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<div class="section" id="coriolis-user-s-guide">
<h1><a class="toc-backref" href="#id11">Coriolis User's Guide</a></h1>
<p><span class="raw-html"><br></span></p>
<div id="centered">
The pdf version of this document is available here:<br>
<a href="https://www-soc.lip6.fr/sesi-docs/coriolis2-docs/coriolis2/en/latex/users-guide/UsersGuide.pdf">Coriolis User's Guide</a>
</div><div class="contents topic" id="contents">
<p class="topic-title first">Contents</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#coriolis-user-s-guide" id="id11">Coriolis User's Guide</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#credits-license" id="id12">Credits &amp; License</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#release-notes" id="id13">Release Notes</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#release-1-0-1475" id="id14">Release 1.0.1475</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#release-1-0-1963" id="id15">Release 1.0.1963</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#release-1-0-2049" id="id16">Release 1.0.2049</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#release-v2-0-1" id="id17">Release v2.0.1</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#release-v2-1" id="id18">Release v2.1</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#release-v2-2" id="id19"><strong>Release v2.2</strong></a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#installation" id="id20">Installation</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#fixed-directory-tree" id="id21">Fixed Directory Tree</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#building-coriolis" id="id22">Building Coriolis</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#building-the-devel-branch" id="id23">Building the Devel Branch</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#additionnal-requirement-under-macos" id="id24">Additionnal Requirement under <span class="sc">MacOS</span></a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#packaging-coriolis" id="id25">Packaging Coriolis</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#hooking-up-into-alliance" id="id26">Hooking up into <span class="sc">Alliance</span></a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#setting-up-the-environment-coriolisenv-py" id="id27">Setting up the Environment (coriolisEnv.py)</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#documentation" id="id28">Documentation</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#general-software-architecture" id="id29">General Software Architecture</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#coriolis-configuration-initialisation" id="id30">Coriolis Configuration &amp; Initialisation</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#first-stage-symbolic-technology-selection" id="id31">First Stage: Symbolic Technology Selection</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#second-stage-technology-configuration-loading" id="id32">Second Stage: Technology Configuration Loading</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#configuration-helpers" id="id33">Configuration Helpers</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id1" id="id34"><span class="sc">Alliance</span> Helper</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#tools-configuration-helpers" id="id35">Tools Configuration Helpers</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#hacking-the-configuration-files" id="id36">Hacking the Configuration Files</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#cgt-the-graphical-interface" id="id37">CGT - The Graphical Interface</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id2" id="id38">Viewer &amp; Tools</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#stratus-netlist-capture" id="id39"><span class="sc">Stratus</span> Netlist Capture</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#the-hurricane-data-base" id="id40">The <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> Data-Base</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#synthetizing-and-loading-a-design" id="id41">Synthetizing and loading a design</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#synthesis-under-yosys" id="id42">Synthesis under Yosys</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#synthesis-under-alliance" id="id43">Synthesis under Alliance</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#etesian-placer" id="id44">Etesian -- Placer</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#etesian-configuration-parameters" id="id45">Etesian Configuration Parameters</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#knik-global-router" id="id46">Knik -- Global Router</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#kite-detailed-router" id="id47">Kite -- Detailed Router</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#kite-configuration-parameters" id="id48">Kite Configuration Parameters</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#executing-python-scripts-in-cgt" id="id49">Executing Python Scripts in Cgt</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#printing-snapshots" id="id50">Printing &amp; Snapshots</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#memento-of-shortcuts-in-graphic-mode" id="id51">Memento of Shortcuts in Graphic Mode</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#cgt-command-line-options" id="id52">Cgt Command Line Options</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#miscellaneous-settings" id="id53">Miscellaneous Settings</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id3" id="id54">The Controller</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id4" id="id55">The Look Tab</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id5" id="id56">The Filter Tab</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id6" id="id57">The Layers&amp;Go Tab</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id7" id="id58">The Netlist Tab</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id8" id="id59">The Selection Tab</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id9" id="id60">The Inspector Tab</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#id10" id="id61">The Settings Tab</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#python-interface-for-hurricane-coriolis" id="id62">Python Interface for <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> / <span class="sc">Coriolis</span></a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#plugins" id="id63">Plugins</a><ul>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#chip-placement" id="id64">Chip Placement</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#clock-tree" id="id65">Clock Tree</a></li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#recursive-save-rsave" id="id66">Recursive-Save (RSave)</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#a-simple-example-am2901" id="id67">A Simple Example: AM2901</a></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
<div class="section" id="credits-license">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id12">Credits &amp; License</a></h2>
<p class="credit"><span class="left"><span class="sc">Hurricane</span></span>
<span class="right">Rémy <span class="sc">Escassut</span> &amp;
Christian <span class="sc">Masson</span></span></p>
<br>
<p class="credit"><span class="left"><span class="sc">Etesian</span></span>
<span class="right">Gabriel <span class="sc">Gouvine</span></span></p>
<br>
<p class="credit"><span class="left"><span class="sc">Stratus</span></span>
<span class="right">Sophie <span class="sc">Belloeil</span></span></p>
<br>
<p class="credit"><span class="left"><span class="sc">Knik</span></span>
<span class="right">Damien <span class="sc">Dupuis</span></span></p>
<br>
<p class="credit"><span class="left"><span class="sc">Kite</span>,
<span class="sc">Unicorn</span></span></span>
<span class="right">Jean-Paul <span class="sc">Chaput</span></span></p>
<br><p><span class="raw-html"><br></span></p>
<p>The <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> data-base is copyright© <span class="sc">Bull</span> 2000-2016 and is
released under the terms of the <span class="sc">lgpl</span> license. All other tools are
copyright© <span class="sc">upmc</span> 2008-2016 and released under the <span class="sc">gpl</span>
license.</p>
<p>Others important contributors to <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> are Christophe <span class="sc">Alexandre</span>,
Hugo <span class="sc">Clement</span>, Marek <span class="sc">Sroka</span> and Wu <span class="sc">Yifei</span>.</p>
<p>The <span class="sc">Knik</span> router makes use of the <span class="sc">Flute</span> software, which is
copyright© Chris C. N. <span class="sc">Chu</span> from the Iowa State University
(<a class="reference external" href="http://home.eng.iastate.edu/~cnchu/">http://home.eng.iastate.edu/~cnchu/</a>).</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="release-notes">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id13">Release Notes</a></h2>
<div class="section" id="release-1-0-1475">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id14">Release 1.0.1475</a></h3>
<p>This is the first preliminary release of the <span class="sc">Coriolis 2</span> framework.</p>
<p>This release mainly ships the global router <span class="sc">Knik</span> and the detailed router
<span class="sc">Kite</span>. Together they aim to replace the <span class="sc">Alliance</span> <span class="sc">Nero</span> router.
Unlike <span class="sc">Nero</span>, <span class="sc">Kite</span> is based on an innovating routing modeling and ad-hoc
algorithm. Although it is released under <span class="sc">gpl</span> license, the source code
will be avalaible later.
<span class="raw-html"><br></span></p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> Contents of this release:</p>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>A graphical user interface (viewer only).</li>
<li>The <span class="sc">Knik</span> global router.</li>
<li>The <span class="sc">Kite</span> detailed router.</li>
</ol>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> Supported input/output formats:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><span class="sc">Alliance</span> <span class="cb">vst</span> (netlist) &amp; <span class="cb">ap</span> (physical) formats.</li>
<li>Even if there are some references to the <span class="sc">Cadence</span> <span class="sc">lefdef</span> format, its
support is not included because it depends on a library only available
to <span class="sc">Si2</span> affiliated members.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="section" id="release-1-0-1963">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id15">Release 1.0.1963</a></h3>
<p>Release 1963 is alpha. All the tools from <span class="sc">Coriolis 1</span> have been ported into
this release.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> Contents of this release:</p>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>The <span class="sc">Stratus</span> netlist capture language (<span class="sc">GenLib</span> replacement).</li>
<li>The <span class="sc">Mauka</span> placer (still contains bugs).</li>
<li>A graphical user interface (viewer only).</li>
<li>The <span class="sc">Knik</span> global router.</li>
<li>The <span class="sc">Kite</span> detailed router.</li>
<li>Partially implemented python support for configuration files
(alternative to <span class="sc">xml</span>).</li>
<li>A documentation (imcomplete/obsoleted in <span class="sc">Hurricane</span>'s case).</li>
</ol>
</div>
<div class="section" id="release-1-0-2049">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id16">Release 1.0.2049</a></h3>
<p>Release <cite>2049</cite> is Alpha.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> Changes of this release:</p>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>The <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> documentation is now accurate. Documentation
for the Cell viewer and <span class="sc">CRLcore</span> has been added.</li>
<li>More extensive Python support for all the components of
<span class="sc">Coriolis</span>.</li>
<li>Configuration is now completly migrated under Python.
