6. SEA Group
7
Darwin
FSP
Rapide
AADL
ACME
box-and-line
UML
100+ ALs
(better to say, languages that consider themselves to be ALs)
http://www.di.univaq.it/malavolta/al/

7. ButButButBut,,,, whatwhatwhatwhat industryindustryindustryindustry needsneedsneedsneeds
fromfromfromfrom ArchitecturalArchitecturalArchitecturalArchitectural
LanguagesLanguagesLanguagesLanguages????

8. RQ1: What are the
architectural
description needs of
practitioners?
RQ2: What features
typically supported by
existing ALs are useful
(or not useful) for the
software industry?
9
TSE 2013

9. SEA Group

10. and,and,and,and, howhowhowhow totototo buildbuildbuildbuild nextnextnextnext
generationgenerationgenerationgeneration ArchitecturalArchitecturalArchitecturalArchitectural
LanguagesLanguagesLanguagesLanguages????

11. SEA Group
RQ1: What are the main
requirements needed to
build an industrially-
relevant AL?
RQ2: How MDE can
support those
requirements
IEEE Software 2014

12. SEA Group
Framework of AL requirements
D. Harel and B. Rumpe, “Meaningful. Modeling: What’s the Semantics of ‘Semantics’?,” Computer, vol. 37, no. 10, 2004, pp. 64–72.

13. SEA Group

14. SEA Group
interoperability
Use of different ALs to model or analyze
different architectural aspects of a system
Bridging the different descriptions to
paramount relevance
Bridging the different descriptions to
be kept consistent and coherent is of
paramount relevance
DUALLY supports interoperability among ADLs.
One model conforming to an ADL, can be
automatically transformed into another model
conforming to a different ADL.
[TSE2010,SOSYM2012]
FACT
PROBLEM
OUR SOLUTION

15. SEA Group
ByADL (byadl.di.univaq.it)
→An MDE framework for customizing existing ADLs
[ICSE2010, ECSA2010]
current ADLs mostly fail to capture multiple
(and varying) stakeholders concerns
PROBLEM
SOLUTION extending and customizing existing ADLs w.r.t.
to domain- & organization- specific concerns

16. SEA Group
Darwin/FSP
ACME
AADL
xADL
SA UML profiles
other ADLs
pivot
metamodel
(A0)
Extended/customized ADL
generated in byADL
BPMN
FTVP
1
VP
1
VP
2
VP
2St1
MK1
Composed AF
generated in MEGAF
MEGAF: a model-driven infrastructure for building reusable
and extensible architecture frameworks
MEGAF: a model-driven infrastructure for building reusable
and extensible architecture frameworks
DUALLy: an automated approach for ADLs interoperabilityDUALLy: an automated approach for ADLs interoperability
byADL: an approach to adapt and customize existing ADLsbyADL: an approach to adapt and customize existing ADLs

17. SEA Group
megaf.di.univaq.it
• Preliminary prototype in Eclipse, using
megamodeling techniques
dually.di.univaq.it
• Prototype in Eclipse, using model-driven
engineering techniques
byadl.di.univaq.it
• Prototype in Eclipse, using model-driven
engineering techniques

18. MDE Limitations
http://www.cse.chalmers.se/~burden/ppts/AreToolsTheProblem.pdf
MODELS 2013
“MDE can be very“MDE can be very“MDE can be very“MDE can be very
effective but it takes effort toeffective but it takes effort toeffective but it takes effort toeffective but it takes effort to
make it workmake it workmake it workmake it work””””
immaturity of tooltooltooltool support,
its complexity and lack of usabilitylack of usabilitylack of usabilitylack of usability.
lack of consideration for how people
think and work.
MDE requires investment devoted to
training, process change, and cultural
shift.

19. MDE limitations: Organizational factors
SCP journal 2013
Extensive results from a
survey of MDE practices in
industry
• barriers that hamper the industrial
adoption of MDE are not only
technical and tool-related but also
socialsocialsocialsocial or organizationalorganizationalorganizationalorganizational.
• successful adoption of MDE needs a
– progressive and iterative
approach,
– integration with existing
organizational commitments,
– a clear business focus

20. AMUSE
museum project
A4WSN

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