Comparescan User Guide

1

Introducing Comparescan

Comparescan is a sophisticated and comprehensive tool for performing waveform comparison functions. It can compare multiple hardware simulation runs or different areas of a single simulation run, compare single signals or complete simulations, and compare results that you obtain from the same or different simulators. Comparescan provides you with both a text description and a waveform view of any of the differences that it finds between simulations.

Comparescan is both flexible and programmable. It has a large number of applications, but it is still extremely easy to use.

This chapter contains the following topics:

■“Features” on page 8

■“Applications” on page 8

■“Organization of this Guide” on page 9

Comparescan User Guide

Introducing Comparescan

Features

Comparescan has the following functional features:

Compares SST2 or VCD files.

Creates error reports that you can use with Signalscan Waves.

Performs exact comparisons using a tolerance window.

Performs clocked comparisons.

Performs setup and hold checks.

Applications

You can use Comparescan in any of the following areas to help verify and analyze your simulation results:

Verification applications:

Compare simulations that you have performed at different levels (RTL versus gate or behavioral versus gate).

Compare simulations before and after design optimizations (for speed or area).

Compare simulations before and after you make technology changes (shrink or vendor).

Compare simulations that you have performed using different clock rates.

Compare different versions of your simulations for regression testing purposes.

Test vector applications:

Compare your best and worst case timing simulations.

Compare simulations before and after you perform backannotation.

Compare simulations before and after you perform a clock-tree insertion.

Multi-simulator applications:

Compare simulations that you have performed on different simulators.

(Comparescan understands event-ordering dependencies.)

Compare cycle-based and event-based simulations.

Compare simulations that you have performed on different types of simulators.

Comparescan User Guide

Introducing Comparescan

Organization of this Guide

The Comparescan User Guide is designed to help you to begin using Comparescan as quickly as possible.

Chapter 2, “Getting Started,” presents the comparescan command-line syntax and options.

Chapter 3, “Comparescan Tutorial,” guides you through a typical Comparescan session.

Chapter 4, “Comparescan Graphical User Interface,” describes each feature of the

Comparescan graphical user interface (GUI).

Chapter 5, “Application Examples,” describes how to use Comparescan to perform many different kinds of comparisons.

Chapter 6, “Writing Comparescan Rules,” explains how to write a rules file.

Appendix A, “Frequently Asked Questions,” provides the answers to some common questions about Comparescan.