Low-Cost Testing for Path Coverage of MPI Programs Using Surrogate-Assisted Changeable Multi-Objective Optimization

A target path of Message Passing Interface (MPI) programs typically consists of several target sub-paths. During solving a test case that cover the target path using an intelligent optimization algorithm, we often find that there are some hard-to-cover target sub-paths, which limit the testing efficiency of the entire target path. Therefore, this paper proposes an approach of low-cost testing for path coverage of MPI programs using surrogate-assisted changeable multi-objective optimization, which is used to further improve the effectiveness and efficiency of test case generation. The proposed approach first establishes a changeable multi-objective optimization model, which is used to guide the generation of test cases. During solving the changeable multi-objective optimization model using an intelligent optimization algorithm, we then determine each hard-to-cover target sub-path and form a corresponding sample set. Finally, we manage the surrogate model corresponding to each hard-to-cover target sub-path based on the formed sample set, and select superior evolutionary individuals to really execute the MPI program under test, thus reducing the cost and times of program execution. The proposed approach has been applied to path coverage testing of several benchmark MPI programs, and compared with several state-of-the-art approaches. The experimental results show that the proposed approach significantly improves the effectiveness and efficiency of generating test cases.