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The Java Tutorials, Wrapper Implementations [Java Tutorials], warns about the consequences of failing to synchronize on an accessible collection object when iterating over its view:

It is imperative that the user manually synchronize on the returned Map when iterating over any of its Collection views rather than synchronizing on the Collection view itself.

Disregarding this advice may result in nondeterministic behavior.

Any class that uses a collection view rather than the backing collection as the lock object may end up with two distinct locking strategies. When the backing collection is accessible to multiple threads, the class that locked on the collection view has violated the thread-safety properties and is unsafe. Consequently, programs that both require synchronization while iterating over collection views and have accessible backing collections must synchronize on the backing collection; synchronization on the view is a violation of this rule.

Noncompliant Code Example (Collection View)

This noncompliant code example creates a HashMap object and two view objects: a synchronized view of an empty HashMap encapsulated by the mapView field and a set view of the map's keys encapsulated by the setView field. This example synchronizes on setView [Java Tutorials].

Code Block
bgColor#FFcccc
private final Map<Integer, String> mapView =
    
Wiki Markup
The {{java.util.Collections}} interface's documentation \[[API 2006|AA. Bibliography#API 06]\] warns about the consequences of failing to synchronize on an accessible collection object when iterating over its view:
{quote}
It is imperative that the user manually synchronize on the returned map when iterating over any of its collection views...  Failure to follow this advice may result in non-deterministic behavior.
{quote}

A class that uses a collection view instead of the backing collection as the lock object may end up with two different locking strategies. In this case, if the backing collection is accessible to multiple threads, the class is not thread-safe.

{mc} I don't see the point of this statement 
To make a group of statements atomic, synchronize on the original collection object when using synchronization wrappers.([CON07-J. Do not assume that a group of calls to independently atomic methods is atomic]). 
{mc}


h2. Noncompliant Code Example (Collection View)

This noncompliant code example creates two views: a synchronized view of an empty {{HashMap}} encapsulated by the {{map}} field and a set view of the map's keys encapsulated by the {{set}} field. This example synchronizes on the {{set}} view \[[Tutorials 2008|AA. Bibliography#Tutorials 08]\].

{code:bgColor=#FFcccc}
// map has package-private accessibility
final Map<Integer, String> map = Collections.synchronizedMap(new HashMap<Integer, String>());
private final Set<Integer> setsetView = mapmapView.keySet();

public Map<Integer, String> getMap() {
  return mapView;
}

public void doSomething() {
  synchronized (setsetView) {  // Incorrectly synchronizes on setsetView
    for (Integer k : setsetView) {
      // ...
    }
  }
}
{code}

In

...

this

...

example,

...

HashMap

...

provides

...

the

...

backing

...

collection for the synchronized map represented by mapView, which provides the backing collection for setView, as shown in the following figure.

Image Added

The HashMap object is inaccessible, but mapView is accessible via the public getMap() method. Because the synchronized statement uses the intrinsic lock of setView rather than of mapView, another thread can modify the synchronized map and invalidate the k iterator.

Compliant Solution (Collection Lock Object)

This compliant solution synchronizes on the mapView field rather than on the setView field:

Code Block
bgColor#ccccff
private  for {{Map}}, which provides the backing collection for {{Set}}, as shown in the following figure:

!con06-j-backing-collection.JPG!

{{HashMap}} is not accessible, but the {{map}} view is.  Because the {{set}} view is synchronized instead of {{map}} view, another thread can modify the contents of {{map}} and invalidate the {{k}} iterator.

h2. Compliant Solution (Collection Lock Object)

This compliant solution synchronizes on the {{map}} view instead of the {{set}} view.

{code:bgColor=#ccccff}
// map has package-private accessibility
final Map<Integer, String> mapmapView =
    Collections.synchronizedMap(new HashMap<Integer, String>());
private final Set<Integer> setsetView = mapmapView.keySet();

public Map<Integer, String> getMap() {
  return mapView;
}

public void doSomething() {
  synchronized (mapmapView) {  // Synchronize on map, rather notthan set
    for (Integer k : setsetView) {
      // ...
    }
  }
}
{code}

This

...

code

...

is

...

compliant

...

because

...

the

...

map's

...

underlying

...

structure

...

cannot

...

be changed during the iteration.

Risk Assessment

Synchronizing on a collection view instead of the collection object can cause nondeterministic behavior.

Rule

Severity

Likelihood

Remediation Cost

Priority

Level

LCK04-J

Low

Probable

Medium

P4

L3

Automated Detection

Some static analysis tools are capable of detecting violations of this rule.

ToolVersionCheckerDescription
Parasoft Jtest

Include Page
Parasoft_V
Parasoft_V

CERT.LCK04.SOBCDo not synchronize on a collection view if the backing collection is accessible
ThreadSafe
Include Page
ThreadSafe_V
ThreadSafe_V

CCE_CC_SYNC_ON_VIEW
CCE_CC_ITER_VIEW_NO_LOCK
CCE_CC_ITER_VIEW_BOTH_LOCKS
CCE_CC_ITER_VIEW_WRONG_LOCK

Implemented


Bibliography

Issue Tracking

Tasklist
Review List
Review List
sortAscendingfalse
sortBypriority
 changed when an iteration is in progress.

h2. Risk Assessment

Synchronizing on a collection view instead of the collection object can cause nondeterministic behavior.

|| Rule || Severity || Likelihood || Remediation Cost || Priority || Level ||
| LCK04-J  | low | probable | medium | {color:green}{*}P4{*}{color} | {color:green}{*}L3{*}{color} |


h3. Related Vulnerabilities 

Any vulnerabilities resulting from the violation of this rule are listed on the [CERT website|https://www.kb.cert.org/vulnotes/bymetric?searchview&query=FIELD+KEYWORDS+contains+CON36-J].


h2. Bibliography

| \[[API 2006|AA. Bibliography#API 06]\] | Class Collections |
| \[[Tutorials 2008|AA. Bibliography#Tutorials 08]\] | [Wrapper Implementations|http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/collections/implementations/wrapper.html] |


h2. Issue Tracking 

{tasklist:Review List} 
||Completed||Priority||Locked||CreatedDate||CompletedDate||Assignee||Name|| 
|F|M|F|1270825291208|          |dmohindr|suggested => "HashMap is not accessible, but the Map view is. Because the set view is synchronized instead of the map view, another thread can modify the contents of map and invalidate the k iterator."| 
{tasklist}

----
[!The CERT Oracle Secure Coding Standard for Java^button_arrow_left.png!|LCK03-J. Do not synchronize on the intrinsic locks of high-level concurrency objects]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;[!The CERT Oracle Secure Coding Standard for Java^button_arrow_up.png!|08. Locking (LCK)]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;[!The CERT Oracle Secure Coding Standard for Java^button_arrow_right.png!|LCK05-J. Synchronize access to static fields that can be modified by untrusted code]



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