SATE VI Ockham Sound Analysis Criteria

Published

May 19, 2020

Author(s)

Paul E. Black, Kanwardeep S. Walia

Abstract

Static analyzers examine the source or executable code of programs to find problems. Many static analyzers use heuristics or approximations to examine programs with millions of lines of code for hundreds of classes of problems. The Ockham Sound Analysis Criteria recognizes static analyzers that are precise. In brief the criteria are (1) the analyzer's findings are claimed to always be correct, (2) it produces findings for most of a program, and (3) even one incorrect finding disqualifies an analyzer. This document begins by explaining the background and requirements of the Ockham Criteria and how we determine if a tool satisfies it. As part of Static Analysis Tool Exposition (SATE) VI, we examined two tools: Astree and Frama-C with the Evolved Value Analysis (Eva) plug-in. Examining the tool outputs led us to find several systematic mistakes in the Juliet 1.3 test suite and thousands of mistakes in its manifest of known errors. Our conclusion is that Astree and Frama-C with Eva satisfied the SATE VI Ockham Sound Analysis Criteria.

Citation

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR) - 8304

Report Number

8304

NIST Pub Series

NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR)

Pub Type

NIST Pubs

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DOI Link

Keywords

Ockham Criteria, software assurance, software measurement, software testing, sound analysis, static analysis

Citation

Black, P. and Walia, K. (2020), SATE VI Ockham Sound Analysis Criteria, NIST Interagency/Internal Report (NISTIR), National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, [online], https://doi.org/10.6028/NIST.IR.8304 (Accessed December 11, 2024)