Context-Bounded Model Checking of LTL Properties for ANSI-C Software

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Description/Abstract

Context-bounded model checking has successfully been used to verify safety properties in multi-threaded systems automatically, even if they are implemented in low-level programming languages like ANSI-C. In this paper, we describe and experiment with an approach to extend context-bounded model checking to liveness properties expressed in linear-time temporal logic (LTL). Our approach converts the LTL formulae into Buechi-automata and then further into C monitor threads, which are interleaved with the execution of the program under test. This combined system is then checked using the ESBMC model checker. Since this approach explores a larger number of interleavings than normal context-bounded model checking, we use a state hashing technique which substantially reduces the number of redundant interleavings that are explored and so mitigates state space explosion. Our experimental results show that we can verify non-trivial properties in the firmware of a medical device.