Model Handling with EMF
Model handling with EMF
An introduction to the Eclipse Modeling Framework
ATLAS group (INRIA & LINA), University of Nantes France http://www.sciences.univ-nantes.fr/lina/atl/
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Eclipse ECESIS Project
Model Handling with EMF
Context of this work
The present courseware has been elaborated in the context of the MODELWARE European IST FP6 project (http://www.modelware-ist.org/). Co-funded by the European Commission, the MODELWARE project involves 19 partners from 8 European countries. MODELWARE aims to improve software productivity by capitalizing on techniques known as Model-Driven Development (MDD). To achieve the goal of large-scale adoption of these MDD techniques, MODELWARE promotes the idea of a collaborative development of courseware dedicated to this domain. The MDD courseware provided here with the status of open source software is produced under the EPL 1.0 license.
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Model Handling with EMF
Outline
Model-Driven Engineering The Eclipse platform Handling models with EMF
Principles Model-Driven Architecture Operating on models
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MDE Principles
Current engineering approaches MDE approach
Models not part of engineering processes (documentation) Models as first class entities Need for dedicated tools System real world situation Model abstraction of a system
MDE basic concepts
Metamodel rules to define an abstraction
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Describe a given aspect of the system
Model Handling with EMF
Model-Driven Architecture
conformsTo
meta
Metametamodel
Metametamodel element
MOF
M3
meta conformsTo
Metamodel element
M2
Metamodel
meta conformsTo
Relational metamodel
UML metamodel
System
repOf
Model element
M1
Model
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Model-Driven Architecture: Example
conformsTo
MOF Metametamodel
source
Association
destination
Class
conformsTo
Relational Metamodel
Table
+ col
Column
* {ordered}
name: String + owner
+ keyOf 1..*
name: String
+ key *
+ type
Type
name: String
conformsTo
System
repOf
BookId
Relational Model
Title
PagesNb
AuthorId
Book
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Model Handling with EMF
Operating on Models
Model persistence
Loading/saving
Model edition
Creation/deletion/modification conformsTo/meta relations
Model navigation
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Outline
Model-Driven Engineering The Eclipse platform
Handling models with EMF
Plug-in architecture Platform architecture
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Model Handling with EMF
What is Eclipse?
Eclipse is a universal platform for integrating
development tools Open, extensible architecture based on plug-ins
Plug-in development environment Java development tools Eclipse Platform Standard Java2 Virtual Machine PDE JDT Platform Java VM
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Eclipse Plug-in Architecture (1/2)
Plug-in
Big example: HTML editor Small example: Action to create zip files
- smallest unit of Eclipse function
Extension Extension
point - named entity for collecting contributions - a contribution
Example: extension point for workbench preference UI Example: specific HTML editor preferences
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Eclipse Plug-in Architecture (2/2)
Each plug-in
Contributes to 1 or more extension points Optionally declares new extension points Depends on a set of other plug-ins Contains Java code libraries and other files May export Java-based APIs for downstream plug-ins Lives in its own plug-in subdirectory
Details spelled out in the plug-in
Manifest declares contributions Code implements contributions and provides API plugin.xml file in root of plug-in subdirectory
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manifest
Eclipse ECESIS Project
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Eclipse Platform Architecture
Eclipse Platform Runtime is micro-kernel
All functionality supplied by plug-ins
Eclipse Platform Runtime handles start up
Discovers plug-ins installed on disk Matches up extensions with extension points Builds global plug-in registry Caches registry on disk for next time
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Model Handling with EMF
Outline
Model-Driven Engineering The Eclipse platform Handling models with EMF
EMF framework Model persistence Model edition & navigation
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EMF Framework (1/2)
Object oriented framework
Edition of new EMF models
Ecore metametamodel XMI as canonical representation UML model XML schema annotated Java code
Import of existing models
Export of Ecore-based models
Java code generation
Accessor methods Operations skeletons
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Model Handling with EMF
EMF Framework (2/2)
Generation of programmatic facilities for generic
model handling
Model package class accessing model metadata
EClass bookClass = libraryPackage.getBook(); Book
Title: String PagesNb: int Category:String
EAttribute titleAttribute = libraryPackage.getBook_Title();
Model factory class instantiating modeled classes
Book myBook = libraryFactory.createBook();
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Model Persistence
EMF Persistence Interface
URI (Uniform Resource Identifier)
Standard for resource identification/location Common interface for different storage types
Resource
ResourceSet
Interface for Resource collections
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Model Persistence: URI Interface
URI = three parts string
Scheme Scheme-specific part Fragment
scheme
file, jar, platform, etc.
