Automated Synthesis of Comprehensive Memory Model Litmus Test Suites
Daniel Lustig, Andrew Charles Wright, Alexandros Papakonstantinou, Olivier Giroux · 2017
The memory consistency model is a fundamental part of any shared memory architecture or programming model. Modern weak memory models are notoriously difficult to define and to implement correctly. Most real-world programming languages, compilers, and (micro)architectures therefore rely heavily on black-box testing methodologies. The success of such techniques requires that the suite of litmus tests used to perform the testing be comprehensive--it should ideally stress all obscure corner cases of the model and of its implementation. Most litmus test suites today are generated from some combination of manual effort and randomization; however, the complex and subtle nature of contemporary memory models means that manual effort is both error-prone and subject to incomplete coverage.