Compositional encoding for bounded model checking

Verification techniques like SAT-based bounded model checking have been successfully applied to a variety of system models. Applying bounded model checking to compositional process algebras is, however, a highly non-trivial task. One challenge is that the number of system states for process algebra models is not statically known, whereas exploring the full state space is computationally expensive. This paper presents a compositional encoding of hierarchical processes as SAT problems and then applies state-of-the-art SAT solvers for bounded model checking. The encoding avoids exploring the full state space for complex systems so as to deal with state space explosion. We developed an automated analyzer which combines complementing model checking techniques (i.e., bounded model checking and explicit onthe-fly model checking) to validate system models against event-based temporal properties. The experiment results show the analyzer handles large systems.     

多智体系统中约简状态空间的限界模型检测算法

为了形式化描述多智体系统中与概率、实时、知识相关的性质,提出了一种概率实时认知逻辑PTCTLK.模型检测是验证多智体系统是否满足PTCTLK公式的主要技术,状态空间爆炸是该技术实用化的主要瓶颈,为此提出一种PTCTLK的限界模型检测算法.其基本思想是,在有限的局部可达空间中逐步搜索属性成立的证据,从而达到约简状态空间的目的.首先,将PTCTLK的模型检测问题转换为无实时算子的PBTLK的模型检测问题;其次,定义PBTLK的限界语义,并证明其正确性;然后,设计基于线性方程组求解的限界模型检测算法;最后,依据概率度量的演化规律,探索检测过程终止的判别准则.实例研究结果表明,与无界模型检测相比,在属性为真的证据较短的情况下,限界模型检测完成验证所需空间更小.     

模型检测新技术研究

1 引言软件是否可信赖已成为一个国家的经济、国防等系统能否正常运转的关键因素之一,尤其在一些诸如核反应堆控制、航空航天以及铁路调度等安全悠关(safety-critical)领域更是如此。这类系统要求绝对安全可靠,不容半点疏漏,否则将导致灾难性后果。如1996年6月4日,欧洲航天局阿丽亚娜(Ariane)501火箭因为其控制软件的规范和设计错误而导致发射37秒后爆炸。类似的报道屡见不鲜,如何确保这些系统的可靠性成为计算机科学与控制论领域共同关注的一个焦点问题。     

概率计算树逻辑的限界模型检测

为了缓解概率计算树逻辑模型检测中的状态空间爆炸问题,提出了概率计算树逻辑的限界模型检测技术.该技术首先定义概率计算树逻辑的限界语义,并证明其正确性;之后,通过实例说明在传统限界模型检测中,以路径长度作为判断检测过程终止的标准已经失效,基于数值计算中牛顿迭代法的终止准则,设计了新的终止判断标准;然后提出基于线性方程组求解的限界模型检测算法;最后,通过3个测试用例说明,概率计算树逻辑限界模型检测方法在反例较短的情况下能够快速完成检测过程,而且比概率计算树逻辑的无界模型检测算法所需求得的状态空间要少.     

自动验证并发实时系统的线性时段性质

介绍了一个就线性时段性验证实时系统正确性的工具的设计思想以及相关算法,使用时间自动机作为产时系统的描述模型,同时,为了便珩描述并发实时系统,使用带共享变量和通道的时间自动机网作为模型描述并发实时系统,在检验时间自动机网时,用户可以使用工具提供的合成程序将其合并为一个时间自动机然后进行检验,由于时间自动机的状态空间是无究的,通过引入整数状态和状态等价关系的概念,将整个状态0空间划分为有限的状态等价类空间,模型检验过程只需要通过对等价类空间的搜索就可以完成,但往往等价类空间的规模很大,超出了现在计算机的处理能力,原始搜索算法仅仅在理论上是可知地的,为了增工具的使用性,工具中使用的算法运用了一些优化技术来避免对等价类空间的穷尽搜索,使得工具在使用时具有比较好的时间和空间效率。     

Bisimulation Minimization and Symbolic Model Checking

State space minimization techniques are crucial for combating state explosion. A variety of explicit-state verification tools use bisimulation minimization to check equivalence between systems, to minimize components before composition, or to reduce a state space prior to model checking. Experimental results on bisimulation minimization in symbolic model checking contexts, however, are mixed. This paper explores bisimulation minimization as an optimization in symbolic model checking of invariance properties. We consider three bisimulation minimization algorithms. From each, we produce a BDD-based model checker for invariant properties and compare this model checker to a conventional one based on backwards reachability. Our comparisons, both theoretical and experimental, suggest that bisimulation minimization is not viable in the context of invariance verification, because performing the minimization requires as many, if not more, computational resources as model checking the unminimized system through backwards reachability.     

