Modeling and testing object-oriented distributed systems with linear-time temporal logic

We present a framework for constructing formal models of object-oriented distributed systems and a property language to express behavioral constraints in such models. Most of the existing models have their origin in specific mathematical notations and/or concepts. In contrast, we have developed our model such that it accounts for a large set of phenomena associated with industrial implementations of object-oriented distributed systems. The model that we propose, while closer to industrial concerns and practice, still has the powerful features of formal approaches. It also offers the possibility to automatically check at service run-time that the final service implementation has not violated and is not violating properties expressed at the abstraction level of our model. In our model, which relies on event-based behavioral abstraction, we use linear-time temporal logic as the underlying formalism for the specification of properties. We introduce two novel operators which are especially useful for object-oriented systems and which provide a number of advantages over the well-known temporal logic operators. A recent decision of one of our industrial partners to adopt our proposal into one of their development platforms can be seen as a strong evidence of the relevance of our work and as a promising step towards a better understanding between the academic formal methods community and industry. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.