DocumentCode :
2921581
Title :
Application of Computational Redundancy in Dangling Pointers Detection
Author :
Alzamil, Zakarya
Author_Institution :
Riyadh College of Technology, Saudi Arabia
fYear :
2006
fDate :
Oct. 2006
Firstpage :
30
Lastpage :
30
Abstract :
Many programmers manipulate dynamic data improperly, which may produce dynamic memory problems, such as dangling pointer. Dangling pointers can occur when a function returns a pointer to an automatic variable, or when trying to access a deleted object. The existence of dangling pointers causes the programs to behave incorrectly. Dangling pointers are common defect that are easy to commit, but are difficult to discover. In this paper we propose a dynamic approach that detects dangling pointers in computer programs. Redundant computation is an execution of a program statement(s) that does not contribute to the program output. The notion of redundant computation is introduced as a potential indicator of defects in programs. We investigate the application of redundant computation in dangling pointers detection. The results of the initial experiment show that, the redundant computation detection can help the debuggers to localize the source(s) of the dangling pointers. During the experiment, we find that, our approach may be capable of detecting other types of dynamic memory problems such as memory leaks and inaccessible objects, which we plan to investigate in our future research.
Keywords :
Application software; Computer applications; Computer bugs; Debugging; Educational institutions; Leak detection; Manipulator dynamics; Object detection; Programming profession; System performance; dangling pointers; debugging; memory leaks; redundant computation;
fLanguage :
English
Publisher :
ieee
Conference_Titel :
Software Engineering Advances, International Conference on
Conference_Location :
Tahiti
Print_ISBN :
0-7695-2703-5
Type :
conf
DOI :
10.1109/ICSEA.2006.261286
Filename :
4031815
Link To Document :
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