2K: A Dynamic, Component-Based Operating System for Rapidly Changing Environments

Modern, distributed computing systems need to cope continuously with changes. as software upgrade; and frequent changes in the execution environment, such as network bandwidth, memory availability. This paper proposes 2K, a component-based operating system architecture for rapidly changing environments. In 2K, adaptation is driven by architectural awareness: the system software includes models of its own structure, state, and behavior. Change in the dynamic structure of the system triggers adaptation. To implement adaptation, 2K incorporates a reflective middleware layer that admits dynamic customization through the dynamic loading of components and modification of object mechanisms such as method dispatch. The architecture also addresses adaptation in response to software and hardware evolution through code distribution, implemented using the active networking model. Prototype implementations of 2K ideas had provided encouraging results. We also present an application study, identify problems that arose while implementing the application on a traditional system, and analyze how 2K features would alleviate those problems.

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