Navigating and Exploring Software Dependency Graphs Using Goblin

Using package managers is a simple and common method for reusing code through project dependencies. However, these, direct, dependencies can themselves rely on additional packages, resulting in indirect dependencies. It may then become complex to get a grasp of the whole set of dependencies of a project. Beyond studying individual projects, a deep understanding of software ecosystems is also a critical prerequisite for achieving sustained success in software development. This paper presents the 2025 edition of the MSR conference mining challenge. This year’s mining challenge focuses on dependencies and dependency ecosystem analysis using the Goblin framework that has been presented at the previous edition of the MSR conference. Goblin is composed of a Neo4j Maven Central dependency graph and a tool called Weaver for on-demand metric weaving into dependency graphs. As a whole, Goblin is a customizable framework for ecosystem and dependency analysis.