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Shape analysis (program analysis)
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<p>In <a href="/facts/Program_analysis/oaJTAjhH">program analysis</a>, shape analysis is a <a href="/facts/Static_code_analysis/b56nr6QM">static code analysis</a> technique that discovers and verifies properties of <a href="/facts/Linker_(computing)/pn1hztYe">linked</a>, <a href="/facts/Dynamic_allocation/vthLkUpz">dynamically allocated</a> data structures in (usually <a href="/facts/Imperative_programming/6b5dUnE1">imperative</a>) computer programs. It is typically used at compile time to find software bugs or to verify high-level correctness properties of programs. In <a href="/facts/Java_(programming_language)/9ScgFyAL">Java</a> programs, it can be used to ensure that a sort method correctly sorts a list. For C programs, it might look for places where a block of memory is not properly freed. </p>