Väledates tarkvaraarenduskeskkondades esinevad väljakutsed arhitektuuriliste otsuste vastuvõtmisel
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2016
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Käesoleva magistritöö eesmärk on uurida väljakutseid, mis võivad esineda tarkvaraarhitektuuri kombineerimisel väleda tarkvaraarendusega ning selgitada välja põhjused, mis neid esile toovad. Kuigi antud teema on olnud juba päevakorras mõnda aega, siis jätkuvalt esineb vastuolusid väleda tarkvaraarenduse ja tarkvaraarhitektuuri sobitamisel nii teadlaste kui praktikute seas. Väleda tarkvaraarenduse ning arhitektuuri toetajaid võib leida sama palju kui mittetoetajaid, kes väidavad, et neid kahte kokku sobitada pole võimalik. Käesolevas magistritöös püstitatud uurimisküsimuste vastamisel on kasutatud kahte uurimismetoodikat: kirjanduse ülevaade ning juhtumiuuring. Kirjanduse ülevaade käsitleb varem avaldatud uurimistöid ning raskuseid, mida on antud valdkonnas senimaani täheldatud. Lisaks sellele on arutlusse võetud kirjanduses välja toodud soovitused, mida järgida arhitektuuri arendamisel väledas arenduskeskkonnas. Magistritöö teine osa käsitleb Eestis tegutsevas tarkvara idufirmas Stagnation Lab ja Siseministeeriumi IT osakonnas (SMIT) läbi viidud juhtumiuuringut. Stagnation Labis analüüsiti kahte projekti ning intervjueeriti mõlema projekti rollis olnud tarkvaraarhitekte, et uurida, milliseid raskusi kohati süsteemi ning eelkõige tarkvara arhitektuuri arenduse käigus. Samal eesmärgil intervjueeriti ka SMITi projekti eestvedanud tarkvaraarhitekti.
The goal of this master thesis is to explore challenges of architecture decision-making in agile environments and trying to find out what causes issues regarding agile architecture - the latter being a set of values and practices supporting the effective evolution of the design and system architecture, concurrent with the implementation of new business functionality. Although the topic has been existent for some time, there are still tensions between software architecture and agility that are not well understood by agile practitioners and researchers alike. While there are many active promoters of agile architecture design, there can be found equally many non-believers who state that agility and architecture cannot work together. To find answers to the research questions stated in this thesis, two research methodologies have been used: a literature survey and a case study. The literature survey covers related work on agility in software architecture and the challenges that come with it. The survey includes difficulties that have been observed regarding the use of agile development methods when building the architecture. In addition, recommended practices are discussed for applying agile processes associated with sound architectural principles. The second part of the thesis is a case study within a software startup company, Stagnation Lab, and the SMIT (Ministry of the Interior IT and Development Centre). In Stagnation Lab, two projects were analyzed. The main architects behind the design of each project were interviewed to look deeper into potential challenges when applying agile practices in architecture development. Similarly, at SMIT, the main architect responsible for the design of a monitoring information system for the Rescue and Fire Department was interviewed.
The goal of this master thesis is to explore challenges of architecture decision-making in agile environments and trying to find out what causes issues regarding agile architecture - the latter being a set of values and practices supporting the effective evolution of the design and system architecture, concurrent with the implementation of new business functionality. Although the topic has been existent for some time, there are still tensions between software architecture and agility that are not well understood by agile practitioners and researchers alike. While there are many active promoters of agile architecture design, there can be found equally many non-believers who state that agility and architecture cannot work together. To find answers to the research questions stated in this thesis, two research methodologies have been used: a literature survey and a case study. The literature survey covers related work on agility in software architecture and the challenges that come with it. The survey includes difficulties that have been observed regarding the use of agile development methods when building the architecture. In addition, recommended practices are discussed for applying agile processes associated with sound architectural principles. The second part of the thesis is a case study within a software startup company, Stagnation Lab, and the SMIT (Ministry of the Interior IT and Development Centre). In Stagnation Lab, two projects were analyzed. The main architects behind the design of each project were interviewed to look deeper into potential challenges when applying agile practices in architecture development. Similarly, at SMIT, the main architect responsible for the design of a monitoring information system for the Rescue and Fire Department was interviewed.