is scheme-dependent identifies a part of the contents of the resource specified by the
Examples
The library.xml resource
First book in the library.xml resource
platform:/resource/project/library.xml
platform:/resource/project/library.xml#//@books.0
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Model Persistence: Resource Interface (1/2)
EMF Resource interface
Common API for different storage types Persistent container of EObjects
EObject = base object of the EMF framework
Resource location identified by an URI
Resource types identified by URI extensions
EMF implementations
XMLResource XMIResource (default)
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Model Persistence: Resource Interface (2/2)
Resource interface (excerpt)
void load(Map /*option*/); void save(Map /*option*/); void unload();
Interactions with persistent storage
Updating contents
void getContents().add(Object); void getContents().remove(Object);
Accessing contents
EObject getEObject(String /*URIFragment*/); String getURIFromEObject(EObject);
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Model Persistence: ResourceSet Interface
ResourceSet = collection of Resources
Resources created or loaded together Resource allocation Automatic loading of cross-referenced Resources Empty Resource creation
ResourceSet interface (excerpt)
Resource createResource(URI);
Accessing contents
Resource getResource(URI, boolean /*loadOnDemand*/); EObject getEObject(URI, boolean /*loadOnDemand*/);
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Model Persistence: Example
Saving to persistent storage
Book myBook = new Book(); ResourceSet myResourceSet = new ResourceSetImpl(); Resource myResource = myResourceSet.createResource(URI.createURI(library.xml)); myResource.getContents().add(myBook); myResource.save(null);
Loading from persistent storage
ResourceSet myResourceSet = new ResourceSetImpl(); Resource myResource = myResourceSet.getResource(URI.createURI(library.xml), true);
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Model Edition & Navigation
EMF hierarchy
Ecore metamodel Ecore navigation EObject interface
EMF reflective API Dynamic EMF
Generic APIs
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Ecore Kernel
Ecore is
EClassifer +name : string EStrucuralFeature +name : string * +eSuperTypes EClass 1 EDataType
The model used to
represent EMF models
An EMF model Its own metamodel
+eOpposite
+eReferenceType 1 1 +eAttributeType 1
* EReference 0..1 +containment : bool * EAttribute
+eAttributes
A metametamodel
+eReferences
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Ecore Navigation (excerpt)
EClass a modeled class
EStructuralFeature getEStructuralFeature(String /*name*/); EList getEOperations(); boolean isInterface(); boolean isSuperTypeOf(EClass);
EStructuralFeature a class reference/attribute
Object getDefaultValue(); EClass getEContainingClass();
EReference an association end
EReference getEOpposite (); boolean isContainment();
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EObject Interface
EObject
Base interface of all modeled objects
EMF equivalent of java.lang.Object
EObject facilities (excerpt)
Model navigation
Model edition
Object eGet(EStructuralFeature); void set(EStructuralFeature, Object /*newValue*/); void eUnset(EStructuralFeature); EClass eClass(); EObject eContainer();
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EMF Reflective API
Generated programmatic facilities
Package and Factory classes generated for the model Model-specific classes
Package generic API
Generic access to models metadata
EClass getEClassifier(String /*name*/);
Factory generic API
Generic allocation of modeled objects
EObject create(EClass);
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EMF Reflective API: Example
Instantiating an object using the reflective API
EClass bookClass = libraryPackage.getEClassifier(Book); Book myBook = libraryFactory.create(bookClass); EAttribute bookTitle = bookClass.getEStructuralFeature(Title); bookClass.getEStructuralFeature(Title); myBook.eSet(bookTitle, myBook.eSet(bookTitle, KingLear); EAttribute bookPagesNb = bookClass.getEStructuralFeature(PagesNb); bookClass.getEStructuralFeature(PagesNb); myBook.eSet(bookPagesNb, new Integer(118)); EAttribute bookCategory = bookClass.getEStructuralFeature(Category); myBook.eSet(bookCategory, Theater);
Book
Title PagesNb Category King Lear 118 Theater
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Dynamic EMF
Generic programmatic facilities
Core Package/Factory classes
Handling different models in a generic way Runtime model generation
EcorePackage - access to Ecores metadata
EClass getEClass(); EAttribute getEAttribute(); EDataType getEString();
EcoreFactory - instantiate Ecore model objects
EPackage createEPackage(); EClass createEClass(); EAttribute createEAttribute();
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Dynamic EMF: Example (1/2)
Runtime model generation
Title: String
EcoreFactory ecoreFactory = EcoreFactory.eINSTANCE; EcorePackage ecorePackage = EcorePackage.eINSTANCE; EClass bookClass = ecoreFactory.createEClass(); bookClass.setName(Book); bookClass.setName(Book); EAttribute bookTitle = ecoreFactory.createEAttribute(); bookTitle.setName(Title); bookTitle.setName(Title); bookTitle.setEType(ecorePackage.getEString()); bookClass.getEAttributes().add(bookTitle); EPackage libraryPackage = ecoreFactory.createEPackage(); libraryPackage.setName(library); libraryPackage.getEClassifiers().add(bookClass);
Book
Title: String PagesNb: int Category:String
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Model Handling with EMF
Dynamic EMF: Example (2/2)
Using a dynamically generated model
Dynamic creation of instances
EFactory libraryFactory = libraryPackage.getEFactoryInstance(); EObject myBook = libraryFactory.create(bookClass); myBook.eSet(bookTitle, myBook.eSet(bookTitle, King Lear); myBook.eSet(bookPagesNb, new Integer(118)); myBook.eSet(bookCategory, Theater); Book
Title PagesNb Category King Lear 118 Theater
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EMF Reflective API vs. Dynamic EMF
Dynamic EMF
Type-unsafe Model-independent
Enable runtime model generation
Reflective API
Type-safe Better performance
Model-dependent
Use less memory Provide faster access to data Require generated classes to be maintained as models evolve
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