Partial redesign of Java software systems based on clone analysis

Abstract

Code duplication, plausibly caused by copying source code and slightly modifying it, is often observed in large systems. Clone detection and documentation have been investigated by several researchers in past years. Recently, research focus has shifted towards the investigation of software and process restructuring actions based on clone detection. The paper presents a new redesign approach developed for Java software systems. The approach factorizes the common parts of cloned methods and parameterizes their differences using the strategy design pattern. The new entities created by such transformations are also decoupled from the original contexts of their use, thus facilitating reuse and increasing maintainability. The applicability and automation of the technique presented in the paper have been verified by partially redesigning JDK 1.1.5.