notes/OJ notes/pages/Leetcode Validate-Binary-Search-Tree.md
2022-07-08 10:57:17 +08:00

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# Leetcode Validate-Binary-Search-Tree
#### 2022-07-08 10:36
> ##### Algorithms:
> #algorithm #DFS #DFS_inorder
> ##### Data structures:
> #DS #binary_tree #binary_search_tree
> ##### Difficulty:
> #coding_problem #difficulty-medium
> ##### Additional tags:
> #leetcode #CS_list_need_practicing
> ##### Revisions:
> N/A
##### Related topics:
```expander
tag:#DFS_inorder
```
- [[Leetcode Binary-Tree-Inorder-Traversal]]
##### Links:
- [Link to problem](https://leetcode.com/problems/validate-binary-search-tree/)
___
### Problem
Given the `root` of a binary tree, _determine if it is a valid binary search tree (BST)_.
A **valid BST** is defined as follows:
- The left subtree of a node contains only nodes with keys **less than** the node's key.
- ==The right subtree of a node contains only nodes with keys **greater than** the node's key.==
- Both the left and right subtrees must also be binary search trees.
#### Examples
**Example 1:**
![](https://assets.leetcode.com/uploads/2020/12/01/tree1.jpg)
**Input:** root = [2,1,3]
**Output:** true
**Example 2:**
![](https://assets.leetcode.com/uploads/2020/12/01/tree2.jpg)
**Input:** root = [5,1,4,null,null,3,6]
**Output:** false
**Explanation:** The root node's value is 5 but its right child's value is 4.
#### Constraints
- The number of nodes in the tree is in the range `[1, 104]`.
- `-231 <= Node.val <= 231 - 1`
### Thoughts
> [!summary]
> This is a #DFS #DFS_inorder problem.
I have thought a lot of recursion methods, but at last I realized:
> [!tip] The feature of BST
> For a BST, DFS inorder search returns an array of ascending numbers.
So, I use a DFS inorder, along with a prev reference pointer to keep track of previous value. to validate, the value of node should always be bigger than prev.
See comment for why I use a **reference to pointer.**
### Solution
```cpp
/**
* Definition for a binary tree node.
* struct TreeNode {
* int val;
* TreeNode *left;
* TreeNode *right;
* TreeNode() : val(0), left(nullptr), right(nullptr) {}
* TreeNode(int x) : val(x), left(nullptr), right(nullptr) {}
* TreeNode(int x, TreeNode *left, TreeNode *right) : val(x), left(left),
* right(right) {}
* };
*/
class Solution {
bool checker(TreeNode *root, int *&prev) {
// Use reference to pointer here, because the pointer address will change
// when assigning memory. Also can use pointer to pointer, or initialize the
// pointer and never change the address ever.
if (!root) {
return true;
}
if (!checker(root->left, prev)) {
return false;
}
if (prev && root->val <= *prev) {
return false;
}
if (!prev) {
// prev's address got changed
prev = new int;
}
*prev = root->val;
return checker(root->right, prev);
}
public:
bool isValidBST(TreeNode *root) {
// DFS inorder traversal: valid BST returns a ascending array
int *prev = nullptr;
return checker(root, prev);
}
};
```