Bug Catching: Automated Program Verification

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Course Overview

High-profile bugs continue to plague the software industry, leading to major problems in the reliability, safety, and security of systems. This course teaches students how to write bug-free code through the process of software verification, which aims to prove the correctness of a program with respect to a mathematical specification. Along the way, students will learn how to:

• Specify correct program behavior
• Prove the correctness of their code
• Use formal semantics to reason about the soundness of proof rules
• Write practical and efficient verified code
• Use decision procedures and model checkers to reduce verification effort

Students will learn the principles and algorithms behind automated verification tools, and understand their practical limitations while gaining experience writing verified, machine-checked code that solves real problems.

Lectures: Tue Thu 2:00-3:20pm, DH A302

Instructors:

Matt Fredrikson

mfredrik@cmu

TAs:

Fiona Liu
Aarrya Saraf
Nichole Zhang

Office Hours:

TBD

Software: This course will teach students how to use the Why3 deductive verification platform. See the notes on installation and editing.