Three types of mechanisms were evaluated to determine their applicability to partially modifying an online switching system file and to creating a partial file during the debugging phase. First, the applicability of the basic plug-in mechanism, currently used in commercial switching systems, was evaluated by using data obtained from an initial implementation of PHS and ATM switching systems. It was found to be applicable irrespective of software type (call-processing or OA&M) and service type (PHS or ATM). It was also found to be applicable to both specification changes and service feature additions. Then, an extended plug-in mechanism that is enhanced to be more robust against complicated software behaviour was evaluated by simulation. It was found to cover cases where the basic plug-in mechanism is difficult to apply. Used together, these two mechanisms guarantee stable and effective file management of an online switching system. A plug-in for offline file creation was found to be applicable to almost all types of file modifications, except when the interface definition is significantly changed. These plug-in mechanisms can serve as the basis for managing the files in multimedia communication service systems.