Method for determining the degree to which changed code has been exercised
US6748584B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Dec 29, 1999 |
| Grant date | Jun 8, 2004 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Dec 29, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F8/71
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A method for determining changed code in a second program binary relative to a first or baseline program binary, where the second program is a different version of the first program, includes translating, responsive to symbol tables and/or control flow representations, machine addresses of both program binaries to symbols. The first and second program binaries are disassembled using the translated symbols. Differences between the two resulting disassemblies are determined, and a list of the differences is created. Differences between the program binaries can be determined by textually comparing the disassemblies, or alternatively, by determining the differences between the control flow representations of the programs. The list of differences can be presented to a user, or alternatively, can be passed to another process for further processing, such as test coverage analysis, code change analysis, or failure analysis, among other analyses. Analyzing changed code coverage includes marking code in the second program which is changed or different from the first program. The second program is then executed in a test environment, and code which is executed is marked as having been execute…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.