On Four-Connecting a Triconnected Graph

We consider the problem of finding a smallest set of edges whose addition four-connects a triconnected graph. This is a fundamental graph-theoretic problem that has applications in designing reliable networks and improving statistical database security. We present an O(n·?(m,n)+m)-time algorithm for four-connecting an undirected graph G that is triconnected by adding the smallest number of edges, where n and m are the number of vertices and edges in G, respectively, and ?(m,n) is the inverse Ackermann function. This is the first polynomial time algorithm to solve this problem exactly.In deriving our algorithm, we present a new lower bound for the number of edges needed to four-connect a triconnected graph. The form of this lower bound is different from the form of the lower bound known for biconnectivity augmentation and triconnectivity augmentation. Our new lower bound applies for arbitrary k and gives a tighter lower bound than the one known earlier for the number of edges needed to k-connect a (k?1)-connected graph. For k=4, we show that this lower bound is tight by giving an efficient algorithm to find a set of edges whose size equals the new lower bound and whose addition four-connects the input triconnected graph.