A survey of dynamic adaptation techniques

The growing complexity of software systems as well as changing conditions in the operating environment demand systems that are more flexible and dependable. A possible solution we envisage is the use of mechanisms for effecting behavioural enhancements or changes in running systems. This has been called Dynamic Adaptation (DA). This implies exploring a number of challenges. Some questions that have to be addressed relate to finding mechanisms for: service detection, implementation of behavioural changes during runtime, service interaction and service behaviour modification. This paper introduces a survey of approaches to dynamic adaptation in order to assess their capabilities. We describe a framework for comparing approaches to (dynamic) adaptation (DA) and evaluate selected approaches to DA against this framework. Based on the comparison framework we outline current trends in DA technologies.