Run-time assertion checking of JML annotations in multithreaded applications with e-OpenJML

Abstract

Run-time assertion checking of multithreaded programs is challenging, as assertion evaluation should not interfere with the execution of other threads. This paper describes the prototype implementation of a run-time assertion checker that achieves this by evaluating assertions over snapshots of the state, instead of over the live state. Our prototype e-OpenJML, an extension to OpenJML, provides an easy to use, safe and interference-free evaluation of JML specifications in multithreaded programs. To achieve this, it integrates e-STROBE, our extension to the STROBE framework for asynchronous assertion evaluation. e-STROBE prevents all possible interferences between assertion evaluation and other program threads, which the original STROBE can not. It also simplifies evaluating assertions that relate the value of expressions in multiple states.

The e-ACSL perspective on runtime assertion checking

“…Three other properties are usually important for RAC tools: trustworthyness, transparency and isolation [30]. Trustworthyness means that, if a failure is detected, then there indeed should be one.…”

Run-Time Checking Multi-threaded Java Programs

“…To the best of our knowledge, our extension of run-time assertion checking to multi-threaded programs is the first solution which supports interface specs and does not require fine-grained control of the JVM execution platform to This research is partly funded by the EU project FP7-610582 Envisage. prevent interference in assertion checking as in the purely state-based approaches of [1,7]. Other state-based approaches like [2,15] require complex atomicity specifications and locking mechanisms.…”