Abstraction by Specification in Software Engineering

1. Lecture 3: Abstraction by Specification David Evans http://www.cs.virginia.edu/evans CS201j: Engineering Software? University of Virginia Computer Science

2. Menu • Validation • Abstraction by Specification CS 201J Fall 2003

3. Testing Recap • Testing can find problems, but can’t prove your program works • Since exhaustive testing is impossible, select test cases with maximum probability of finding bugs • A successful test case is one that reveals a bug in your program! • If we can’t test all possible paths through a program, how can we increase our confidence that it works? CS 201J Fall 2003

4. Analysis • Make claims about all possible paths by examining the program code directly, not executing it • Use formal semantics of programming language to know what things mean • Use formal specifications of procedures to know that they do CS 201J Fall 2003

5. Hopelessness of Analysis • It is impossible to correctly determine if any interesting property is true for an arbitrary program! The Halting Problem: it is impossible to write a program that determines if an arbitrary program halts. CS 201J Fall 2003

6. Compromises • Accept unsoundness and incompleteness • False positives: sometimes an analysis tool will report warnings for a program, when the program is actually okay (unsoundness) • False negatives: sometimes an analysis tool will report no warnings for a program, even when the program violates properties it checks (incompleteness) CS 201J Fall 2003

7. Extended Static Checking (ESC/Java) • Analysis tool developed at DEC/Compaq/HP Research Lab • Is unsound and incomplete: • False negatives: Just because it finds no warnings, doesn’t mean your code is correct • False positives: Sometimes it will warn even when your code is correct • PS2: use without adding annotations • Later: use annotations to document program assumptions CS 201J Fall 2003

8. Abstraction by Specification CS 201J Fall 2003

9. Managing Complexity • Divide problem into subproblems that • Can be solved independently • Can be combined to solve the original problem • How do we know they can be solved independently? • How do we know they can be combined to solved the original problem? CS 201J Fall 2003

10. Abstraction A I3 I4 I1 I2 I5 An abstraction is a many-to-one map. CS 201J Fall 2003

11. Using Abstractions A I3 I4 Client I1 I2 I5 When a client uses an abstraction, it should work as the client expects it to no matter with implementation is provided. How should client know what to expect? CS 201J Fall 2003

12. Specification • Tells the client of an abstraction what she can expect it to do • Tells the implementer of an abstraction what the implementation must do to satisfy the client • Contract between client and implementer: • Client will only rely on behavior described by specification • Implementer will provide an implementation that satisfies the specification CS 201J Fall 2003

13. Good Specifications • Clear, precise and unambiguous • Clients and implementers will agree on what they mean • Complete • Describe the behavior of the abstraction in all situations • Declarative • Describe what the abstraction should do, not how it should do it CS 201J Fall 2003

14. Formality of Specifications • Informal: written in a natural language (e.g., English) • People can disagree on what it means • Degrees of informality • Formal: written in a specification language • Meaning is defined by specification language (whose meaning is defined precisely, but eventually informally) • May be analyzed by machines CS 201J Fall 2003

15. What do you call people who decide what informal specifications mean? CS 201J Fall 2003

16. Example Informal Specification Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. 8th Amendment CS 201J Fall 2003

17. Correct Implementation? public static boolean violatesEigthAmendment (Punishment p) { // EFFECTS: Returns true if p violates the 8th // amendment: cruel and unusual // punishments. return (p.isCruel () && p.isUnusual ()); } Or did they mean p.isCruel () || p.isUnusual () ? CS 201J Fall 2003

18. Example (Good?) Informal Specification A player is in an offside position if:he is nearer to his opponents’ goal line than both the ball and the second last opponent A player is not in an offside position if:he is in his own half of the field of play or he is level with the second last opponent or he is level with the last two opponents Offence A player in an offside position is only penalised if, at the moment the ball touches or is played by one of his team, he is, in the opinion of the referee, involved in active play by: interfering with play or interfering with an opponent orgaining an advantage by being in that position No Offence There is no offside offence if a player receives the ball directly from: a goal kick or a throw-in or a corner kick. http://www.fifa.com/fifa/handbook/laws/2002/LOTG2002_E.pdf, Law 11 CS 201J Fall 2003

19. Procedural Specifications • Specification for a procedure describes: • What its inputs are • What the mapping between inputs and outputs are • What it can do the state of the world CS 201J Fall 2003

20. Requires and Effects • Header: name of procedure, types of parameters and return value • Java declaration • Clauses (comments in Java) • REQUIRES - precondition the client must satisfy before calling • EFFECTS – postcondition the implementation satisfy at return CS 201J Fall 2003

21. Contract • Client promises to satisfy the precondition in the requires clause • Implementer promises if client satisfies the precondition, the return value and state when the function returns will satisfy the postcondition. CS 201J Fall 2003

