Specification and analysis of the DCF and PCF protocols in the 802.11 standard using systems of communicating machines

We propose and analyze formal models for coordination functions of the 802.11 MAC layer using systems of communicating machines. We model the basic DCF (CSMA/CA) protocol, the DCF (distributed coordination function) protocol with RTS/CTS (MACA), and the PCF (point coordination function) protocol. Analyses show the following safety results: the CSMA/CA protocol is free from deadlocks and non-executable transitions; the MACA has a potential livelock, but is free from deadlocks and non-executable transitions; the PCF protocol is free from deadlocks and non-executable transitions. We also show that liveness is guaranteed in the PCF protocol.