<span class="sc">xml</span> loaders can still be useds for compatibilty.</li>
<li>The <span class="cb">cgt</span> main has been rewritten in Python.</li>
</ol>
</div>
<div class="section" id="release-v2-0-1">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id17">Release v2.0.1</a></h3>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>Migrated the repository from <span class="cb">svn</span> to <span class="cb">git</span>, and release complete sources.
As a consequence, we drop the distribution packaging support and give
public read-only access to the repository.</li>
<li>Deep rewrite of the <span class="sc">Katabatic</span> database and <span class="sc">Kite</span> detailed router,
achieve a speedup factor greater than 20...</li>
</ol>
</div>
<div class="section" id="release-v2-1">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id18">Release v2.1</a></h3>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>Replace the old simulated annealing placer <span class="sc">Mauka</span> by the analytical placer
<span class="sc">Etesian</span> and its legalization and detailed placement tools.</li>
<li>Added a Blif format parser to process circuits generated by the Yosys and ABC
logic synthetizers.</li>
<li>The multiples user defined configuration files are now grouped under
a common hidden (dot) directory <tt class="docutils literal">.coriolis2</tt> and the file extension
is back from <tt class="docutils literal">.conf</tt> to <tt class="docutils literal">.py</tt>.</li>
</ol>
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</div>
<div class="section" id="release-v2-2">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id19"><strong>Release v2.2</strong></a></h3>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>Added JSON import/export of the whole Hurricane DataBase. Two save mode
are supported: <em>Cell</em> mode (standalone) or <em>Blob</em> mode, which dump the
whole design down and including the standard cells.</li>
</ol>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="installation">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id20">Installation</a></h2>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last">As the sources are being released, the binary packaging is dropped.
You still may find older version here: <a class="reference external" href="http://asim.lip6.fr/pub/coriolis/2.0">http://asim.lip6.fr/pub/coriolis/2.0</a> .</p>
</div>
<p>In a nutshell, building source consist in pulling the <span class="cb">git</span> repository then
running the <span class="cb">ccb</span> installer.</p>
<p>Main building prerequisites:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>cmake</li>
<li>C++11-capable compiler</li>
<li><a class="reference external" href="http://miloyip.github.io/rapidjson/">RapidJSON</a></li>
<li>python2.7</li>
<li>boost</li>
<li>libxml2</li>
<li>bzip2</li>
<li>yacc &amp; lex</li>
<li>Qt 4 or Qt 5</li>
</ul>
<p>Building documentation prerequisites:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>doxygen</li>
<li>latex</li>
<li>latex2html</li>
<li>python-docutils (for reStructuredText)</li>
</ul>
<p>Optional libraries:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>LEF/DEF (from <a class="reference external" href="https://www.si2.org/">SI2</a>)</li>
</ul>
<p>For other distributions, refer to their own packaging system.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
<div class="section" id="fixed-directory-tree">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id21">Fixed Directory Tree</a></h3>
<p>In order to simplificate the work of the <span class="cb">ccb</span> installer, the source, build
and installation tree is fixed. To successfully compile <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> you must
follow it exactly. The tree is relative to the home directory of the user
building it (noted <span class="fboxtt">~/</span> or <span class="fboxtt">$HOME/</span>). Only the source
directory needs to be manually created by the user, all others will be
automatically created either by <span class="cb">ccb</span> or the build system.</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="25%" />
<col width="75%" />
</colgroup>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td colspan="2"><strong>Sources</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line">Sources root</div>
<div class="line"><strong>under git</strong></div>
</div>
</td>
<td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/src</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/src/coriolis</div>
</div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"><strong>Architecture Dependant Build</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line">Linux, SL 7, 64 bits</div>
<div class="line">Linux, SL 6, 32 bits</div>
<div class="line">Linux, SL 6, 64 bits</div>
<div class="line">Linux, Fedora, 64 bits</div>
<div class="line">Linux, Fedora, 32 bits</div>
<div class="line">FreeBSD 8, 32 bits</div>
<div class="line">FreeBSD 8, 64 bits</div>
<div class="line">Windows 7, 32 bits</div>
<div class="line">Windows 7, 64 bits</div>
<div class="line">Windows 8.x, 32 bits</div>
<div class="line">Windows 8.x, 64 bits</div>
</div>
</td>
<td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Linux.el7_64/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Linux.slsoc6x/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Linux.slsoc6x_64/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Linux.fc_64/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Linux.fc/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/FreeBSD.8x.i386/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/FreeBSD.8x.amd64/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Cygwin.W7/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Cygwin.W7_64/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Cygwin.W8/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">~/coriolis-2.x/Cygwin.W8_64/Release.Shared/build/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
</div>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"><strong>Architecture Dependant Install</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td>Linux, SL 6, 32 bits</td>
<td>~/coriolis-2.x/Linux.slsoc6x/Release.Shared/install/</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"><strong>FHS Compliant Structure under Install</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line">Binaries</div>
<div class="line">Libraries (Python)</div>
<div class="line">Include by tool</div>
<div class="line">Configuration files</div>
<div class="line">Doc, by tool</div>
</div>
</td>
<td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line">.../install/bin</div>
<div class="line">.../install/lib</div>
<div class="line">.../install/include/coriolis2/&lt;project&gt;/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
<div class="line">.../install/etc/coriolis2/</div>
<div class="line">.../install/share/doc/coriolis2/en/html/&lt;tool&gt;</div>
</div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p><em>Alternate build types:</em> the <tt class="docutils literal">Release.Shared</tt> means an optimized build
with shared libraries. But there are also available <tt class="docutils literal">Static</tt> instead of <tt class="docutils literal">Shared</tt>
and <tt class="docutils literal">Debug</tt> instead of <tt class="docutils literal">Release</tt> and any combination of them.</p>
<p class="last"><tt class="docutils literal">Static</tt> do not work because I don't know yet to mix statically linked binaries
and Python modules (which must be dynamic).</p>
</div>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="building-coriolis">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id22">Building Coriolis</a></h3>
<p>First step is to install the prerequisites. Currently, only <a class="reference external" href="http://miloyip.github.io/rapidjson/">RapidJSON</a>.
As RapidJSON is evolving fast, if you encounter compatibility problems,
the exact version we compiled against is given below.</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:~$ mkdir -p ~/coriolis-2.x/src/support
dummy&#64;lepka:~$ cd ~/coriolis-2.x/src/support
dummy&#64;lepka:~$ git clone http://github.com/miloyip/rapidjson
dummy&#64;lepka:~$ git checkout ec322005072076ef53984462fb4a1075c27c7dfd
</pre>
<p>The second step is to create the source directory and pull the <span class="cb">git</span> repository:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:~$ mkdir -p ~/coriolis-2.x/src
dummy&#64;lepka:~$ cd ~/coriolis-2.x/src
dummy&#64;lepka:~$ git clone https://www-soc.lip6.fr/git/coriolis.git
</pre>
<p>Third and final step, build &amp; install:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:src$ ./bootstrap/ccb.py --project=support \
--project=coriolis \
--make=&quot;-j4 install&quot;
dummy&#64;lepka:src$ ./bootstrap/ccb.py --project=support \
--project=coriolis \
--doc --make=&quot;-j1 install&quot;
</pre>
<p>We need to separate to perform a separate installation of the documentation because it
do not support to be generated with a parallel build. So we compile &amp; install in a first
stage in <tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">-j4</span></tt> (or whatever) then we generate the documentation in <tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">-j1</span></tt></p>
<p>Under <span class="sc">rhel6</span> or clones, you must build using the <span class="cb">devtoolset2</span>:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:src$ ./bootstrap/ccb.py --project=coriolis \
--devtoolset-2 --make=&quot;-j4 install&quot;
</pre>
<p>If you want to uses Qt 5 instead of Qt 4, you may add the <tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">--qt5</span></tt> argument.</p>
<p>The complete list of <span class="cb">ccb</span> functionalities can be accessed with the <tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">--help</span></tt> argument.
