Variability Mechanism

A variability mechanism defines the way in which the variations of a variation point are integrated into the software product line. It also defines who the variability can be activated/deactivated when generating a new product.

Types of Variabilty Mechanisms

There are two types of variability mechanisms: fully-automated refactorings and semi-automated refactorings. The fully-automated refactorings modify the source code without human intervention. The semi-automated refactorings only provide limited automation.

Mechanisms are usually implemented for a specific language because they operate on source code and the concrete realization is specific for the used programming language.

The applicability also depends on the characteristics of the variation point. For an explanation of the characteristics, please refer to Variability Properties View.

Available Variability Mechanisms

The following variability mechanisms are shipped together with the tooling. They can be used without any further modifications.

If-Refactoring with Static Configuration Class

Property	Value
Category	Fully Automated
Supported Language	Java
Binding Time	Compiletime
Variabilty Type	OPTXOR
Extensibility	NO

CAS License Handler

Property	Value
Category	Semi Automated
Supported Language	Java
Binding Time	Runtime
Variabilty Type	OPTXOR
Extensibility	NO