The reconstruction problem for dynamic data structures, an overview

Abstract

The reconstruction problem is the following: given a searching problem, design an efficient main memory data structure that solves this problem, together with a shadow administration, to be stored in secondary memory, such that the original main memory structure can be reconstructed in case of e.g. a system crash. The problem is illustrated by considering a specific example of a searching problem, the union-find problem. Furthermore, a general technique is given to implement any shadow administration efficiently. Finally, the technique of deferred data structuring is applied for solving the reconstruction problem.