Rule-Based Memory Leak Detection and Remediation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Memory leaks in information processing systems are challenging to diagnose and remediate due to their manual and time-consuming nature, often leading to system performance degradation and crashes, and existing tools are heavyweight and unsuitable for production environments.

Innovation Solution

A rule-based detection system that monitors memory allocation and de-allocation operations, maintains a data structure for anomalous patterns, and performs remedial actions to identify and address memory leaks, enabling lightweight and granular detection across individual applications.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If manual review of application source code is performed to diagnose memory leaks, then diagnostic accuracy is improved, but time consumption increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvediagnostic accuracyVSAvoidtime consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent introduces an intermediary tool that automatically analyzes memory allocation and de-allocation operations. This intermediary system captures memory operation data, applies analysis rules to detect anomalies, and generates diagnostic reports without requiring manual code review, thus maintaining diagnostic accuracy while significantly reducing time consumption.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces the mechanical process of manual code review with an automated electronic analysis system. The system uses processors to execute analysis rules on memory operation data, substituting human manual inspection with automated computational analysis that achieves comparable or superior diagnostic accuracy with minimal time investment.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

2Reliability

If existing memory leak detection tools are used, then memory leak detection capability is improved, but system performance is degraded due to heavyweight implementation

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvememory leak detection capabilityVSAvoidsystem performance

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments the memory leak detection process into modular components: memory operation data capture, rule-based analysis, and result generation. This segmentation allows the system to perform detection tasks in discrete, efficient steps rather than as a monolithic heavyweight process, maintaining detection capability while improving system performance through optimized resource usage.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent employs lightweight, disposable analysis rules that are applied temporarily to specific memory operations and then discarded. Rather than maintaining persistent complex detection structures, the system uses simple, ephemeral analysis rules that consume minimal resources, enabling effective memory leak detection without degrading overall system performance.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #27Cheap short-living objects (Disposable)

3Adaptability or versatility

If comprehensive memory monitoring is implemented across all applications, then memory leak detection coverage is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedetection coverageVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent implements a universal memory operation data capture mechanism that works across all applications using the system. The same capture infrastructure and analysis rules are applied universally to monitor memory allocations and de-allocations in any application, achieving comprehensive detection coverage without requiring separate complex monitoring systems for each application.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS20230134867A1Identification and remediation of memory leaks using rule-based detection of anomalous memory usage patterns

Publication Date: 2023.05.04 DELL PROD LP

AI summary

An apparatus comprises a processing device configured to initiate, in response to a designated event, monitoring of memory allocation and de-allocation operations associated with a given application, to maintain a memory allocation operation data structure comprising entries each corresponding to a memory allocation operation not having an associated memory de-allocation operation, and to determine whether memory usage of the given application corresponds to any of a set of anomalous memory usage pattern rules based on the memory allocation operation data structure. The processing device is also configured to identify the given application as being a cause of a memory leak responsive to determining that the memory usage of the given application corresponds to one or more of the anomalous memory usage pattern rules, and to perform remedial action for preventing or resolving the memory leak responsive to identifying the given application as being the cause of the memory leak.