It also may be run in graphical mode (<tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">--gui</span></tt>).</p>
<div class="section" id="building-the-devel-branch">
<h4><a class="toc-backref" href="#id23">Building the Devel Branch</a></h4>
<p>In the <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> <span class="cb">git</span> repository, two branches are present:</p>
<ul>
<li><p class="first">The <span class="cb">master</span> branch, which contains the latest stable version. This is the
one used by default if you follow the above instructions.</p>
</li>
<li><p class="first">The <span class="cb">devel</span> branch, which obviously contains the latest commits from the
development team. To use it instead of the <span class="cb">master</span> one, do the following
command just after the first step:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:~$ git checkout devel
dummy&#64;lepka:src$ ./bootstrap/ccb.py --project=coriolis \
--make=&quot;-j4 install&quot; --debug
</pre>
<p>Be aware that it may requires newer versions of the dependencies and may introduce
incompatibilites with the stable version.</p>
<p>In the (unlikely) event of a crash of <span class="cb">cgt</span>, as it is a <span class="sc">Python</span> script, the right
command to run <span class="cb">gdb</span> on it is:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:work$ gdb python core.XXXX
</pre>
</li>
</ul>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="additionnal-requirement-under-macos">
<h4><a class="toc-backref" href="#id24">Additionnal Requirement under <span class="sc">MacOS</span></a></h4>
<p><span class="sc">Coriolis</span> make uses of the <span class="cb">boost::python</span> module, but the <span class="sc">MacPorts</span> <span class="cb">boost</span>
seems unable to work with the <span class="sc">Python</span> bundled with <span class="sc">MacOS</span>. So you have to install
both of them from <span class="sc">MacPorts</span>:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;macos:~$ port install boost +python27
dummy&#64;macos:~$ port select python python27
dummy&#64;macos:-$ export DYLD_FRAMEWORK_PATH=/opt/local/Library/Frameworks
</pre>
<p>The last two lines tell <span class="sc">MacOS</span> to use the <span class="sc">Python</span> from <span class="sc">MacPorts</span> and <em>not</em> from
the system.</p>
<p>Then proceed with the generic install instructions.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="packaging-coriolis">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id25">Packaging Coriolis</a></h3>
<p>Packager should not uses <span class="cb">ccb</span>, instead <tt class="docutils literal">bootstrap/Makefile.package</tt> is provided
to emulate a top-level <tt class="docutils literal">autotool</tt> makefile. Just copy it in the root of the
<span class="sc">Coriolis</span> git repository (<tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">~/corriolis-2.x/src/coriolis/</span></tt>) and build.</p>
<p>Sligthly outaded packaging configuration files can also be found under <tt class="docutils literal">bootstrap/</tt>:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><tt class="docutils literal">bootstrap/coriolis2.spec.in</tt> for <span class="cb">rpm</span> based distributions.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">bootstrap/debian</tt> for <span class="sc">Debian</span> based distributions.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="section" id="hooking-up-into-alliance">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id26">Hooking up into <span class="sc">Alliance</span></a></h3>
<p><span class="sc">Coriolis</span> relies on <span class="sc">Alliance</span> for the cell libraries. So after installing or
packaging, you must configure it so that it can found those libraries.</p>
<p>This is done by editing the one variable <span class="cb">cellsTop</span> in the <span class="sc">Alliance</span> helper
(see <a class="reference internal" href="#alliance-helper">Alliance Helper</a>). This variable must point to the directory of the
cells libraries. In a typical installation, this is generally
<span class="cb">/usr/share/alliance/cells</span>.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="setting-up-the-environment-coriolisenv-py">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id27">Setting up the Environment (coriolisEnv.py)</a></h3>
<p>To simplify the tedious task of configuring your environment, a helper is provided
in the <tt class="docutils literal">bootstrap</tt> source directory (also installed in the directory
<tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">.../install/etc/coriolis2/</span></tt>) :</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
~/coriolis-2.x/src/coriolis/bootstrap/coriolisEnv.py
</pre>
<p>Use it like this:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:~&gt; eval `~/coriolis-2.x/src/coriolis/bootstrap/coriolisEnv.py`
</pre>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p><strong>Do not call that script in your environement initialisation.</strong>
When used under <span class="sc">rhel6</span> or clones, it needs to be run in the <span class="cb">devtoolset2</span>
environement. The script then launch a new shell, which may cause an
infinite loop if it's called again in, say <span class="cb">~/.bashrc</span>.</p>
<p>Instead you may want to create an alias:</p>
<pre class="last literal-block">
alias c2r='eval &quot;`~/coriolis-2.x/src/coriolis/bootstrap/coriolisEnv.py`&quot;'
</pre>
</div>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="documentation">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id28">Documentation</a></h2>
<p>The general index of the documentation for the various parts of Coriolis
are avalaibles here <a class="reference external" href="file:///usr/share/doc/coriolis2/index.html">Coriolis Tools Documentation</a>.</p>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last"><strong>Python Documentation:</strong>
Most of the documentation is related to the C++ API and implemetation of
the tools. However, the <span class="sc">Python</span> bindings have been created so they
mimic <em>as closely as possible</em> the C++ interface, so the documentation
applies to both languages with only minor syntactic changes.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="general-software-architecture">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id29">General Software Architecture</a></h3>
<p><span class="sc">Coriolis</span> has been build with respect of the classical paradigm that the
computational instensive parts have been written in C++, and almost
everything else in <span class="sc">Python</span>. To build the <span class="sc">Python</span> interface we used
two methods:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>For self-contained modules <span class="cb">boost::python</span> (mainly in <span class="cb">vlsisapd</span>).</li>
<li>For all modules based on <span class="sc">Hurricane</span>, we created our own wrappers due
to very specific requirements such as shared functions between modules
or C++/<span class="sc">Python</span> secure bi-directional object deletion.</li>
</ul>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Coriolis-Soft-Schema.png" alt="Coriolis Software Schematic"></center></span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="coriolis-configuration-initialisation">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id30">Coriolis Configuration &amp; Initialisation</a></h2>
<p>All configuration &amp; initialization files are Python scripts, despite their
<span class="cb">.conf</span> extention. From a syntactic point of view, there is no difference
between the system-wide configuration files and the user's configuration,
they may use the same Python helpers.
