Simulation and Verification of Protocol Using Deductive Machine

Abstract

This paper describes the technique of simulating and verifying communication protocols using a computer-aided tool, called Deductive Machine, which implements some verification theories that are based on Deductive Systems. The merit of using Deductive Machine is that it simulates the execution of a protocol and at the same time verifies the protocol against certain properties by observing the outcome of the execution. By simply adding one or more new rules concerning the new situations, conducting the simulation exercise again and checking the outcomes against some protocol verification theories, one can conclude whether the protocol still works well under the new conditions. Simulation and verification of a protocol can thus be performed in an incremental manner. The results of using the Deductive Machine to simulate and verify the extended alternating bit protocol, with real life conditions taken into consideration, are reported in this paper in order to demonstrate the usefulness of the tool and the viability of this technique to simulate and verify complex communication protocols.