Refactoring as leverage: an undergraduate thesis shows how to rewrite code for variability
Ronyell Henrique dos Santos defended at FCTE/UnB an undergraduate thesis applying refactoring operations to improve software system variability — reducing maintenance costs over the lifecycle.
Brasília, February 28, 2020
Maintenance is, by far, the most expensive phase of the software lifecycle — and every effort to make it cheaper pays back. The undergraduate thesis defended in February 2020 by Ronyell Henrique dos Santos advances along that path, advised by Prof. André Luiz Peron Martins Lanna .
The work brings two ideas onto the same plane. The first is variability — the ability of a system to absorb change without every alteration triggering a broader rewrite. In object-oriented systems, this usually shows up as design patterns; in other architectures, as clear extension points. The second is refactoring — small transformations to code that preserve behavior and improve structure.
The central thesis is to combine them: use refactoring operations as a tool to inject variability into existing systems, increasing the percentage of successful fault corrections and lowering the cost of future evolution. The work sits in software quality and speaks to verification and validation practices because refactoring without breaking is as much an exercise in rigor as in taste.
The full text — written in Portuguese — is available at the UnB Undergraduate Theses Digital Library.
About CEDIS: The Center for Studies, Development, and Innovation in Software (CEDIS), linked to the University of Brasília, researches and develops innovative software solutions.