MACE: adaptive component management middleware for ubiquitous systems

Abstract

If the hype is to be believed, we have come very close to the realisation of a ubiquitous computing environment. There are already a wide variety of devices, networking technologies and bespoke services; and yet the vision of anywhere anytime computing is proving somewhat elusive. Software abstractions and metaphors that were developed for desktop applications do not extend to ubiquitous computing. Because of the frequency of contextual changes and the paucity of resources, new distributed applications require much more flexible support for controlled reconfiguration, self-adaptation, and recovery of components.We present a lightweight component management Middleware that provides flexibility by allowing design, deployment, and run-time reconfigurability. At design and deployment time, the developer can design a system by structuring software components according to a specific scenario. Then, at run-time, she can dynamically reconfigure the system, adjust to new environments, or dynamically add mechanisms that enables self-adaptation.