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Memcheck Execution Environment Plugin¤

Memory Error Detection Plugin

Memcheck integrates Valgrind's memory error detector for finding memory leaks, invalid memory access, and uninitialized memory usage during PANTHER experiments.

Plugin Type: Execution Environment

Verified Source Location: plugins/environments/execution_environment/memcheck/

Overview¤

The Memcheck Execution Environment plugin integrates Valgrind's Memcheck tool into the PANTHER testing framework. Memcheck is a memory error detector that helps find memory leaks, use of uninitialized memory, invalid memory access, and other memory-related issues in programs.

Features¤

Performance Impact

Memcheck significantly slows down program execution (10-30x slower) and increases memory usage. Use only for debugging and testing scenarios, not performance benchmarking.

  • Memory leak detection (full leak check)
  • Uninitialized memory usage tracking
  • Invalid memory access detection
  • Origin tracking for better debugging
  • Comprehensive memory error reporting

Configuration Options¤

Configuration Best Practices

Configure output_file with descriptive names to easily identify memory analysis results from different test runs.

Parameter Type Default Description
enabled Boolean true Enable/disable the Memcheck environment
output_file String memcheck.log Path to write the memcheck output

Output File Location

The output file path is relative to the test execution directory. Use absolute paths if you need outputs in specific locations.

Usage Example¤

Basic Configuration

This example shows the minimal configuration needed to enable Memcheck for memory error detection:

environments:
  - name: "memcheck_env"
    type: "execution_environment"
    implementation: "memcheck"
    config:
      enabled: true
      output_file: "custom_memcheck.log"

Resource Requirements

Ensure your system has sufficient memory and disk space when using Memcheck, as it can significantly increase resource usage.

Integration¤

The Memcheck Execution Environment integrates with:

  1. Service Managers - Prepends Valgrind Memcheck commands to service execution
  2. Test Framework - Captures and reports memory errors during test execution
  3. Result Collection - Memcheck logs can be included in test results

Implementation Details¤

Valgrind Command Structure

The plugin automatically constructs Valgrind commands with optimal settings for comprehensive memory analysis.

The plugin works by prepending Valgrind Memcheck commands to the service execution chain:

valgrind --tool=memcheck --leak-check=full --track-origins=yes --show-leak-kinds=all <service-command>

Debug Symbol Requirements

For best results, compile your applications with debug symbols (-g flag) to get detailed source code references in memory error reports.

This allows for comprehensive memory usage analysis of the application under test.

Troubleshooting¤

Critical Considerations

Always review Memcheck output carefully as memory errors can lead to security vulnerabilities and unpredictable behavior.

Common Issues¤

  1. Performance Degradation !!! warning "Performance Impact" Memcheck significantly slows down program execution (5-20x slower). Consider using smaller test cases or running overnight for large applications.
  2. Memcheck significantly slows down program execution (5-20x slower)

  3. Consider using smaller test cases when using Memcheck

  4. False Positives !!! note "Third-Party Libraries" Some third-party libraries may generate warnings that are not actual issues. Create suppression files for known acceptable warnings.

  5. Some standard library and third-party code may trigger warnings

  6. Consider using suppression files for known acceptable issues

  7. Integration Problems !!! tip "Compilation Settings" Compile with -O0 -g flags for optimal Memcheck results. Higher optimization levels may hide some memory errors.

  8. Ensure the executable is compiled with debugging symbols for best results
  9. Some optimizations might hide memory errors; compile with -O0 when possible

Extension Points¤

Customization Options

Future versions may support additional Valgrind tools and custom command-line options for specialized memory analysis scenarios.

  • Custom Valgrind options can be added through configuration parameters
  • Integration with other Valgrind tools could be added in future versions

Advanced Usage

Consider creating custom suppression files for your specific application to filter out known acceptable warnings from third-party libraries.

References¤