Verification of consensus algorithms using satisfiability solving

Consensus is at the heart of fault-tolerant distributed computing systems. Much research has been devoted to developing algorithms for this particular problem. This paper presents a semi-automatic verification approach for asynchronous consensus algorithms, aiming at facilitating their development. Our approach uses model checking, a widely practiced verification method based on state traversal. The challenge here is that the state space of these algorithms is huge, often infinite, thus making model checking infeasible. The proposed approach addresses this difficulty by reducing the verification problem to small model checking problems that involve only single phases of algorithm execution. Because a phase consists of a small, finite number of rounds, bounded model checking, a technique using satisfiability solving, can be effectively used to solve these problems. The proposed approach allows us to model check several consensus algorithms up to around 10 processes.     

面向随机模型检验的模型抽象技术

随机模型检验是经典模型检验理论的延伸和推广,由于其结合了经典模型检验算法和线性方程组求解或线性规划算法等,并且运算处理的是关于状态的概率向量而非经典模型检验中的位向量,所以状态爆炸问题在随机模型检验中更为严重.抽象作为缓解状态空间爆炸问题的重要技术之一,已经开始被应用到随机模型检验领域并取得了一定的进展.以面向随机模型检验的模型抽象技术为研究对象,首先给出了模型抽象技术的问题描述,然后按抽象模型构造技术分类归纳了其研究方向及目前的研究进展,最后对比了目前的模型抽象技术及其关系,总结出其还未能给出模型抽象问题的满意答案,并指出了有效解决模型抽象问题未来的研究方向.     

Relay Reachability Algorithm for Exploring Huge State Space

Since many desirable properties about finite-state model are expressed as a reachability problem, reachability algorithms have been extensively studied in model checking. On the other hand, reachability algorithms play an important role in game solving since reachability games are often described as a finite state model. In this sense, reachability algorithms are located in the intersection of the research areas of Model Checking and Artificial Intelligence.This paper interests in solving the reachability games called Push-Push. However, both exact and approximate reachability algorithms are not sufficient to the games since its state space is huge and requires lots of iterations such as 338 steps in the reachability computation. Thus we devise the new algorithm called relay reachability algorithm. It divides the global state space into several local ones. And exact reachability algorithm is applied on each local state space one by one. With these reachability algorithms, we solve all of the games.     

A symbolic model checking approach to verifying satellite onboard software

This paper discusses the use of symbolic model checking technology to verify the design of an embedded satellite software control system called the attitude and orbit control system (AOCS). This system is mission critical because it is responsible for maintaining the attitude of the satellite and for performing fault detection, isolation, and recovery decisions. An executable AOCS implementation by Space Systems Finland has been provided in Ada source code form, and we use the input language of the symbolic model checker NuSMV 2 to model the implementation at a detailed level. We describe the modeling techniques and abstractions used to alleviate the state space explosion due to the handling of timers and the large number of system components controlled by the AOCS. The required behavior has been specified as extended state machine diagrams and translated to temporal logic properties. Besides well-known LTL and CTL model checking algorithms, we adapt a previously unexplored form of the liveness-to-safety approach to the problem. The latter new technique turns out to successfully prove all desired properties of the system, outperforming both the LTL and CTL implementations of NuSMV 2.     

A simplification of a real‐time verification problem

We revisit the problem of real‐time verification with dense‐time dynamics using timeout and calendar‐based models and simplify this to a finite state verification problem. We introduce a specification formalism for these models and capture their behaviour in terms of semantics of timed transition systems. We discuss a technique, which reduces the problem of verification of qualitative temporal properties on infinite state space of a large fragment of these timeout and calender‐based transition systems into that on clock‐less finite state models through a two‐step process comprising of digitization and finitary reduction. This technique enables us to verify safety invariants for real‐time systems using finite state model checking avoiding the complexity of infinite state (bounded) model checking and scale up models without applying techniques from induction‐based proof methodology. In the same manner, we verify timeliness properties. Moreover, we can verify liveness for real‐time systems, which are not possible by using induction with infinite state model checkers. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

