Scalable detection of semantic clones

Several techniques have been developed for identifying similar code fragments in programs. These similar fragments, referred to as code clones, can be used to identify redundant code, locate bugs, or gain insight into program design. Existing scalable approaches to clone detection are limited to finding program fragments that are similar only in their contiguous syntax. Other, semantics-based approaches are more resilient to differences in syntax, such as reordered statements, related statements interleaved with other unrelated statements, or the use of semantically equivalent control structures. However, none of these techniques have scaled to real world code bases. These approaches capture semantic information from Program Dependence Graphs (PDGs), program representations that encode data and control dependencies between statements and predicates. Our definition of a code clone is also based on this representation: we consider program fragments with isomorphic PDGs to be clones. In this paper, we present the first scalable clone detection algorithm based on this definition of semantic clones. Our insight is the reduction of the difficult graph similarity problem to a simpler tree similarity problem by mapping carefully selected PDG subgraphs to their related structured syntax. We efficiently solve the tree similarity problem to create a scalable analysis. We have implemented this algorithm in a practical tool and performed evaluations on several million-line open source projects, including the Linux kernel. Compared with previous approaches, our tool locates significantly more clones, which are often more semantically interesting than simple copied and pasted code fragments.

• Publication year

  2008

• Venue

  2008 ACM/IEEE 30th International Conference on Software Engineering

• Publication date

  2008-05-10

• Fields of study

  Computer Science

• Identifiers
  DOI 10.1145/1368088.1368132
• External record

  Open on Semantic Scholar

• Source metadata

  Semantic Scholar

• No claims are published for this paper.

• No concepts are published for this paper.

• Program slicing

  2008cited by this paper
• Comparison and Evaluation of Clone Detection Tools

  2007cited by this paper
• DECKARD: Scalable and Accurate Tree-Based Detection of Code Clones

  2007cited by this paper
• GPLAG: detection of software plagiarism by program dependence graph analysis

  2006cited by this paper
• Detecting higher-level similarity patterns in programs

  2005cited by this paper
• PR-Miner: automatically extracting implicit programming rules and detecting violations in large software code

  2005cited by this paper
• Similarity evaluation on tree-structured data

  2005cited by this paper
• CP-Miner: A Tool for Finding Copy-paste and Related Bugs in Operating System Code

  2004cited by this paper
• Pattern matching for clone and concept detection

  2004cited by this paper
• An Evaluation of Clone Detection Techniques for Identifying Crosscutting Concerns

  2004cited by this paper
• An evaluation of clone detection techniques for crosscutting concerns

  2004cited by this paper
• Clone detection in source code by frequent itemset techniques

  2004cited by this paper
• Winnowing: local algorithms for document fingerprinting

  2003cited by this paper
• Mining specifications

  2002cited by this paper
• CCFinder: A Multilinguistic Token-Based Code Clone Detection System for Large Scale Source Code

  2002cited by this paper
• Using Slicing to Identify Duplication in Source Code

  2001cited by this paper
• Semantics-preserving procedure extraction

  2000cited by this paper
• Similarity Search in High Dimensions via Hashing

  1999cited by this paper
• Clone detection using abstract syntax trees

  1998cited by this paper
• Experiment on the automatic detection of function clones in a software system using metrics

  1996cited by this paper
• The program dependence graph and its use in optimization

  1984cited by this paper
• RETROSPECTIVE: Interprocedural Slicing Using Dependence Graphs

  year unknowncited by this paper

• Rethinking Code Similarity for Automated Algorithm Design with LLMs

  2026influential citation
• RioCC: Efficient and Accurate Class-Level Code Recommendation Based on Deep Code Clone Detection.

  2026cites this paper
• Semantic Equivalence Verification of HPC Codes Using LLMs

  2026cites this paper
• FIXX: FInding eXploits from eXamples

  2025cites this paper
• CETBench: A Novel Dataset constructed via Transformations over Programs for Benchmarking LLMs for Code-Equivalence Checking

  2025cites this paper
• PATEN: Identifying Unpatched Third-Party APIs via Fine-Grained Patch-Enhanced AST-Level Signature

  2025influential citation
• MLAF-VD: A vulnerability detection model based on multi-level abstract features

  2025cites this paper
• Automated Discovery of Tactic Libraries for Interactive Theorem Proving

  2025cites this paper
• AntiCopyPaster 3.0: Just-in-Time Clone Refactoring

  2025cites this paper
• Are Classical Clone Detectors Good Enough for the AI Era?