<span class="raw-html"><br></span></p>
<p>Configuration is done in two stages:</p>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>Selecting the symbolic technology.</li>
<li>Loading the complete configuration for the given technology.</li>
</ol>
<div class="section" id="first-stage-symbolic-technology-selection">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id31">First Stage: Symbolic Technology Selection</a></h3>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span>
The initialization process is done by executing, in order, the following
file(s):</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="8%" />
<col width="39%" />
<col width="53%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Order</th>
<th class="head">Meaning</th>
<th class="head">File</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td><strong>1</strong></td>
<td>The system setting</td>
<td><span class="cb">/etc/coriolis2/techno.conf</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>2</strong></td>
<td>The user's global setting</td>
<td><span class="cb">${HOME}/.coriolis2/techno.py</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>3</strong></td>
<td>The user's local setting</td>
<td><span class="cb">&lt;CWD&gt;/.coriolis2/techno.py</span></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Thoses files must provides only two variables, the name of the symbolic technology
and the one of the real technology. For example:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
# -*- Mode:Python -*-
symbolicTechno = 'cmos'
realTechno = 'hcmos9'
</pre>
</div>
<div class="section" id="second-stage-technology-configuration-loading">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id32">Second Stage: Technology Configuration Loading</a></h3>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span>
The <span class="cb">TECHNO</span> variable is set by the first stage and it's the name of the
symbolic technology. A directory of that name, with all the configuration files,
must exists in the configuration directory. In addition to the technology-specific
directories, a <span class="cb">common/</span> directory is there to provides a trunk for all the
identical datas across the various technologies. The initialization process is done
by executing, in order, the following file(s):</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="8%" />
<col width="39%" />
<col width="53%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Order</th>
<th class="head">Meaning</th>
<th class="head">File</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td><strong>1</strong></td>
<td>The system initialization</td>
<td><span class="cb">/etc/coriolis2/&lt;TECHNO&gt;/&lt;TOOL&gt;.conf</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>2</strong></td>
<td>The user's global initialization</td>
<td><span class="cb">${HOME}/.coriolis2/settings.py</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>3</strong></td>
<td>The user's local initialization</td>
<td><span class="cb">&lt;CWD&gt;/.coriolis2/settings.py</span></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p><em>The loading policy is not hard-coded.</em> It is implemented
at Python level in <span class="cb">/etc/coriolis2/coriolisInit.py</span>, and thus may be easily be
amended to whatever site policy.</p>
<p class="last">The truly mandatory requirement is the existence of <span class="cb">coriolisInit.py</span>
which <em>must</em> contain a <span class="cb">coriolisConfigure()</span> function with no argument.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="configuration-helpers">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id33">Configuration Helpers</a></h3>
<p>To ease the writing of configuration files, a set of small helpers
is available. They allow to setup the configuration parameters through
simple assembly of tuples. The helpers are installed under the directory:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
&lt;install&gt;/etc/coriolis2/
</pre>
<p>Where <span class="cb">&lt;install&gt;/</span> is the root of the installation.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
<div class="section" id="id1">
<span id="alliance-helper"></span><h4><a class="toc-backref" href="#id34"><span class="sc">Alliance</span> Helper</a></h4>
<p>The configuration file must provide a <span class="cb">allianceConfig</span> tuple of
the form:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
cellsTop = '/usr/share/alliance/cells/'
allianceConfig = \
( ( 'SYMBOLIC_TECHNOLOGY', helpers.sysConfDir+'/technology.symbolic.xml' )
, ( 'REAL_TECHNOLOGY' , helpers.sysConfDir+'/technology.cmos130.s2r.xml')
, ( 'DISPLAY' , helpers.sysConfDir+'/display.xml' )
, ( 'CATALOG' , 'CATAL')
, ( 'WORKING_LIBRARY' , '.')
, ( 'SYSTEM_LIBRARY' , ( (cellsTop+'sxlib' , Environment.Append)
, (cellsTop+'dp_sxlib', Environment.Append)
, (cellsTop+'ramlib' , Environment.Append)
, (cellsTop+'romlib' , Environment.Append)
, (cellsTop+'rflib' , Environment.Append)
, (cellsTop+'rf2lib' , Environment.Append)
, (cellsTop+'pxlib' , Environment.Append) ) )
, ( 'SCALE_X' , 100)
, ( 'IN_LO' , 'vst')
, ( 'IN_PH' , 'ap')
, ( 'OUT_LO' , 'vst')
, ( 'OUT_PH' , 'ap')
, ( 'POWER' , 'vdd')
, ( 'GROUND' , 'vss')
, ( 'CLOCK' , '^ck.*')
, ( 'BLOCKAGE' , '^blockageNet*')
)
</pre>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> The example above shows the system configuration file, with all the
available settings. Some important remarks about thoses settings:</p>
<ul>
<li><p class="first">In it's configuration file, the user do not need to redefine all the settings,
just the one he wants to change. In most of the cases, the <tt class="docutils literal">SYSTEM_LIBRARY</tt>,
the <tt class="docutils literal">WORKING_LIBRARY</tt> and the special net names (at this point there is not
much alternatives for the others settings).</p>
</li>
<li><p class="first"><tt class="docutils literal">SYSTEM_LIBRARY</tt> setting: Setting up the library search path.
Each library entry in the tuple will be added to the search path according
to the second parameter:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><span class="cb">Environment::Append</span>: append to the search path.</li>
<li><span class="cb">Environment::Prepend</span>: insert in head of the search path.</li>
<li><span class="cb">Environment::Replace</span>: look for a library of the same name and replace
it, whithout changing the search path order. If no library of that name
already exists, it is appended.</li>
</ul>
<p>A library is identified by it's name, this name is the last component of the
path name. For instance: <tt class="docutils literal">/soc/alliance/sxlib</tt> will be named <tt class="docutils literal">sxlib</tt>.
Implementing the <span class="sc">Alliance</span> specification, when looking for a <em>Cell</em> <tt class="docutils literal">name</tt>,
the system will browse sequentially trought the library list and returns
the first <em>Cell</em> whose name match.</p>
</li>
<li><p class="first">For <tt class="docutils literal">POWER</tt>, <tt class="docutils literal">GROUND</tt>, <tt class="docutils literal">CLOCK</tt> and <tt class="docutils literal">BLOCKAGE</tt> net names, a regular
expression (<span class="sc">gnu</span> regexp) is expected.</p>
</li>
<li><p class="first">The <tt class="docutils literal">helpers.sysConfDir</tt> variable is supplied by the helpers, it is the
directory in which the system-wide configuration files are locateds.
For a standard installation it would be: <tt class="docutils literal">/soc/coriolis2</tt>.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<!-- * Trick and naming convention about ``SYMBOLIC_TECHNOLOGY``, ``REAL_TECHNOLOGY`` -->
<!-- and ``DISPLAY``. In the previous releases, thoses files where to read by -->
<!-- XML parsers, and still do if you triggers the XML compatibility mode. -->
<!-- But now, they have Python conterparts. In the configuration files, you -->
<!-- still have to name them as XML files, the Python file name will be -->
<!-- deduced from this one with thoses two translation rules: -->
<!-- -->
<!-- #. In the filename, all dots, except for the last (the file extention), -->
<!-- are replaced by underscores. -->
<!-- -->
<!-- #. The ``.xml`` extention is substituted by a ``.conf``. -->
<!-- -->
<!-- For the symbolic technology, it would give: :: -->
<!-- -->
<!-- /soc/coriolis2/technology.symbolic.xml -->
<!-- - -> /soc/coriolis2/technology_symbolic.conf -->
<p>A typical user's configuration file would be:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
import os
homeDir = os.getenv('HOME')
allianceConfig = \
( ('WORKING_LIBRARY' , homeDir+'/worklib')
, ('SYSTEM_LIBRARY' , ( (homeDir+'/mylib', Environment.Append) ) )
, ('POWER' , 'vdd.*')
, ('GROUND' , 'vss.*')
)
</pre>
</div>
<div class="section" id="tools-configuration-helpers">
<h4><a class="toc-backref" href="#id35">Tools Configuration Helpers</a></h4>
<p>All the tools uses the same helper to load their configuration (a.k.a.
