Modularizing crosscutting concerns in component-based systems

Abstract

We define a method to modularize crosscutting concerns in the Behavior Interaction Priority (BIP) component-based framework. Our method is inspired from the Aspect Oriented Programming (AOP) paradigm which was initially conceived to support the separation of concerns during the development of monolithic systems. BIP has a formal operational semantics and makes a clear separation between architecture and behavior to allow for compositional and incremental design and analysis of systems. We thus distinguish local from global aspects. Local aspects model concerns at the component level and are used to refine the behavior of components. Global aspects model concerns at the architecture level, and hence refine communications (synchronization and data transfer) between components. We formalize global aspects as well as their integration into a BIP system through rigorous transformation primitives and overview local aspects. We present AOP-BIP, a tool for Aspect-Oriented Programming of BIP systems, and demonstrate its use to modularize logging, security, and fault-tolerance in a network protocol.