Publication detail

Programs with Lists are Counter Automata

VOJNAR, T. IOSIF, R. HABERMEHL, P. BOUAJJANI, A. BOZGA, M. MORO, P.

Original Title

Programs with Lists are Counter Automata

Type

journal article - other

Language

English

Original Abstract

We address the problem of verifying programs manipulating one-selector linked data structures. We propose and study in detail an application of counter automata as an accurate abstract model for this problem. We let control states of the counter automata correspond to abstract heap graphs where list segments without sharing are collapsed, and use counters to keep track of the number of elements in these segments. As a significant theoretical result, we show that the obtained counter automata are bisimilar to the original programs. Moreover, from a practical point of view, our translation allows one to apply efficient automatic analysis techniques and tools developed for counter automata (integer programs) in order to verify both safety as well as termination of list-manipulating programs. As another theoretical contribution, we prove that if the control of the generated counter automata does not contain nested loops (i.e., these automata are flat), both safety and termination are decidable for the original programs. Subsequently, we generalise our counter-automata-based model to keep track of ordering properties over lists storing ordered data. Finally, we show effectiveness of our approach by verifying automatically safety as well as termination of several sorting programs.

Keywords

formal verification, model checking, programs with linked lists, counter automata, bisimulation

Authors

VOJNAR, T.; IOSIF, R.; HABERMEHL, P.; BOUAJJANI, A.; BOZGA, M.; MORO, P.

RIV year

2011

Released

1. 4. 2011

ISBN

0925-9856

Periodical

FORMAL METHODS IN SYSTEM DESIGN

Year of study

38

Number

2

State

United States of America

Pages from

158

Pages to

192

Pages count

35

URL

http://www.springerlink.com/content/323xp67u84550134/

BibTex

@article{BUT76302,
  author="Tomáš {Vojnar} and Iosif {Radu} and Peter {Habermehl} and Ahmed {Bouajjani} and Marius {Bozga} and Pierre {Moro}",
  title="Programs with Lists are Counter Automata",
  journal="FORMAL METHODS IN SYSTEM DESIGN",
  year="2011",
  volume="38",
  number="2",
  pages="158--192",
  issn="0925-9856",
  url="http://www.springerlink.com/content/323xp67u84550134/"
}