Testing in a hardware emulation environment

• US 8,214,195 B2
• Filed: 03/21/2008
• Issued: 07/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/21/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Industry Software Limited (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Mentor Graphics Corporation (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Durand, Eric, Reymond, Estelle, Buchard, Laurent
• Primary Examiner(s): FREJD, RUSSELL WARREN
• Application Number:
  US12/053,483
• Publication Number:
  US 20090240457A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,565 Days
• Field of Search: 703/23, 703/24, 703/26, 703/28, 702/119, 702/120, 714/25, 714 27- 31
• US Class Current: 703/24
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 30/331 with hardware acceleration, e.g. by using field programmable gate array [FPGA] or emulation

Abstract

A system and method is disclosed for testing emulation boards in a hardware emulation environment. In one embodiment, test files can be maintained that identify a list of test commands. Such a list can be easily changed without recompiling. In another embodiment, the list of commands can be read by a first server. The commands can be passed (e.g., sequentially) to a second server associated with one or more emulator boards. The second server can ensure that the commands are executed on the specified emulator boards for testing the emulator boards. In yet another embodiment, a user can request a series of tests to be executed. The tests can be included in a list of test names. Each test name can correspond to a list of test commands associated with the test name. Thus, a first server can read a test name, read a file of test commands associated with the test name and pass the test commands to a second server to ensure the test commands are executed.

Claims

1. A method of testing emulator boards in a hardware emulator, comprising:

receiving a request to test one or more emulator boards in the hardware emulator;

in response to the request, reading, in a first server, a first file, which includes a list of test names, wherein a first test name points to a first list of commands associated with the request and a second test name points to a second list of commands, different than the first list of commands;

passing the first and second lists of commands to a second server coupled to the one or more emulator boards; and

executing the first and second lists of commands received by the second server on the one or more emulator boards in order to test the emulator boards.

2. The method of claim 1, further including opening a list of tests associated with the request and wherein a first test includes the list of commands and other tests include additional lists of commands.

3. The method of claim 1, further including receiving a response to each of the commands and passing a result to a user interface.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the commands include function calls with parameters including an emulator board number.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising modifying the list of commands and executing the modified list without compilation.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the request includes a name of a file and a list of emulator boards to be tested.

7. A computer-readable storage device storing computer-executable instructions which when executed will cause a computer system to perform a method of testing emulator boards in a hardware emulator, the method comprising:

receiving a request to test one or more emulator boards in the hardware emulator;

in response to the request, reading, in a first server, a test file that includes a list of test names, wherein at least a first test name points to a separate file having a list of commands associated with the request;

passing the commands to a second server coupled to the one or more emulator boards; and

executing the commands received by the second server on the one or more emulator boards in order to test the emulator boards.

8. A hardware emulator system, comprising:

plural emulator boards having programmable logic thereon for emulating a user design;

a first server coupled to the emulator boards, the first server configured to send test commands to be performed on the emulator boards for testing the emulator boards; and

a second server coupled to the first server, the second server including a command sequencer configured to sequence through a file including a list of testing commands and to send the testing commands to the first server further including a database coupled to the second server, the database including a first file comprising a list of different tests to execute, the database further including a plurality of secondary files associated with the tests so that the tests point to the secondary files, the secondary files including the list of testing commands associated with the tests.

9. The hardware emulator system of claim 8, wherein the first and second servers are located in a hardware emulation workstation coupled to the plural emulator boards.

10. A method in a hardware emulator system, comprising:

receiving a request to test one or more emulator boards in the hardware emulator system;

in response to the request, opening, in a first server, a first list of tests associated with the request, the first list of tests being stored in a file that is modifiable by a user without compilation;

reading a first test name from the list of tests, the first test name being a pointer to a second list of commands;

opening the second list of commands associated with the first test name; and

passing the commands from the second list to a second server for executing the commands on the one or more emulator boards in order to test the emulator boards.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the commands are function calls.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the commands are passed sequentially and a next command is passed only after a response from the previous command is received.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the request is received from a user interface and further including displaying results of the request in the user interface.

14. A computer-readable storage device storing computer-executable instructions which when executed will cause a computer system to perform a method in a hardware emulator system, the method comprising:

receiving a request to test one or more emulator boards in the hardware emulator;

in response to the request, opening, in a first server, a first list of tests associated with the request;

reading a first test name from the first list of tests, the first test name being a pointer to a second list of commands;

opening the second list of commands associated with the first test name; and

passing the commands from the second list to a second server for executing the commands on the one or more emulator boards in order to test the emulator boards.

15. A method of testing emulator boards in a hardware emulator, comprising:

receiving a test to be executed and an identification of one or more emulator boards to be tested;

reading a list of function calls associated with the test, the list of function calls being editable as text by a user;

executing each function call on the identified emulator boards and sending the response to each function call to a server; and

determining a result of the test.

16. The method of claim 15, further including displaying the result of the test.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the function calls are executed sequentially.

18. The method of claim 15, further including reading a list of sub-tests to be executed associated with the test.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein each sub-test has an associated list of function calls.

20. A hardware emulator system to emulate a user'"'"'s design, comprising:

means for emulating a user design;

means for reading a first text-based test file including a list of tests to perform and for reading a second command file including a list of commands associated with each test in the test file; and

means for sending the commands to the means for emulating to test the means for emulating.