22. Specification Contract f () REQUIRES: precondition EFFECTS: postcondition precondition { f (); } postcondition If the precondition is true, after we call f (), the postcondition is true. CS 201J Fall 2003

23. Specification Example public String bestStock () // REQUIRES: false // EFFECTS: Returns the name of the // best stock to buy on the NASDAQ // tomorrow. Can we implement a procedure that satisfies this specification? Yes, any implementation will satisfy this specification! If the precondition in the requires clause is not satisfied, the procedure can do anything and still satisfy its specification! CS 201J Fall 2003

24. Specification Example public String bestStock () // REQUIRES: true // EFFECTS: Returns the name of the // best stock to buy on the NASDAQ // tomorrow. Can we implement a procedure that satisfies this specification? CS 201J Fall 2003

25. Requires Clauses • The weaker (more easy to make true) the requires clause: • The more useful a procedure is for clients • The more difficult it is to implement correctly • The more difficult it is to test • Avoid requires clauses unless there is a good reason to have one • Default requires clause is: REQUIRES true • Client doesn’t need to satisfy anything before calling CS 201J Fall 2003

26. Specification Example public static int biggest (int [ ] a) // REQUIRES: true // EFFECTS: Returns the value of the // biggest element of a. Is this a reasonable specification? No, what should client expect to happen if a is empty. CS 201J Fall 2003

27. Specification Example public static int biggest (int [ ] a) // REQUIRES: a has at least one element. // EFFECTS: Returns the value of the // biggest element of a. Is this a good specification? Maybe, depends on the client. Its risky… CS 201J Fall 2003

28. Specification Example public static int biggest (int [ ] a) // REQUIRES: true // EFFECTS: If a has at least one // element, returns the value biggest // element of a. Otherwise, returns // Integer.MIN_VALUE (smallest int // value). Better, but client has to deal with special case now. Best would probably be to use an exception… CS 201J Fall 2003

29. Bad Use of Requires Clause • Bug discovered in Microsoft Outlook that treats messages that start with “begin ” as empty attachments (can be exploited by viruses) • To workaround this problem: • Do not start messages with the word "begin" followed by two spaces. • Use only one space between the word "begin" and the following data. • Capitalize the word "begin" so that it is reads "Begin." • Use a different word such as "start" or "commence". • from http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;EN-US;Q265230& CS 201J Fall 2003

30. Modifies • How does a client know a is the same after biggest returns? public static int biggest (int [ ] a) // REQUIRES: true // EFFECTS: If a has at least one element, // returns the value biggest element of a. // Otherwise, returns Integer.MIN_VALUE // (smallest int value). Reading the effects clause is enough – if biggest modifies anything, it should describe it. But, that’s a lot of work. CS 201J Fall 2003

31. Modifies • Modifies clause: any state not listed in the modifies clause may not be changed by the procedure. public static int biggest (int [ ] a) // REQUIRES: true // MODIFIES: nothing // EFFECTS: If a has at least one element, // returns the value biggest element of a. // Otherwise, returns Integer.MIN_VALUE // (smallest int value). CS 201J Fall 2003

32. Modifies Example public static int replaceBiggest (int [ ] a, int [] b) // REQUIRES: a and b both have at least one // element // MODIFIES: a // EFFECTS: Replaces the value of the biggest // element in a with the value of the biggest // element in b. CS 201J Fall 2003

33. Defaults • What should it mean when there is no requires clause? • What should it mean when there is no modifies clause? • What should it mean when there is no effects clause? REQUIRES: true MODIFIES: nothing Meaningless. (Lose points for not writing a specification) CS 201J Fall 2003

34. Specifications in CS201J • PS2 • Informal, but precise • Use Requires/Modifies/Effects clauses • Need a very good reason to have a precondition stronger than true (especially after we cover Exceptions). • PS3 and later • Informal and some formal • Formal specifications as ESC/Java annotations • Don’t describe all behavior (so still need the informal specs) CS 201J Fall 2003

35. PS1 Informal Specification • If a cell is currently dead cell and has three live neighbors, then it becomes a live cell. • If a cell is currently alive and has two or three live cells it remains alive. • Otherwise, the cell dies. Any ambiguities in this? CS 201J Fall 2003

36. PS1 Comments • Java has real Boolean type isAlive () means isAlive () == true Note this is not true in C++! • Read the coding guidelines • Choose names wisely • Comment usefully, but not gratuitiously • Don’t put your SSN on assignments • You should keep it as secret as possible • University shouldn’t use it as an identifier • Ask for a student ID number that is not your SSN CS 201J Fall 2003

37. Charge • CS201J Bug Bounty • If you find a bug in the code we provide, you get 10 bonus points. • If you find a bug in the Java compiler or API code, you get 50 bonus points. • If you find a bug in ESC/Java or the ESC/Java Specs, you get 5 bonus points. • PS2 Due Tuesday • Much longer than PS1 CS 201J Fall 2003