<em>Configuration Helper</em>). Currently the following configuration system-wide
configuration files are defined:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><span class="cb">misc.conf</span>: commons settings or not belonging specifically to a tool.</li>
<li><span class="cb">etesian.conf</span>: for the <span class="sc">Etesian</span> tool.</li>
<li><span class="cb">kite.conf</span>: for the <span class="sc">Kite</span> tool.</li>
<li><span class="cb">stratus1.conf</span>: for the <span class="sc">Stratus1</span> tool.</li>
</ul>
<p>Here is the contents of <span class="cb">etesian.conf</span>:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
# Etesian parameters.
parametersTable = \
( ('etesian.aspectRatio' , TypePercentage, 100 , { 'min':10, 'max':1000 } )
, ('etesian.spaceMargin' , TypePercentage, 5 )
, ('etesian.uniformDensity' , TypeBool , False )
, ('etesian.routingDriven' , TypeBool , False )
, (&quot;etesian.effort&quot; , TypeEnumerate , 2
, { 'values':( (&quot;Fast&quot; , 1)
, (&quot;Standard&quot;, 2)
, (&quot;High&quot; , 3)
, (&quot;Extreme&quot; , 4) ) }
)
, (&quot;etesian.graphics&quot; , TypeEnumerate , 2
, { 'values':( (&quot;Show every step&quot; , 1)
, (&quot;Show lower bound&quot; , 2)
, (&quot;Show result only&quot; , 3) ) }
)
)
layoutTable = \
( (TypeTab , 'Etesian', 'etesian')
, (TypeTitle , 'Placement area')
, (TypeOption, &quot;etesian.aspectRatio&quot; , &quot;Aspect Ratio, X/Y (%)&quot;, 0 )
, (TypeOption, &quot;etesian.spaceMargin&quot; , &quot;Space Margin&quot; , 1 )
, (TypeRule ,)
, (TypeTitle , 'Etesian - Placer')
, (TypeOption, &quot;etesian.uniformDensity&quot;, &quot;Uniform density&quot; , 0 )
, (TypeOption, &quot;etesian.routingDriven&quot; , &quot;Routing driven&quot; , 0 )
, (TypeOption, &quot;etesian.effort&quot; , &quot;Placement effort&quot; , 1 )
, (TypeOption, &quot;etesian.graphics&quot; , &quot;Placement view&quot; , 1 )
, (TypeRule ,)
)
</pre>
<p>Taxonomy of the file:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>It must contains, at least, the two tables:<ul>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">parametersTable</tt>, defines &amp; initialise the configuration variables.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">layoutTables</tt>, defines how the various parameters will be displayed
in the configuration window (<a class="reference internal" href="#the-settings-tab">The Settings Tab</a>).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The <tt class="docutils literal">parametersTable</tt>, is a tuple (list) of tuples. Each entry in the list
describe a configuration parameter. In it's simplest form, it's a quadruplet
<span class="cb">(TypeOption, 'paramId', ParameterType, DefaultValue)</span> with:<ol class="arabic">
<li><tt class="docutils literal">TypeOption</tt>, tells that this tuple describe a parameter.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">paramId</tt>, the identifier of the parameter. Identifiers are defined
by the tools. The list of parameters is detailed in each tool section.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">ParameterType</tt>, the kind of parameter. Could be:<ul>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">TypeBool</tt>, boolean.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">TypeInt</tt>, signed integer.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">TypeEnumerate</tt>, enumerated type, needs extra entry.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">TypePercentage</tt>, percentage, expressed between 0 and 100.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">TypeDouble</tt>, float.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">TypeString</tt>, character string.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">DefaultValue</tt>, the default value for that parameter.</li>
</ol>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="hacking-the-configuration-files">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id36">Hacking the Configuration Files</a></h3>
<p>Asides from the symbols that gets used by the configuration helpers like
<span class="cb">allianceConfig</span> or <span class="cb">parametersTable</span>, you can put pretty much anything
in <span class="cb">&lt;CWD&gt;/.coriolis2/settings.py</span> (that is, written in <span class="sc">Python</span>).</p>
<p>For example:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
# -*- Mode:Python -*-
defaultStyle = 'Alliance.Classic [black]'
# Regular Coriolis configuration.
parametersTable = \
( ('misc.catchCore' , TypeBool , False )
, ('misc.info' , TypeBool , False )
, ('misc.paranoid' , TypeBool , False )
, ('misc.bug' , TypeBool , False )
, ('misc.logMode' , TypeBool , True )
, ('misc.verboseLevel1' , TypeBool , False )
, ('misc.verboseLevel2' , TypeBool , True )
, ('misc.minTraceLevel' , TypeInt , 0 )
, ('misc.maxTraceLevel' , TypeInt , 0 )
)
# Some ordinary Python script...
import os
print ' o Cleaning up ClockTree previous run.'
for fileName in os.listdir('.'):
if fileName.endswith('.ap') or (fileName.find('_clocked.') &gt;= 0):
print ' - &lt;%s&gt;' % fileName
os.unlink(fileName)
</pre>
<p>See <a class="reference internal" href="#python-interface-to-coriolis">Python Interface to Coriolis</a> for more details those capabilities.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="cgt-the-graphical-interface">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id37">CGT - The Graphical Interface</a></h2>
<p>The <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> graphical interface is split up into two windows.</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>The <strong>Viewer</strong>, with the following features:<ul>
<li>Basic load/save capabilities.</li>
<li>Display the current working cell. Could be empty if the design
is not yet placed.</li>
<li>Execute Stratus Scripts.</li>
<li>Menu to run the tools (placement, routage).</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Features are detailed in <a class="reference internal" href="#viewer-tools">Viewer &amp; Tools</a>.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img class="addborder" src="./images/Viewer-1.png" alt="Viewer Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>The <strong>Controller</strong>, which allows:<ul>
<li>Tweak what is displayer by the <em>Viewer</em>. Through the <em>Look</em>,
<em>Filter</em> and <em>Layers&amp;Gos</em> tabs.</li>
<li>Browse the <em>netlist</em> with eponym tab.</li>
<li>Show the list of selected objects (if any) with <em>selection</em></li>
<li>Walk through the Database, the Cell or the Selection with <em>Inspector</em>.
This is an advanced feature, reserved for experimented users.</li>
<li>The tab <em>Settings</em> which give access to all the settings.
They are closely related to Configuration &amp; Initialisation.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="id2">
<span id="viewer-tools"></span><h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id38">Viewer &amp; Tools</a></h2>
<div class="section" id="stratus-netlist-capture">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id39"><span class="sc">Stratus</span> Netlist Capture</a></h3>
<p><span class="sc">Stratus</span> is the replacement for <span class="sc">GenLib</span> procedural netlist capture language.
It is designed as a set of <span class="sc">Python</span> classes, and comes with it's own documentation
(<a class="reference external" href="file:///usr/share/doc/coriolis2/en/html/stratus/index.html">Stratus Documentation</a>)</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="the-hurricane-data-base">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id40">The <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> Data-Base</a></h3>
<p>The <span class="sc">Alliance</span> flow is based on the <span class="sc">mbk</span> data-base, which has one data-structure
for each view. That is, <span class="cb">Lofig</span> for the <em>logical</em> view and <span class="cb">Phfig</span> for the <em>physical</em>
view. The place and route tools were responsible for maintaining (or not) the
coherency between views. Reflecting this weak coupling between views, each one
was stored in a separate file with a specific format. The <em>logical</em> view is stored
in a <span class="cb">vst</span> file in <span class="sc">vhdl</span> format and the <em>physical</em> in an <span class="cb">ap</span> file in an ad-hoc format.</p>
<p>The <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> flow is based on the <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> data-base, which has a unified
structure for <em>logical</em> and <em>physical</em> view. That data structure is the <em>Cell</em> object.
The <em>Cell</em> can have any state between pure netlist and completly placed and
routed design. Although the memory representation of the views has deeply
changed we still use the <span class="sc">Alliance</span> files format, but they now really represent
views of the same object. The point is that one must be very careful about
view coherency when going to and from <span class="sc">Coriolis</span>.</p>
<p>As for the second release, <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> can be used only for three purposes :</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><strong>Placing a design</strong>, in which case the <em>netlist</em> view must be present.</li>
<li><strong>Routing a design</strong>, in that case the <em>netlist</em>
view and the <em>layout</em> view must be present and <em>layout</em> view must contain
a placement. Both views must have the same name. When saving the routed design,
it is advised to change the design name otherwise the original unrouted placement
in the <em>layout</em> view will be overwritten.</li>
<li><strong>Viewing a design</strong>, the <em>netlist</em> view must be present, if a <em>layout</em>
view is present it still must have the same name but it can be in any
state.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="section" id="synthetizing-and-loading-a-design">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id41">Synthetizing and loading a design</a></h3>
<p><span class="sc">Coriolis</span> supports several file formats. It can load all file format
from the <span class="sc">Alliance</span> toolchain (.ap for layout, behavioural and structural vhdl .vbe and .vst),
BLIF netlist format as well as benchmark formats from the ISPD contests.</p>
<p>It can be compiled with LEF/DEF support, although it requires acceptance of the SI2 license
and may not be compiled in your version of the software.</p>
<div class="section" id="synthesis-under-yosys">
<h4><a class="toc-backref" href="#id42">Synthesis under Yosys</a></h4>
<p>You can create a BLIF file from the <span class="sc">Yosys</span> synthetizer, which can be imported under Coriolis.
