Survey of Protocol Definition and Verification Techniques
Abstract Techniques for definition and verification of computer network protocols have progressed significantly in the past two years to the point where complex real world protocols such as HDLC, X.25, and Cyclades TS can now be analyzed. This success is largely due to the combination of two apparently divergent approaches — state transitions, and assertion proofs — and to the greater automation of the verification process. This paper summarizes and compares some of the more recent work in this field, emphasizing the common underlying principals of different techniques.