Browsing by Author "Geldenhuys, Jacobus"
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- ItemEfficiency issues in the design of a model checker(Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 1999-11) Geldenhuys, Jacobus; De Villiers, P. J. A.; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Science. Dept. of Mathematical Sciences.ENGLISH SUMMARY: A model checker is a program that verifies, without human assistance, that the formal description of a system has specified, desirable properties. The development of model checking algorithms is an active area of research, but most implementations are still prototypical in nature. In consequence, knowledge about the design and implementation of a practical, efficient model checker is limited. In this thesis the most important design decisions involved in creating an efficient on-the-fly model checker are identified and discussed. In short, there are three major tasks: 1. the generation of program states, 2. the detection of revisited states, and 3. the representation of states. In all three cases the central goal is to generate as many states as possible and to generate states as fast as possible. For each task, alternatives are described and compared. The discussion of design issues is further supported in two ways. First, a detailed design and implementation for a model checker is described to illustrate how design decisions affect each other and ultimately the implementation. Second, the design arguments, based on more or less realistic models, are validated through a thorough study of the performance of the various components of the model checker.