CMU Computer Systems: Self-Grading Lab Assignments

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This page contains a complete set of turnkey labs for the CS:APP3e
text. The labs all share
some common
features. Each lab is distributed in a self-contained tar file.
You will need
a CS:APP
account to download the code. To untar foo.tar, type
“tar xvf foo.tar” to the Unix shell. This will create a
directory called “foo” that contains all of the material
for the lab.

Handout directories for each lab (without solutions) are available to
students who are using the book for self-study and who want to work on
the labs. Solutions are provided only to instructors.
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• Data Lab
  [Updated 11/2/18]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)
  

  Students implement simple logical, two’s complement, and floating
  point functions, but using a highly restricted subset of C. For
  example, they might be asked to compute the absolute value of a number
  using only bit-level operations and straightline code. This lab helps
  students understand the bit-level representations of C data types and
  the bit-level behavior of the operations on data.

• 
  Bomb Lab

  [Updated 1/12/16]

  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)
  

  A “binary bomb” is a program provided to students as an object code
  file. When run, it prompts the user to type in 6 different strings.
  If any of these is incorrect, the bomb “explodes,” printing an error
  message and logging the event on a grading server. Students must
  “defuse” their own unique bomb by disassembling and reverse
  engineering the program to determine what the 6 strings should be.
  The lab teaches students to understand assembly language, and also
  forces them to learn how to use a debugger. It’s also great fun.
  A legendary lab among the CMU undergrads.

  Here’s a Linux/x86-64 binary bomb that you can
  try out for yourself. The feature that notifies the grading server
  has been disabled, so feel free to explode this bomb with impunity.
  If you’re an instructor with a CS:APP account, then you can download
  the solution.

• Attack
  Lab

  [Updated 1/11/16]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)
  

  Note: This is the 64-bit successor to the 32-bit Buffer Lab.
  Students are given a pair of unique custom-generated x86-64 binary
  executables, called targets, that have buffer overflow
  bugs. One target is vulnerable to code injection attacks. The other is
  vulnerable to return-oriented programming attacks. Students are asked
  to modify the behavior of the targets by developing exploits based on
  either code injection or return-oriented programming. This lab teaches
  the students about the stack discipline and teaches them about the
  danger of writing code that is vulnerable to buffer overflow attacks.

  If you’re a self-study student, here are a pair
  of Ubuntu 12.4
  targets that you can try out for yourself. You’ll need to run your
  targets using the “-q” option so that they don’t try to contact
  a non-existent grading server. If you’re an instructor with a CS:APP
  acount, you can download the solutions
  here.

• Buffer
  Lab (IA32)

  [Updated 9/10/14]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)
  <!––>

  Note: This is the legacy 32-bit lab from CS:APP2e. It has been replaced by
  the Attack Lab. In the Buffer Lab, students modify the run-time
  behavior of a 32-bit x86 binary executable by exploiting a buffer
  overflow bug. This lab teaches the students about the stack discipline
  and teaches them about the danger of writing code that is vulnerable
  to buffer overflow attacks.

• 
  Architecture Lab

  [Updated 10/19/16]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)

  Note: Updated to Y86-64 for CS:APP3e.
  Students are given a small default Y86-64 array copying function and a
  working pipelined Y86-64 processor design that runs the copy function in
  some nominal number of clock cycles per array element (CPE). The
  students attempt to minimize the CPE by modifying both the function
  and the processor design. This gives the students a deep appreciation
  for the interactions between hardware and software.

  Note: The lab materials include the master source distribution of the Y86-64
  processor simulators and the Y86-64 Guide to Simulators.

• 
  Architecture Lab (Y86)

  [Updated 10/19/16]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)

  Note: Legacy Y86 version for CS:APP2e. Students are given a
  small default Y86 array copying function and a working pipelined Y86
  processor design that runs the copy function in some nominal number of
  clock cycles per array element (CPE). The students attempt to
  minimize the CPE by modifying both the function and the processor
  design. This gives the students a deep appreciation for the
  interactions between hardware and software.

  Note: The lab materials include the master source distribution of the Y86
  processor simulators and the Y86 Guide to Simulators.

• Cache
  Lab

  [Updated 5/2/16]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)
  

  At CMU we use this lab in place of the Performance Lab. Students write
  a general-purpose cache simulator, and then optimize a small matrix
  transpose kernel to minimize the number of misses on a simulated
  cache. This lab uses the Valgrind tool to generate address traces.

  Note: This lab must be run on a 64-bit x86-64 system.

• Performance
  Lab

  [Updated 9/2/14]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)

  Students optimize the performance of an application
  kernel function such as convolution or matrix transposition. This lab
  provides a clear demonstration of the properties of cache
  memories and gives them experience with low-level program
  optimization.

• Shell
  Lab

  [Updated 7/28/03]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)

  Students implement their own simple Unix shell program with job
  control, including the ctrl-c and ctrl-z
  keystrokes, fg, bg, and jobs
  commands. This is the students’ first introduction to application
  level concurrency, and gives them a clear idea of Unix process
  control, signals, and signal handling.

• Malloc
  Lab

  [Updated 9/2/14]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)

  Students implement their own versions of malloc,
  free, and realloc. This lab gives students a
  clear understanding of data layout and organization, and requires them
  to evaluate different trade-offs between space and time
  efficiency. One of our favorite labs. When students finish this one,
  they really understand pointers!

• 
  Proxy Lab

  [Updated 2/9/16]
  (README,
  Writeup,
  Release Notes,
  Self-Study Handout)
  

  Students implement a concurrent caching Web proxy that sits between
  their browser and the rest of the World Wide Web. This lab exposes
  students to the interesting world of network programming, and ties
  together many of the concepts from the course, such as byte ordering,
  caching, process control, signals, signal handling, file I/O,
  concurrency, and synchronization.

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