Learning product set models of fault triggers in high-dimensional software interfaces

Abstract

We propose a method for generating interpretable descriptions of inputs that cause faults in high-dimensional software interfaces. Our method models the set of fault-triggering inputs as a Cartesian product and identifies this set by actively querying the system under test. The active sampling scheme is very efficient in the common case that few fields in the interface are relevant to causing the fault. This scheme also solves the problem of efficiently finding sufficient examples to model rare faults, which is problematic for other learning-based methods. Compared to other techniques, ours requires no parameter turning or post-processing in order to produce useful results. We analyze the method qualitatively, theoretically, and empirically. An experimental evaluation demonstrates superior performance and reliability compared to a basic decision tree approach. We also briefly discuss how the method has assisted in debugging a commercial autonomous ground vehicle system.