Release synchronization in software ecosystems

Software ecosystems bring value by integrating projects related to a given domain, for example, open source projects in a Linux distribution or mobile apps on the Android platform. However, the major challenge of managing an infrastructure ecosystem like OpenStack or Debian is to provide a polished, well-integrated product to the end user, since each individual project has its own release cycle and roadmap. To understand how modern ecosystems deal with this challenge, I empirically study the release synchronization strategy of the OpenStack ecosystem, in which a central release management team manages the six-month release cycle of the overall OpenStack product. By studying one year of release team IRC meeting logs, 9 major federated release management activities were identified, which were cataloged and documented. My findings suggest that even though an ecosystem’s power lies in the interaction of autonomous projects, release synchronization is a non-trivial goal. Currently, I am performing interviews with key software developers within the OpenStack ecosystem, in order to understand the major release activities.