  2025cites this paper
• Unveiling code clone patterns in open source VR software: an empirical study

  2025cites this paper
• ASTRO: Detecting Access Control Vulnerabilities in Smart Contracts via Graph Similarity Comparison

  2025cites this paper
• I Know Who Clones Your Code: Interpretable Smart Contract Similarity Detection

  2025cites this paper
• How the Misuse of a Dataset Harmed Semantic Clone Detection

  2025cites this paper
• JSidentify-V2: Leveraging Dynamic Memory Fingerprinting for Mini-Game Plagiarism Detection

  2025cites this paper
• VulMDS: Precise Clone Vulnerability Detection via Multi-Dimensional Slicing

  2025cites this paper
• Nuanced Code Clone Detection Through LLM-Based Code Revision and AST Graph Modeling

  2025cites this paper
• Code Clone Detection using Machine Learning: Brief Overview and Latest Developments

  2024cites this paper
• VarGAN: Adversarial Learning of Variable Semantic Representations

  2024cites this paper
• Improving Source Code Similarity Detection Through GraphCodeBERT and Integration of Additional Features

  2024cites this paper
• Semantic code clone detection based on BERT pre-trained model

  2024cites this paper
• Source Code Clone Detection Using Unsupervised Similarity Measures

  2024cites this paper
• The Vulnerability Is in the Details: Locating Fine-grained Information of Vulnerable Code Identified by Graph-based Detectors

  2024cites this paper
• A Generative AI-Driven Method-Level Semantic Clone Detection Based on the Structural and Semantical Comparison of Methods

  2024cites this paper
• Unveiling the Power of Intermediate Representations for Static Analysis: A Survey

  2024cites this paper
• Advanced Detection of Source Code Clones via an Ensemble of Unsupervised Similarity Measures

  2024cites this paper
• ChangeGuard: Validating Code Changes via Pairwise Learning-Guided Execution

  2024cites this paper
• SEGMN: A Structure-Enhanced Graph Matching Network for Graph Similarity Learning

  2024influential citation
• SolaSim: Clone Detection for Solana Smart Contracts via Program Representation

  2024cites this paper
• SliceLocator: Locating Vulnerable Statements with Graph-based Detectors

  2024cites this paper
• Prism: Decomposing Program Semantics for Code Clone Detection Through Compilation

  2024cites this paper
• OneSpace: Detecting cross-language clones by learning a common embedding space

  2023cites this paper
• Smart Contract Cloning Identification Using BERT Model Based Representation Learning

  2023cites this paper
• A systematic literature review on source code similarity measurement and clone detection: techniques, applications, and challenges

  2023influential citation
• Validating the Redundancy Assumption for HDL from Code Clone's Perspective

  2023cites this paper
• Java Code Clone Detection by Exploiting Semantic and Syntax Information From Intermediate Code-Based Graph

  2023influential citation
• Cloning and Beyond: A Quantum Solution to Duplicate Code

  2023cites this paper
• OSSFP: Precise and Scalable C/C++ Third-Party Library Detection using Fingerprinting Functions

  2023cites this paper
• Study and Comparison of Plagiarism Detection Model for Online Studies

  2022cites this paper
• TRACER: Signature-based Static Analysis for Detecting Recurring Vulnerabilities

  2022cites this paper
• sem2vec: Semantics-aware Assembly Tracelet Embedding

  2022cites this paper
• BlockScope: Detecting and Investigating Propagated Vulnerabilities in Forked Blockchain Projects

  2022cites this paper
• Deceiving Deep Neural Networks-Based Binary Code Matching with Adversarial Programs

  2022cites this paper
• Deep Learning-Based Software Defect Prediction via Semantic Key Features of Source Code—Systematic Survey

  2022cites this paper
• MSCCD

  2022cites this paper
• Clone detection for business process models

  2022cites this paper
• MSCCD: Grammar Pluggable Clone Detection Based on ANTLR Parser Generation

  2022cites this paper
• Assessing and Improving an Evaluation Dataset for Detecting Semantic Code Clones via Deep Learning

  2022cites this paper
• SSA-HIAST: A Novel Framework for Code Clone Detection

  2022cites this paper
• An empirical study of data constraint implementations in Java

  2021cites this paper
• Cross-language code search using static and dynamic analyses

  2021cites this paper
• On Automatic Software Architecture Reconstruction of Microservice Applications

