Open architecture: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 17:20, 2 July 2015

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{{distinguish|Open-source architecture}}

'''Open architecture''' is a type of [[computer architecture]] or [[software architecture]] that is designed to make adding, upgrading and swapping components easy.<ref name="II2011">{{cite book|author=Clifton A. Ericson, II|title=Concise Encyclopedia of System Safety: Definition of Terms and Concepts|url=http://books.google.com/books?id=uousK00QAREC&pg=PA272|date=12 April 2011|publisher=John Wiley & Sons|isbn=978-1-118-02865-0|page=272}}</ref> For example, the [[IBM PC]] and [[Apple IIe]] have an open architecture supporting plug-in cards, whereas the [[Apple IIc]] and [[Amiga 500]] computers have a '''closed architecture'''. Open architecture systems typically use a standardized [[system bus]] suchwith asup to 6-8 [[PCI]] or [[ISA]] slots that allowsallow multiple hardware manufacturers to produce add-ons, and for the user to freely install them. By contrast, closed architectures, if they are expandable at all, have one or two "expansion ports" using a proprietary connector design that may require a license fee from the manufacturer, or enhancements may only be installed by technicians with specialized tools or training.

Open architecture allows potential users to see inside all or parts of the architecture without any proprietary constraints.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Zk2qCAAAQBAJ&pg=PP6&lpg=PP6|title=TRON Project 1987 Open-Architecture Computer Systems: Proceedings of the Third TRON Project Symposium}}</ref> Typically, an open architecture publishes all or parts of its architecture that the developer or integrator wants to share. The [[open business]] processes involved with an open architecture may require some license agreements between entities sharing the architecture information. Open architectures have been successfully implemented in many diverse fields, including the [[US Navy]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.navy.mil/navydata/cno/n87/usw/spring08/HowAndWhy.html|title=The HOW and WHY of OPEN ARCHITECTURE}}</ref>