Identifying Differences in Software Program Behavior with PASDA

What is it about?

In our everyday lives, software programs often get updated or modified to improve functionality or fix issues. However, these changes can sometimes introduce unexpected problems or bugs. To ensure that new software versions behave as intended, it can help to compare the old and new versions to identify any unintended differences in their behavior. Our research introduces PASDA, a new method for identifying and describing differences in software program behavior. PASDA stands for "Partition-based Semantic Differencing Approach." It helps software developers detect behavioral changes between two program versions by analyzing how they process information and produce results. The key feature of PASDA is its ability to provide "best effort classifications." This means that even when PASDA cannot definitively prove whether there is a change or not, or cannot provide a complete description of everything that has changed, it still offers helpful insights. For example, PASDA might indicate that there is likely a difference in behavior and guide the developer to the part of the program that should be checked to verify this.

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Photo by James Harrison on Unsplash

Photo by James Harrison on Unsplash

Why is it important?

By using PASDA, developers can more effectively identify and understand changes in software behavior, leading to more reliable updates and improvements in software quality.