Temporal Coordination in Concurrent Systems: Synchronization Constraints, Session Types, Synchronizers and Protocols Description

In sequential systems, programmers are responsible for totally ordering events occurring in a system. This results in overly constraining when events may occur. In contrast, concurrent systems involve nondeterministic interleaving of actions at autonomous actors. Without additional constraints on the order of events at participating actors, an interleaving may lead to incorrect operation or deadlocks. The talk will describe constructs for temporal coordination of actors such as synchronization constraints, session types, synchronizers and protocol description. I will then discuss the utility and limitations of these methods, including barriers to adoption. The talk will conclude with a perspective on open problems and research directions.