Most libraries are specified as a .lib liberty file and a .lef LEF file.
<span class="sc">Yosys</span> opens most .lib files with minor modifications, but LEF support in Coriolis relies on SI2.
If Coriolis hasn't been compiled against it, the library is given in <span class="sc">Alliance</span> .ap format.
<a class="reference external" href="http://vlsitechnology.org">Some free libraries</a> already provide both .ap and .lib files.</p>
<p>Once you have installed a common library under <span class="sc">Yosys</span> and Coriolis, just synthetize your design
with <span class="sc">Yosys</span> and import it (as Blif without the extension) under Coriolis to perform place&amp;route.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="synthesis-under-alliance">
<h4><a class="toc-backref" href="#id43">Synthesis under Alliance</a></h4>
<p><span class="sc">Alliance</span> is an older toolchain but has been extensively used for years. Coriolis can import
and write Alliance designs and libraries directly.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="etesian-placer">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id44">Etesian -- Placer</a></h3>
<p>The <span class="sc">Etesian</span> placer is a state of the art (as of 2015) analytical placer. It is
within <tt class="docutils literal">5%</tt> of other placers' solutions, but is normally a bit worse than ePlace.
This <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> tool is actually an encapsulation of <span class="sc">Coloquinte</span> which <em>is</em> the placer.</p>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last"><em>Instance Uniquification Unsupported:</em> a same logical instance cannot have
two different placements. So, either you manually make a clone of it or you
supply a placement for it. We need to implement uniquification in the
<span class="sc">Hurricane</span> database.</p>
</div>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span>
<strong>Hierarchical Placement</strong></p>
<p>The placement area is defined by the top cell abutment box.</p>
<p>When placing a complete hierarchy, the abutment boxes of the cells (models) other than
the top cell are sets identical to the one of the top cell and their instances are
all placed at position <tt class="docutils literal">(0,0,ID)</tt>. That is, all the abutments boxes, whatever the
hierarchical level, defines the same area (they are exactly superposed).</p>
<p>We choose this scheme because the placer will see all the instances as virtually
flattened, so they can be placed anywhere inside the top-cell abutment box.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/etesian-1.png" alt="Etesian Abutment Box"></center></span></p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span>
<strong>Computing the Placement Area</strong></p>
<p>The placement area is computed using the <tt class="docutils literal">etesian.aspectRatio</tt> and <tt class="docutils literal">etesian.spaceMargin</tt>
parameters only if the top-cell has an empty abutment box. If the top-cell abutment
box has to be set, then it is propagated to all the instances models recursively.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span>
<strong>Reseting the Placement</strong></p>
<p>Once a placement has been done, the placer cannot reset it (will be implemented
later). To perform a new placement, you must restart <span class="cb">cgt</span>. In addition, if you
have saved the placement on disk, you must erase any <span class="cb">.ap</span> file, which are
automatically reloaded along with the netlist (<span class="cb">.vst</span>).</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span>
<strong>Limitations</strong></p>
<p>Etesian supports standard cells and fixed macros. As for the Coriolis 2.1 version,
it doesn't support movable macros, and you must place every macro beforehand.
Timing and routability analysis are not included either, and the returned placement
may be unroutable.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
<div class="section" id="etesian-configuration-parameters">
<h4><a class="toc-backref" href="#id45">Etesian Configuration Parameters</a></h4>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="43%" />
<col width="22%" />
<col width="35%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Parameter Identifier</th>
<th class="head">Type</th>
<th class="head">Default</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td colspan="3"><strong>Etesian Parameters</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">etesian.aspectRatio</tt></td>
<td>TypePercentage</td>
<td><span class="cb">100</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Define the height on width <tt class="docutils literal">H/W</tt> aspect
ratio, can be comprised between 10 and 1000</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">etesian.spaceMargin</tt></td>
<td>TypePercentage</td>
<td><span class="cb">5</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The extra white space added to the total area
of the standard cells</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">etesian.uniformDensity</tt></td>
<td>TypeBool</td>
<td><span class="cb">False</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Whether the cells will be spread envenly
across the area or allowed to form denser
clusters</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">etesian.effort</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">2</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Sets the balance between the speed of the
placer and the solution quality</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">etesian.routingDriven</tt></td>
<td>TypeBool</td>
<td><span class="cb">False</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Whether the tool will try routing iterations
and whitespace allocation to improve
routability; to be implemented</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">etesian.graphics</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">2</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2"><p class="first">How often the display will be refreshed
More refreshing slows the placer.</p>
<ul class="last simple">
<li><tt class="docutils literal">1</tt> shows both upper and lower bounds</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">2</tt> only shows lower bound results</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">3</tt> only shows the final results</li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="knik-global-router">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id46">Knik -- Global Router</a></h3>
<p>The quality of <span class="sc">Knik</span> global routing solutions are equivalent to those of <a class="reference external" href="http://vlsicad.eecs.umich.edu/BK/FGR/">FGR</a> 1.0.
For an in-depth description of <span class="sc">Knik</span> algorithms, you may download the thesis of
D. <span class="sc">Dupuis</span> avalaible from here~: <a class="reference external" href="http://www-soc.lip6.fr/en/users/damiendupuis/PhD/">Knik Thesis</a>.</p>
<p>The global router is (not yet) deterministic. To circumvent this limitation,
a global routing <em>solution</em> can be saved to disk and reloaded for later uses.</p>
<p>A global routing is saved into a file with the same name as the design and a
<span class="cb">kgr</span> extention. It is in <a class="reference external" href="http://www.cerc.utexas.edu/~thyeros/boxrouter/boxrouter.htm">Box Router</a> output format.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> Menus:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <img alt="menu_KiteSaveGlobalRouting" src="./images/PR-SBS-SaveGlobal.png" />.</li>
<li><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <img alt="menu_KiteLoadGlobalRouting" src="./images/PR-SBS-LoadGlobal.png" />.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="section" id="kite-detailed-router">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id47">Kite -- Detailed Router</a></h3>
<p><span class="sc">Kite</span> no longer suffers from the limitations of <span class="sc">Nero</span>. It can route big designs
as its runtime and memory footprint is almost linear (with respect to the number
of gates). It has successfully routed design of more than <cite>150K</cite> gates.
<span class="raw-html"><br></span></p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> However, this first release comes with the temporary the following
restrictions:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>Works only with <span class="sc">SxLib</span> standard cell gauge.</li>
<li>Works always with 4 routing metal layers (<cite>M2</cite> through <cite>M5</cite>).</li>
<li>Do not allow (take into account) pre-routed wires on signals
other than <span class="sc">power</span> or <span class="sc">ground</span>.</li>
</ul>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last"><strong>Slow Layer Assignment.</strong> Most of the time, the layer assignment stage is
fast (less than a dozen seconds), but in some instances it can take more
than a dozen <em>minutes</em>. This is a known bug and will be corrected in later
releases.</p>
</div>
<p>After each run, <span class="sc">Kite</span> displays a set of <em>completion ratios</em> which must all
be equal to <cite>100%</cite> if the detailed routing has been successfull.
