DEV-EYE: A Tool for Monitoring Bus Factor Using Commit History

Abstract

High turnover rates in software development present significant challenges, impacting project continuity, reliability, and quality. The bus factor metric helps quantify and indicate risks associated with key personnel dependencies. Existing tools are designed to calculate the bus factor using information from software project repositories and to determine code ownership. However, given that the bus factor should be monitored over time and the nature of projects varies, a bus factor tool must offer the capability to adjust timelines and customize analysis parameters to accommodate different project constraints. To address these gaps, we introduce DEV-EYE, a tool designed to compute and visualize the bus factor using git commit history. DEV-EYE identifies potential bus factors and offers flexible configuration options, allowing users to adjust parameters such as ownership thresholds and analysis timeframes. Additionally, DEV-EYE enables the comparison of current bus factors with historical data, providing a comprehensive view of project dy-namics. Preliminary evaluations indicate that DEV-EYE is highly promising for real-world applications, emphasizing its role in proactive risk management by identifying critical dependencies and promoting knowledge sharing within teams.