  2021cites this paper
• DeepWukong

  2021cites this paper
• Pyclone: A Python Code Clone Test Bank Generator

  2021cites this paper
• A Systematic Review of Semantic Clone Detection Techniques in Software Systems

  2021cites this paper
• Interpretation-Enabled Software Reuse Detection Based on a Multi-level Birthmark Model

  2021cites this paper
• A Survey of Software Clone Detection From Security Perspective

  2021cites this paper
• VulDetector: Detecting Vulnerabilities Using Weighted Feature Graph Comparison

  2021influential citation
• Identifying High-Level Concept Clones in Software Programs Using Method's Descriptive Documentation

  2021cites this paper
• Clone detection in 5G-enabled social IoT system using graph semantics and deep learning model

  2021cites this paper
• The Mutation and Injection Framework: Evaluating Clone Detection Tools with Mutation Analysis

  2021cites this paper
• Distill: Domain-Specific Compilation for Cognitive Models

  2021cites this paper
• Functionality Recognition on Binary Code with Neural Representation Learning

  2021cites this paper
• Clone detection through srcClone: A program slicing based approach

  2021cites this paper
• Code Clone Detection based on Event Embedding and Event Dependency

  2021cites this paper
• Towards Informative Tagging of Code Fragments to Support the Investigation of Code Clones

  2021cites this paper
• Studying Duplicate Logging Statements and Their Relationships With Code Clones

  2021cites this paper
• Cognac: Domain-Specific Compilation for Cognitive Models

  2021cites this paper
• Two-Pass Technique for Clone Detection and Type Classification Using Tree-Based Convolution Neural Network

  2021cites this paper
• Flow Chart Generation-Based Source Code Similarity Detection Using Process Mining

  2020cites this paper
• CommtPst: Deep learning source code for commenting positions prediction

  2020cites this paper
• SimilaR: R Code Clone and Plagiarism Detection

  2020cites this paper
• Large-Scale Third-Party Library Detection in Android Markets

  2020cites this paper
• FCCA: Hybrid Code Representation for Functional Clone Detection Using Attention Networks

  2020cites this paper
• Cloning beyond source code : a study of the practices in API documentation and infrastructure as code. (Les clones au-delà du code source : étude des pratiques de documentation d'API et d'infrastructure as code)

  2020cites this paper
• On Code Analysis Opportunities and Challenges for Enterprise Systems and Microservices

  2020cites this paper
• Deep Learning In Software Engineering

  2020cites this paper
• Semantic Clone Detection via Probabilistic Software Modeling

  2020cites this paper
• Analogy-making as a Core primitive in the software engineering toolbox

  2020cites this paper
• How are Deep Learning Models Similar? An Empirical Study on Clone Analysis of Deep Learning Software

  2020cites this paper
• Modeling Functional Similarity in Source Code With Graph-Based Siamese Networks

  2020cites this paper
• Towards Semantic Clone Detection via Probabilistic Software Modeling

  2020cites this paper
• Replacements and Replaceables: Making the Case for Code Variants

  2020cites this paper
• A Qualitative Interpretation of Code Clone Detection Techniques

  2020influential citation
• Impact of Combining Syntactic and Semantic Similarities on Patch Prioritization

  2020influential citation
• Source Code Comments: Overlooked in the Realm of Code Clone Detection

  2020cites this paper
• Combined Similarity Based Automated Program Repair Approaches for Expression Level Bugs

  2020influential citation
• A Novel Technique of Software Clone Detection based on Evaluation Parameters

  2020cites this paper
• Learning Code Context Information to Predict Comment Locations

  2020cites this paper
• Software smell detection techniques: A systematic literature review

  2020cites this paper
• Flowchart-Based Cross-Language Source Code Similarity Detection

  2020cites this paper
• MVP: Detecting Vulnerabilities using Patch-Enhanced Vulnerability Signatures

  2020cites this paper
• srcClone: Detecting Code Clones via Decompositional Slicing

  2020influential citation
• Semantic code search via equational reasoning

  2020influential citation
• Semantic Code Clone Detection Via Event Embedding Tree and GAT Network

  2020cites this paper
• From Local to Global Semantic Clone Detection

  2020influential citation
• Automated Code-Smell Detection in Microservices Through Static Analysis: A Case Study

  2020cites this paper
• Open-source tools and benchmarks for code-clone detection: past, present, and future trends

  2020cites this paper
• SLACC: Simion-based Language Agnostic Code Clones

  2020cites this paper
• Review Sharing via Deep Semi-Supervised Code Clone Detection

  2020cites this paper