A Petri net-based distributed debugger

Abstract

A distributed debugger based on the Petri net model is designed and implemented. The major functions supported are distributed breakpoints, step-by-step execution, and replay. The debugger consists of a preprocessor which inserts control functions into the source code, and a parser which generates a Petri net model of the distributed program for graphical monitoring and program simulation. The debugger also interfaces with existing sequential program debuggers to provide access to variables. The superposition of the distributed debugger on top of a sequential program debugger makes it possible to decouple sequential programming from distributed program behavior.<>