A reflective middleware framework for communication in dynamic environments

Abstract

The goal of a flexible communication framework is to allow dynamic customization of complex communication protocols without compromising the overall system performance. However, the communication protocols provided in successful middleware frameworks are usually tailored to specific and/or static requirements are not suitable for dynamic environments. In dynamic environments, applications must be able to customize communication protocols on-the-fly in order to respond to change requirements while protecting the system from reaching inconsistent states that can lead to deadlocks, livelocks and incorrect execution semantics. Hence, there is a need to identify interprotocol and protocol-(middleware) service interactions in order to ensure safe flexibility of the system. The work described here proposes a reflective communication framework (RCF) capable of expressing different levels of dynamic customization of communication protocols while ensuring safe customization of communication protocols. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2002.