A graph grammar model for concurrent and distributed software specification-in-large

The specification of concurrent and distributed software requires addressing at an early stage the issues of distributed computing, such as concurrency, communication, synchronization, structure and connections, and evolution of the software components to be developed. In this work, a specification model for concurrent and distributed software is investigated. The approach followed is that of applying the graph grammar concepts for specifying and modeling concurrent and distributed software. The emphasis is on software specification-in-large, showing how distributed computing aspects for structure, connectivity, communication and synchronization, creation, and abortion of components can be specified via graph grammar productions. A model for the specification of a software component in a distributed computing system is developed based on an abstract event-driven, axiom-based approach on which graph grammar productions are defined. Prospects of the specification model on the software development process are discussed.