In the event of a failure, on a saturated design, you may decrease the
<cite>edge saturation ratio</cite> (argument <cite>--edge</cite>) to balance more evenly the design
saturation. That is, the maximum saturation decrease at the price of a wider
saturated area and increased wirelength. This is the saturation of the
<em>global</em> router <span class="sc">Knik</span>, and you may increase/decrease by steps of <tt class="docutils literal">5%</tt>,
which represent one track. The maximum capacity of the <span class="sc">SxLib</span> gauge is
10 tracks in two layers, that makes 20 tracks by <span class="sc">Knik</span> edge.</p>
<p>Routing a design is done in four ordered steps:</p>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>Detailed pre-route <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <img alt="menu_KiteDetailedPreRoute" src="./images/PR-DetailedPreRoute.png" />.</li>
<li>Global routing <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <img alt="menu_KiteGlobalRoute" src="./images/PR-GlobalRoute.png" />.</li>
<li>Detailed routing <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <img alt="menu_KiteDetailedRoute" src="./images/PR-DetailedRoute.png" />.</li>
<li>Finalize routing <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span> <img alt="menu_KiteFinalizeRoute" src="./images/PR-FinalizeRoute.png" />.</li>
</ol>
<p>It is possible to supply to the router a complete wiring for some nets that the user's
wants to be routed according to a specific topology. The supplied topology must respect
the building rules of the <span class="sc">Katabatic</span> database (contacts must be, terminals, turns, h-tee
&amp; v-tee only). During the first step <span class="fboxtt">Detailed Pre-Route</span> the router will solve
overlaps between the segments, without making any dogleg. If no pre-routed topologies
are present, this step may be ommited. Any net routed at this step is then fixed and
become unmovable for the later stages.</p>
<p>After the detailed routing step the <span class="sc">Kite</span> data-structure is still active
(the Hurricane wiring is decorated). The finalize step performs the removal of
the <span class="sc">Kite</span> data-structure, and it is not advisable to save the design before
that step.</p>
<p>You may visualize the density (saturation) of either <span class="sc">Knik</span> (on edges) or
<span class="sc">Kite</span> (on GCells) until the routing is finalized. Special layers appears
to that effect in the <a class="reference internal" href="#the-layers-go-tab">The Layers&amp;Go Tab</a>.</p>
<div class="section" id="kite-configuration-parameters">
<h4><a class="toc-backref" href="#id48">Kite Configuration Parameters</a></h4>
<p>As <span class="sc">Knik</span> is only called through <span class="sc">Kite</span>, it's parameters also have
the <span class="cb">kite.</span> prefix.</p>
<p>The <span class="sc">Katabatic</span> parameters control the layer assignment step.</p>
<p>All the defaults value given below are from the default <span class="sc">Alliance</span> technology
(<span class="cb">cmos</span> and <span class="cb">SxLib</span> cell gauge/routing gauge).</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="43%" />
<col width="22%" />
<col width="35%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Parameter Identifier</th>
<th class="head">Type</th>
<th class="head">Default</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td colspan="3"><strong>Katabatic Parameters</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">katabatic.topRoutingLayer</tt></td>
<td>TypeString</td>
<td><span class="cb">METAL5</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Define the highest metal layer that will be
used for routing (inclusive).</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">katabatic.globalLengthThreshold</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">1450</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">This parameter is used by a layer assignment
method which is no longer used (did not give
good results)</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">katabatic.saturateRatio</tt></td>
<td>TypePercentage</td>
<td><span class="cb">80</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">If <tt class="docutils literal">M(x)</tt> density is above this ratio,
move up feedthru global segments up from
depth <tt class="docutils literal">x</tt> to <tt class="docutils literal">x+2</tt></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">katabatic.saturateRp</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">8</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">If a GCell contains more terminals
(<span class="cb">RoutingPad</span>) than that number, force a
move up of the connecting segments to those
in excess</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3"><strong>Knik Parameters</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">kite.hTracksReservedLocal</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">3</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">To take account the tracks needed <em>inside</em> a
GCell to build the <em>local</em> routing, decrease
the capacity of the edges of the global
router. Horizontal and vertical locally
reserved capacity can be distinguished for
more accuracy.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">kite.vTracksReservedLocal</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">3</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">cf. <tt class="docutils literal">kite.hTracksReservedLocal</tt></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3"><strong>Kite Parameters</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">kite.eventsLimit</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">4000002</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The maximum number of segment displacements,
this is a last ditch safety against infinite
loop. It's perhaps a little too low for big
designs</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">kite.ripupCost</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">3</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Differential introduced between two ripup
cost to avoid a loop between two ripped up
segments</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">kite.strapRipupLimit</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">16</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Maximum number of ripup for <em>strap</em> segments</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">kite.localRipupLimit</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">9</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Maximum number of ripup for <em>local</em> segments</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">kite.globalRipupLimit</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">5</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Maximum number of ripup for <em>global</em> segments,
when this limit is reached, triggers topologic
modification</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">kite.longGlobalRipupLimit</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">5</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Maximum number of ripup for <em>long global</em>
segments, when this limit is reached, triggers
topological modification</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="executing-python-scripts-in-cgt">
<span id="python-scripts-in-cgt"></span><h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id49">Executing Python Scripts in Cgt</a></h3>
<p>Python/Stratus scripts can be executed either in text or graphical mode.</p>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last"><strong>How Cgt Locates Python Scripts:</strong>
<span class="cb">cgt</span> uses the Python <tt class="docutils literal">import</tt> mechanism to load Python scripts.
So you must give the name of your script whitout <tt class="docutils literal">.py</tt> extention and
it must be reachable through the <tt class="docutils literal">PYTHONPATH</tt>. You may uses the
dotted module notation.</p>
</div>
<p>A Python/Stratus script must contains a function called <tt class="docutils literal">ScriptMain()</tt>
with one optional argument, the graphical editor into which it may be
running (will be set to <tt class="docutils literal">None</tt> in text mode). The Python interface to
the editor (type: <span class="cb">CellViewer</span>) is limited to basic capabilities
only.</p>
<p>Any script given on the command line will be run immediatly <em>after</em> the
initializations and <em>before</em> any other argument is processed.</p>
<p>For more explanation on Python scripts see <a class="reference internal" href="#python-interface-to-coriolis">Python Interface to Coriolis</a>.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="printing-snapshots">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id50">Printing &amp; Snapshots</a></h3>
<p>Printing or saving into a <span class="sc">pdf</span> is fairly simple, just uses the <strong>File -&gt; Print</strong>
menu or the <span class="fboxtt">CTRL+P</span> shortcut to open the dialog box.</p>
<p>The print functionality uses exactly the same rendering mechanism as for the
screen, beeing almost <em>WYSIWYG</em>. Thus, to obtain the best results it is advisable
to select the <tt class="docutils literal">Coriolis.Printer</tt> look (in the <em>Controller</em>), which uses a
white background and much suited for high resolutions <tt class="docutils literal">32x32</tt> pixels patterns</p>
<p>There is also two mode of printing selectable through the <em>Controller</em>
<strong>Settings -&gt; Misc -&gt; Printer/Snapshot Mode</strong>:</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="18%" />
<col width="20%" />
<col width="62%" />
</colgroup>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td>Mode</td>
<td>DPI (approx.)</td>
<td>Intended Usage</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>Cell Mode</strong></td>
<td>150</td>
<td>For single <tt class="docutils literal">Cell</tt> printing or very small designs.
Patterns will be bigger and more readable.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>Design Mode</strong></td>
<td>300</td>
<td>For designs (mostly commposed of wires and cells
outlines).</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last"><em>The pdf file size</em>
Be aware that the generated <span class="sc">pdf</span> files are indeed only pixmaps.