有界模型检测在服务组合中的应用研究

大规模服务自动组合问题是Web Service技术的主要瓶颈。传统的服务组合技术灵活性差并且适用的服务规模有限。在用有限状态自动描述机服务的输入、输出、操作等活动的基础上,提出用有界模型检测技术对大规模服务进行建模,将用户请求翻译为线性时态逻辑公式,采用适定性问题求解技术快速求解限定长度的服务组合解。实验结果表明有界模型检测技术应用在自动服务组合中是可行的。     

Scaling model checking of dataraces using dynamic information

Dataraces in multithreaded programs often indicate severe bugs and can cause unexpected behaviors when different thread interleavings are executed. Because dataraces are a cause for concern, many works have dealt with the problem of detecting them. Works based on dynamic techniques either report errors only for dataraces that occur in the current interleaving, which limits their usefulness, or produce many spurious dataraces. Works based on model checking search exhaustively for dataraces and thus can reveal even those that occur in rarely executed paths. However, the applicability of model checking is limited because the large number of thread interleavings in realistic multithreaded programs causes state space explosion. In this work, we combine the two techniques in a hybrid scheme which overcomes these difficulties and enjoys the advantages of both worlds. Our hybrid technique succeeds in providing thread interleavings that prove the existence of dataraces in realistic programs. The programs we experimented with cannot be checked using either an ordinary industrial strength model checker or bounded model checking.     

Bounded Model Checking of CTL^*

Bounded Model Checking has been recently introduced as an efficient verification method for reactive systems. This technique reduces model checking of linear temporal logic to propositional satisfiability. In this paper we first present how quantified Boolean decision procedures can replace BDDs. We introduce a bounded model checking procedure for temporal logic CTL＊ which reduces model checking to the satisfiability of quantified Boolean formulas. Our new technique avoids the space blow up of BDDs, and extends the concept of bounded model checking.     

并发反应式系统的组合模型检验与组合精化检验

模型检验和精化检验是两种重要的形式验证方法,其应用的主要困难在于如何缓解状态爆炸问题.基于分而治之的思想进行组合模型检验和组合精化检验是应对这个问题的重要方法,它们利用系统的组合结构对问题进行分解,通过对各子系统性质的检验和综合推理导出整个系统的性质.在一个统一的框架下对组合模型检验和组合精化检验作了系统的分析和归纳,从模块检验的角度阐述了上述两种组合验证方法的原理及其相应的组合验证策略.同时总结了各类问题的复杂性,并对上述两种方法作了比较分析,揭示了它们之间的内在联系.最后展望了组合模型检验与组合精化检验的发展方向.     

时间符号迁移图上的可达性分析

提出了以时间符号迁科为建模语言、基于可达性分析的模型检测算法，并给出了算法的正确性证明。该算法可被用于硬件设计和通信协议验证等领域。     

任务流模型检验的研究

对任务流模型检验技术进行了讨论。任务流方法不关心状态数量、能否从一个指定状态到达另一指定状态及系统必须的状态是否存在,而是关心状态组合提供的功能是否存在及各状态组合之间是否存在指定的转换关系,从而避免了状态空间爆炸问题。模块搜索算法以模块为基础对任务流模型进行搜索来验证给定系统是否满足规范要求。     

Distributed Symbolic Bounded Property Checking

In this paper we describe an algorithm for distributed, BDD-based bounded property checking and its implementation in the verification tool SymC. The distributed algorithm verifies larger models and returns results faster than the sequential version.The core algorithm distributes partitions of the state set to computation nodes after reaching a threshold size. The nodes proceed with image computation on the nodes asynchronously. The main scalability problem of this scheme is the overlap of state set partitions. We present static and dynamic overlap reduction techniques.     

软件模型检测中的抽象

软件模型检测对保证软件的正确性和可靠性具有十分重要的意义，而抽象是减轻模型检测中状态爆炸问题最重要的技术之一。本文综述当前广泛应用于软件模型检测中的抽象技术，介绍了该领域的进展及研究方向。     

一种基于扩展不完全Kripke结构的三值逻辑模型检测方法

多值模型检测是解决形式化验证中状态爆炸问题的一种重要方法,三值模型检测是多值模型检测的基础,其中如何检验不确定状态的真值是一难点。针对不确定状态检验,提出了一种模型检测方法,首先对不完全Kripke结构PKS进行了扩展,然后在扩展后的模型上给出了检测不确定状态真值的方法,最后给出了基于扩展不完全Kripke结构的三值逻辑模型检测算法。与已有的三值逻辑模型检测算法相比,该算法降低了算法复杂度,完善了对于不确定或不一致信息的处理,从而增强了三值逻辑模型检测的实用性。