Gifflar: um framework para geração de contratos inteligentes em tempo de execução.

Abstract

Blockchain is a disruptive technology that offers a secure decentralized network, allowing direct transactions between distributed entities without needing a trusted third party. Smart contracts (SmC) are executable codes hosted on the blockchain and enable the implementation of several decentralized applications in different domains. However, due to the complexity of SmC construction, seeking ways to facilitate and make this innovative development process robust is necessary. Many projects in the literature proposed solutions based on automatic code generation from high-level modelings, such as diagrams. However, this approach brings with it a constant need for a person to model the contracts. This paper presents Gifflar, a framework for generating SmC code on the fly, in such a way that it allows a system to write, compile and implement blockchain SmCs with an application still running, which reduces the frequent precision of the SmC developer and allows to automate the SmC development process further. One of the main tools is a component-structured library called Solgen that implements design patterns better to define the responsibility of each of these parts. The Solgen offers an API that allows the developer to model, generate code and manage SmCs through methods that abstract to a certain level the SmC code using the JSON as a model to code generation. In addition, project evaluations were carried out to validate the project: (i) a usability evaluation of the Solgen and (ii) a conceptual evaluation of Gifflar's application in other projects. As far as we know, this framework is one of the first to allow dynamically generating SmCs on the fly, thus contributing to state of the art by approaching a new paradigm where systems can act as smart contract developers.