THE ART AND SCIENCE OF SOFTWARE ARCHITECTURE

Abstract

Experience in all aspects of software engineering has confirmed the pivotal role of focusing on architectural concerns in the development of complex software-intensive systems. Consequently, the past 20 years has seen significant investments in the theory and practice of software architecture. However, architectural deficiencies are frequently cited as a key factor in the shortcomings and failures that lead to unpredictable delivery of complex operational systems. Here, we consider the art and science of software architecture: we explore the current state of software architecture, identify key architectural trends, and directions in academia and industry, and highlight some of the architectural research challenges which need to be addressed. The paper proposes a detailed agenda of research activities to be carried out by a partnership between academia and industry. While challenges exist in many domains, for this paper we draw examples from one area of particular concern: safety-critical systems.