RM-ODP

It supports distribution, interworking, platform and technology independence, and portability, together with an enterprise architecture framework for the specification of ODP systems.

[1] The RM-ODP is a reference model based on precise concepts derived from current distributed processing developments and, as far as possible, on the use of formal description techniques for specification of the architecture.

Much of the preparatory work that led into the adoption of RM-ODP as an ISO standard was carried out by the Advanced Networked Systems Architecture (ANSA) project.

This ran from 1984 until 1998 under the leadership of Andrew Herbert (now MD of Microsoft Research in Cambridge), and involved a number of major computing and telecommunication companies.

Viewpoint modeling has become an effective approach for dealing with the inherent complexity of large distributed systems.

Current software architectural practices, as described in IEEE 1471, divide the design activity into several areas of concerns, each one focusing on a specific aspect of the system.

The mutual consistency among the viewpoints is ensured by the architecture defined by RM-ODP, and the use of a common object model provides the glue that binds them all together.

Although the ODP reference model provides abstract languages for the relevant concepts, it does not prescribe particular notations to be used in the individual viewpoints.