Feature Models, Grammars, and Propositional Formulas

This work integrates prior results to connect feature models, grammars, and propositional formulas, which allows arbitrary propositional constraints to be defined among features and enables off-the-shelf satisfiability solvers to debug feature models.

Abstract

Feature models are used to specify members of a product-line. Despite years of progress, contemporary tools often provide limited support for feature constraints and offer little or no support for debugging feature models. We integrate prior results to connect feature models, grammars, and propositional formulas. This connection allows arbitrary propositional constraints to be defined among features and enables off-the-shelf satisfiability solvers to debug feature models. We also show how our ideas can generalize recent results on the staged configuration of feature models.