DocumentCode :
2374445
Title :
Using informal and formal techniques for the reverse engineering of C programs
Author :
Gannod, Gerald C. ; Cheng, Betty H C
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Comput. Sci., Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, MI, USA
fYear :
196
fDate :
8-10 Nov 196
Firstpage :
249
Lastpage :
258
Abstract :
Paper reprinted from ICSM ´96. Reverse engineering of program code is the process of constructing a higher level abstraction of an implementation in order to facilitate the understanding of a system that may be in a “legacy” or “geriatric” state. Changing architectures and improvements in programming methods, including formal methods in software development and object-oriented programming, have prompted a need to reverse engineer and re-engineer program code. At the same time, there is a need to preserve the functionality of existing systems as well as reason about the correctness of changed code, each of which is facilitated by the existence of formal specifications. This paper describes an approach that incorporates the use of semi-formal analysis and formal program semantics to reverse engineer C programs. The reverse engineering techniques are applied to a portion of a ground-based command system for unmanned flight systems
Keywords :
C language; aerospace control; formal specification; ground support systems; program verification; reverse engineering; software maintenance; systems re-engineering; C programs; code correctness; formal specifications; formal techniques; ground-based command system; higher level abstraction; informal techniques; legacy system; object-oriented programming; program semantics; program understanding; programming methods; reverse engineering; software maintenance; spacecraft control; system re-engineering; unmanned flight systems; Computer architecture; Computer science; Functional programming; NASA; Object oriented programming; Programming profession; Propulsion; Reverse engineering; Software maintenance; Space technology;
fLanguage :
English
Publisher :
ieee
Conference_Titel :
Reverse Engineering, 1996., Proceedings of the Third Working Conference on
Conference_Location :
Monterey, CA
Print_ISBN :
0-8186-7674-4
Type :
conf
DOI :
10.1109/WCRE.1996.558929
Filename :
558929
Link To Document :
بازگشت