Blockchain Based Variability Management Solutions for Fog Native Open Source Software

Abstract

The complexity of Cloud-Fog-Edge computing systems is high due to the high variability which can be expected to grow further in the future with more IoT devices, computing architecture and specific requirements from security, regulation and users. One way to manage this complexity is to consider the Cloud-Fog-Edge Continuum as a single infrastructure of devices and components to be used in a seamless way to deliver new advanced services. Such a framework would integrate the handling of all connected devices, requirements and manage their variability. This paper proposes a framework called VarOps which provides an intuitive Workbench, enabling the design of software considering variability, making possible the re-use of dockerized components to significantly increase efficiency in development of new solutions. VarOps exploits Blockchain as a distributed ledger technology, variability formal modelling approaches, Smart Contracts, Trustful and Trustless Smart Oracles and knowledge management solutions as the underlying technologies and presents some example use cases.