A theory of reversibility for Erlang

[EN] In a reversible language, any forward computation can be undone by a finite sequence of backward steps. Reversible computing has been studied in the context of different programming languages and formalisms, where it has been used for testing and verification, among others. In this paper, we consider a subset of Erlang, a functional and concurrent programming language based on the actor model. We present a formal semantics for reversible computation in this language and prove its main properties, including its causal consistency. We also build on top of it a rollback operator that can be used to undo the actions of a process up to a given checkpoint. (C) 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.This work has been partially supported by MINECO/AEI/FEDER (EU) under grants TIN2013-44742-C4-1-R and TIN2016-76843-C4-1-R, by the Generalitat Valenciana under grant PROMETEO-II/2015/013 (SmartLogic), by the COST Action IC1405 on Reversible Computation-extending horizons of computing, and by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP17H01722. Adrian Palacios was partially supported by the EU (FEDER) and the Spanish Ayudas para contratos predoctorales para la formacian de doctores and Ayudas a la movilidad predoctoral para la realtzacion de estancias breves en centros de I+D, MINECO (SEIDI), under FPI grants BES-2014-069749 and EEBB-I-16-11469. Ivan Lanese was partially supported by INdAM as a member of GNCS (Gruppo Nazionale per il Calcolo Scientifico). Part of this research was done while the third and fourth authors were visiting Nagoya and Bologna Universities; they gratefully acknowledge their hospitality. Finally, we thank Salvador Tamarit and the anonymous reviewers for their helpful suggestions and comments.Lanese, I.; Nishida, N.; Palacios, A.; Vidal, G. (2018). A theory of reversibility for Erlang. Journal of Logical and Algebraic Methods in Programming. 100:71-97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jlamp.2018.06.004S719710

Proofs for some conjectures of Rajaratnam and Takawira on the peakedness of handoff traffic

The purpose of this paper is to supplement a recent paper by M. Rajaratnam and F. Takawira (see ibid., vol.49, p.817-34, 2000), which deals with a model for the performance analysis of cellular mobile networks. The key performance measure is a second-order characteristic (peakedness) of the traffic stream that serves as a model for handoff traffic. We show that this quantity may be obtained by evaluating an explicit formula rather than by solving a set of equations. This result enables us to verify some conjectures formulated by Rajaratnam and Takawira on the basis of numerical experiments. We also show the uniqueness of the solution to a system of nonlinear equations, required in the performance analysis, as conjectured by Rajaratnam and Takawira

Reversibility in Erlang: Imperative Constructs

International audienceA relevant application of reversibility is causal-consistent reversible debugging, which allows one to explore concurrent computations backward and forward to find a bug. This approach has been put into practice in CauDEr, a causal-consistent reversible debugger for the Erlang programming language. CauDEr supports the functional, concurrent and distributed fragment of Erlang. However, Erlang also includes imperative features to manage a map (shared among all the processes of a same node) associating process identifiers to names. Here we extend CauDEr and the related theory to support such imperative features. From a theoretical point of view, the added primitives create different causal structures than those derived from the concurrent Erlang fragment previously handled in CauDEr, yet we show that the main results proved for CauDEr are still valid

Proofs for some conjectures of Rajaratnam and Takawira

The purpose of this note is to supplement a recent paper by Rajaratnam and Takawira ({\it IEEE Trans. Vehicular Technol.} {\bf 49} (2000) 817-834), which deals with a model for the performance analysis of cellular mobile networks. We show that the key performance quantity may be obtained by evaluating an explicit formula rather than by solving a set of equations. This result enables us to verify some conjectures formulated by Rajaratnam and Takawira on the basis of numerical experiments. We also show uniqueness of the solution to a system of nonlinear equations, required in the performance analysis, as conjectured by Rajaratnam and Takawira. \u

A general approach to derive uncontrolled reversible semantics

Reversible computing is a paradigm where programs can execute backward as well as in the usual forward direction. Reversible computing is attracting interest due to its applications in areas as different as biochemical modelling, simulation, robotics and debugging, among others. In concurrent systems the main notion of reversible computing is called causal-consistent reversibility, and it allows one to undo an action if and only if its consequences, if any, have already been undone. This paper presents a general and automatic technique to define a causal-consistent reversible extension for given forward models. We support models defined using a reduction semantics in a specific format and consider a causality relation based on resources consumed and produced. The considered format is general enough to fit many formalisms studied in the literature on causal-consistent reversibility, notably Higher-Order π-calculus and Core Erlang, an intermediate language in the Erlang compilation. Reversible extensions of these models in the literature are ad hoc, while we build them using the same general technique. This also allows us to show in a uniform way that a number of relevant properties, causal-consistency in particular, hold in the reversible extensions we build. Our technique also allows us to go beyond the reversible models in the literature: we cover a larger fragment of Core Erlang, including remote error handling based on links, which has never been considered in the reversibility literature

A General Approach to Derive Uncontrolled Reversible Semantics

Reversible computing is a paradigm where programs can execute backward as well as in the usual forward direction. Reversible computing is attracting interest due to its applications in areas as different as biochemical modelling, simulation, robotics and debugging, among others. In concurrent systems the main notion of reversible computing is called causal-consistent reversibility, and it allows one to undo an action if and only if its consequences, if any, have already been undone. This paper presents a general and automatic technique to define a causal-consistent reversible extension for given forward models. We support models defined using a reduction semantics in a specific format and consider a causality relation based on resources consumed and produced. The considered format is general enough to fit many formalisms studied in the literature on causal-consistent reversibility, notably Higher-Order ?-calculus and Core Erlang, an intermediate language in the Erlang compilation. Reversible extensions of these models in the literature are ad hoc, while we build them using the same general technique. This also allows us to show in a uniform way that a number of relevant properties, causal-consistency in particular, hold in the reversible extensions we build. Our technique also allows us to go beyond the reversible models in the literature: we cover a larger fragment of Core Erlang, including remote error handling based on links, which has never been considered in the reversibility literature

Reversible Computation: Extending Horizons of Computing

This open access State-of-the-Art Survey presents the main recent scientific outcomes in the area of reversible computation, focusing on those that have emerged during COST Action IC1405 "Reversible Computation - Extending Horizons of Computing", a European research network that operated from May 2015 to April 2019. Reversible computation is a new paradigm that extends the traditional forwards-only mode of computation with the ability to execute in reverse, so that computation can run backwards as easily and naturally as forwards. It aims to deliver novel computing devices and software, and to enhance existing systems by equipping them with reversibility. There are many potential applications of reversible computation, including languages and software tools for reliable and recovery-oriented distributed systems and revolutionary reversible logic gates and circuits, but they can only be realized and have lasting effect if conceptual and firm theoretical foundations are established first

A case study for reversible computing: Reversible debugging of concurrent programs

Reversible computing allows one to run programs not only in the usual forward direction, but also backward. A main application area for reversible computing is debugging, where one can use reversibility to go backward from a visible misbehaviour towards the bug causing it. While reversible debugging of sequential systems is well understood, reversible debugging of concurrent and distributed systems is less settled. We present here two approaches for debugging concurrent programs, one based on backtracking, which undoes actions in reverse order of execution, and one based on causal consistency, which allows one to undo any action provided that its consequences, if any, are undone beforehand. The first approach tackles an imperative language with shared memory, while the second one considers a core of the functional message-passing language Erlang. Both the approaches are based on solid formal foundations