LibraryWithoutImplicitExportIsPolynomial

From APIDesign

The LibraryReExportIsNPComplete outlined the problem one has to face when practicing DistributedDevelopment. The page also proved that in its global scope the problem is NP-Complete as any 3SAT problem can be transformed to it.

The page also enumerated implications associated with the NP-Complete nature of the problem and suggested that one way to eliminate them is to code in backward compatible way. However that is not always possible. The other suggested elimination of the problem was to prevent re-exports. This is however this is even harder (imagine coding without the possibility to expose java.lang.String).

Surprisingly there seems to be an easy cure that eliminates the NP-Complete nature of the library re-export. This page describes it in detail.

Contents 1 Library Versioning Terminology II 2 Module Dependency Proof No Longer Possible 3 Polynomial 4 Consistency 5 Can we live with Complete Repositories

Library Versioning Terminology II

In addition to already existing terminology, let's define new type of repository:

A repository R = (M,D) is said to be complete if the transitive dependencies are explicitly enumerated:

1. 

In the above the symbol may mean dependency with re-export (e.g. ) or dependency without re-export (e.g. > ).

The complete repository differs from the ordinary repository in the fact that there are no implicit re-export dependencies. Re-export itself is still possible, but it is required for each module to enumerate dependencies on each re-exported module it sees (or at least uses). Moreover such dependency needs to be compatible with the dependency of the re-exporting module (thus the p remains the same only r and q can differ).

Module Dependency Proof No Longer Possible

The first observation we shall notice is that it is not possible to reuse the proof described at LibraryReExportIsNPComplete on complete repositories. The essential part of the proof relies on the fact that the main module T_1.0 has dependencies only on modules . There were no restrictions of dependencies on modules . This will no be longer possible in complete repositories and as a result we don't have a proof that module dependency problem would be NP-Complete on complete repositories.

Polynomial

Time to ask whether the problem remains NP-Complete or whether it enters the polynomial time complexity? Essential property of NP-Complete problems is that while finding them requires a lot of time, verifying whether a solution is really a solution can be done in polynomial time. However that is what the complete repository does. Whenever we select a module, we also get all is necessary dependencies - we get a solution telling us what modules need to be enabled to enable the module on the top. If the complete repository is consistent, then we need to enable just those modules and we have a solution.

Thus the LibraryReExportIsNPComplete#Module Dependency Problem is solvable in polynomial time in complete repositories.

Consistency

Next question is how complex it is to verify that a repository is complete repository. We would not simplify our life if such a check was NP-Complete. In such case we would just trade one NP-Complete problem for another. But verifying that a repository is complete repository does not seem to be hard (e.g. it is polynomial).

Can we live with Complete Repositories

Sure, at least for SourceCompatibility and BinaryCompatibility.