Automated Versioning in OSGi: A Mechanism for Component Software Consistency Guarantee

Consistency of component software is a crucial condition required for correct program execution. The existing consistency controls of OSGi at build time or in runtime cannot prevent type mismatch failures caused by independent client and server bundle development. This paper describes our solution to this problem using automated versioning of components. Version identifiers are generated from results of subtype-based comparison of component representations, thus achieving a consistent and formally backed interpretation of the version numbering scheme. The implementation of the approach allows its integration into standard OSGi bundle development and build cycle.