Software Issue Resolution via Version Control Graph Analysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Identifying and resolving software issues within software components is a labor-intensive and difficult process, even with the use of various development tools and systems, as existing technologies lack efficient mechanisms for identifying applicable changes across different branches of a software component and determining the relevance of issue tracking entries over time.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a system that utilizes a version control graph to identify relationships between software component branches, allowing for the determination of applicable changes and calculating a 'staleness' score to assess the relevance of issue tracking entries, thereby facilitating corrective actions and automated testing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual identification and resolution of software issues is performed, then issue resolution accuracy is maintained, but labor intensity and time consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automated self-service for issue resolution by having the software component automatically identify applicable changes from version control history and apply them to resolve issues without human intervention. The issue tracking system automatically updates entries and determines relevance, allowing the system to serve itself in the issue resolution process.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical processes (developers manually searching through version control history and applying changes) with an automated computational system that uses algorithms to identify applicable changes, determine their relevance, and apply them automatically. This substitutes human labor with an automated information processing system.
2Reliability
If comprehensive analysis of all changes across branches is performed, then issue resolution accuracy improves, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only the relevant information needed for issue resolution from the complex version control history. Instead of analyzing all changes across all branches, it selectively identifies changes that are applicable to the specific issue at hand by examining the relationship between issue tracking entries and version control commits, filtering out irrelevant information.
Solution Approach 2:
The issue tracking system serves as an intermediary layer between the version control system and the software component. It maintains a simplified representation of changes and their relationships, acting as a mediator that translates complex version control data into actionable information for issue resolution without requiring direct complex analysis of the entire version control history.
3Loss of information
If issue tracking entries are maintained indefinitely, then historical reference value is preserved, but data relevance and management efficiency decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The relevance of issue tracking entries is made dynamic rather than static. The system automatically updates the relevance status of entries over time based on whether applicable changes have been applied and whether issues have been resolved. Entries transition from relevant to irrelevant as they are fulfilled, allowing the system to adapt to changing conditions without manual intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback mechanisms where the resolution status of issues feeds back into the issue tracking entries. When changes are applied to resolve an issue, the system provides feedback by updating the corresponding issue tracking entry to reflect that the issue has been addressed, which then influences whether the entry remains relevant or should be archived.
Data Source
AI summary
Technologies are described herein for use in identifying and resolving software issues. One or more corrective actions may be identified and taken that are based upon the similarity between an unresolved issue and one or more resolved issues and/or upon the similarity between code changes made to resolve similar previously resolved issues. A version control graph might also be utilized to determine if a change made to resolve an issue in one branch of a software component is applicable to another branch of the software component. The version control graph might also be utilized to compute the relevance of an entry in an issue tracking system for an issue at a point in time after the entry is created in the issue tracking system.