A Type Management System for an ODP Trader

In order to use services available throughout an open distributed system, there must be a common understanding of the nature of those services. Also there must be a provision for system evolution, i.e. smooth replacement (without recompilation of clients applications) of existing services by their newer versions. Therefore, type description and type management functions are required to facilitate the dynamic service matching performed by an ODP trader. Also federation of traders should be supported. This paper examines the trader’s requirements and presents a type model which is sufficient for those requirements. The model includes types and type relationships which are basic for ODP applications. Type descriptions and type relationships are used to find compatible service types in an open, multi-lingual environment. The paper also presents a type naming scheme and addresses the problems related to the federation of traders.