So they can grew very large if you select paper format above <tt class="docutils literal">A2</tt>
or similar.</p>
</div>
<p><span class="raw-html"><p class="empty"></p></span>
Saving into an image is subject to the same remarks as for <span class="sc">pdf</span>.</p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="memento-of-shortcuts-in-graphic-mode">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id51">Memento of Shortcuts in Graphic Mode</a></h3>
<p>The main application binary is <span class="cb">cgt</span>.</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="16%" />
<col width="20%" />
<col width="63%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Category</th>
<th class="head">Keys</th>
<th class="head">Action</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td><strong>Moves</strong></td>
<td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line"><span class="fboxtt">Up</span>,
<span class="fboxtt">Down</span></div>
<div class="line"><span class="fboxtt">Left</span>,
<span class="fboxtt">Right</span></div>
</div>
</td>
<td>Shift the view in the according direction</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>Fit</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">f</span></td>
<td>Fit to the Cell abutment box</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>Refresh</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">CTRL+L</span></td>
<td>Triggers a complete display redraw</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>Goto</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">g</span></td>
<td><em>apperture</em> is the minimum side of the area
displayed around the point to go to. It's an
alternative way of setting the zoom level</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><strong>Zoom</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">z</span>,
<span class="fboxtt">m</span></td>
<td>Respectively zoom by a 2 factor and <em>unzoom</em>
by a 2 factor</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line"><img alt="BigMouse" src="./images/ComputerMouse.png" style="width: 33.75px; height: 33.75px;" /></div>
<div class="line">Area Zoom</div>
</div>
</td>
<td>You can perform a zoom to an area.
Define the zoom area by <em>holding down the left
mouse button</em> while moving the mouse.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="3"><strong>Selection</strong></td>
<td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line"><img alt="BigMouse" src="./images/ComputerMouse.png" style="width: 33.75px; height: 33.75px;" /></div>
<div class="line">Area Selection</div>
</div>
</td>
<td>You can select displayed objects under an area.
Define the selection area by <em>holding down the
right mouse button</em> while moving the mouse.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><div class="first last line-block">
<div class="line"><img alt="BigMouse" src="./images/ComputerMouse.png" style="width: 33.75px; height: 33.75px;" /></div>
<div class="line">Toggle Selection</div>
</div>
</td>
<td>You can toggle the selection of one object under
the mouse position by pressing <span class="fboxtt">CTRL</span> and
pressing down <em>the right mouse button</em>. A popup
list of what's under the position shows up into
which you can toggle the selection state of one
item.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><span class="fboxtt">S</span></td>
<td>Toggle the selection visibility</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>Controller</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">CTRL+I</span></td>
<td><p class="first">Show/hide the controller window.</p>
<p class="last">It's the Swiss Army Knife of the viewer.
From it, you can fine-control the display and
inspect almost everything in your design.</p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><strong>Rulers</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">k</span>,
<span class="fboxtt">ESC</span></td>
<td>One stroke on <span class="fboxtt">k</span> enters the ruler mode, in
which you can draw one ruler. You can exit the
ruler mode by pressing <span class="fboxtt">ESC</span>. Once in ruler
mode, the first click on the <em>left mouse button</em>
sets the ruler's starting point and the second
click the ruler's end point. The second click
exits automatically the ruler mode.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><span class="fboxtt">K</span></td>
<td>Clears all the drawn rulers</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><strong>Print</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">CTRL+P</span></td>
<td>Currently rather crude. It's a direct copy of
what's displayed in pixels. So the resulting
picture will be a little blurred due to
anti-aliasing mechanism.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="3"><strong>Open/Close</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">CTRL+O</span></td>
<td>Opens a new design. The design name must be
given without path or extention.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><span class="fboxtt">CTRL+W</span></td>
<td>Close the current viewer window, but do not quit
the application.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><span class="fboxtt">CTRL+Q</span></td>
<td><cite>CTRL+Q</cite> quit the application
(closing all windows).</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><strong>Hierarchy</strong></td>
<td><span class="fboxtt">CTRL+Down</span></td>
<td>Go one hierarchy level down. That is, if there
is an <em>instance</em> under the cursor position, load
it's <em>model</em> Cell in place of the current one.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><span class="fboxtt">CTRL+Up</span></td>
<td>Go one hierarchy level up. if we have entered
the current model through <span class="fboxtt">CTRL+Down</span>
reload the previous model (the one
in which this model is instanciated).</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
<div class="section" id="cgt-command-line-options">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id52">Cgt Command Line Options</a></h3>
<p>Appart from the obvious <tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">--text</span></tt> options, all can be used for text and graphical mode.</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="38%" />
<col width="62%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Arguments</th>
<th class="head">Meaning</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td><cite>-t|--text</cite></td>
<td>Instruct <span class="cb">cgt</span> to run in text mode.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>-L|--log-mode</cite></td>
<td>Disable the uses of <span class="sc">ansi</span> escape sequence on
the <span class="cb">tty</span>. Useful when the output is
redirected to a file.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>-c &lt;cell&gt;|--cell=&lt;cell&gt;</cite></td>
<td>The name of the design to load, without
leading path or extention.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>-g|--load-global</cite></td>
<td>Reload a global routing solution from disk.
The file containing the solution must be named
<cite>&lt;cell&gt;.kgr</cite>.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>--save-global</cite></td>
<td>Save the global routing solution, into a file
named <cite>&lt;design&gt;.kgr</cite>.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>-e &lt;ratio&gt;|--edge=&lt;ratio&gt;</cite></td>
<td>Change the edge capacity for the global
router, between 0 and 1 (<span class="sc">Knik</span>).</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>-G|--global-route</cite></td>
<td>Run the global router (<span class="sc">Knik</span>).</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>-R|--detailed-route</cite></td>
<td>Run the detailed router (<span class="sc">Kite</span>).</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>-s|--save-design=&lt;routed&gt;</cite></td>
<td>The design into which the routed layout will
be saved. It is strongly recommanded to choose
a different name from the source (unrouted)
design.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>--events-limit=&lt;count&gt;</cite></td>
<td>The maximal number of events after which the
router will stops. This is mainly a failsafe
against looping. The limit is sets to 4
millions of iteration which should suffice to
any design of <cite>100K</cite>. gates. For bigger
designs you may wants to increase this limit.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><cite>--stratus-script=&lt;module&gt;</cite></td>
<td>Run the Python/Stratus script <tt class="docutils literal">module</tt>.
See <a class="reference internal" href="#python-scripts-in-cgt">Python Scripts in Cgt</a>.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Some Examples :</p>
<ul>
<li><p class="first">Run both global and detailed router, then save the routed design :</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
&gt; cgt -v -t -G -R --cell=design --save-design=design_kite
</pre>
</li>
<li><p class="first">Load a previous global solution, run the detailed router, then save the
routed design :</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
&gt; cgt -v -t --load-global -R --cell=design --save-design=design_kite
</pre>
</li>
<li><p class="first">Run the global router, then save the global routing solution :</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
&gt; cgt -v -t -G --save-global --cell=design
</pre>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="section" id="miscellaneous-settings">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id53">Miscellaneous Settings</a></h3>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="46%" />
<col width="21%" />
<col width="33%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Parameter Identifier</th>
<th class="head">Type</th>
<th class="head">Default</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td colspan="3"><strong>Verbosity/Log Parameters</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">misc.info</tt></td>
<td>TypeBool</td>
<td><span class="cb">False</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Enable display of <em>info</em> level message
(<span class="cb">cinfo</span> stream)</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">misc.bug</tt></td>
<td>TypeBool</td>
<td><span class="cb">False</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Enable display of <em>bug</em> level message
(<span class="cb">cbug</span> stream), messages can be a little
scarry</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">misc.logMode</tt></td>
<td>TypeBool</td>
<td><span class="cb">False</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">If enabled, assume that the output device
is not a <tt class="docutils literal">tty</tt> and suppress any escaped
sequences</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">misc.verboseLevel1</tt></td>
<td>TypeBool</td>
<td><span class="cb">True</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">First level of verbosity, disable level 2</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">misc.verboseLevel2</tt></td>
<td>TypeBool</td>
<td><span class="cb">False</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Second level of verbosity</td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="3"><strong>Development/Debug Parameters</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">misc.minTraceLevel</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">0</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">misc.maxTraceLevel</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">0</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">Display trace information <em>between</em> those two
levels (<span class="cb">cdebug</span> stream)</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">misc.catchCore</tt></td>
<td>TypeBool</td>
<td><span class="cb">False</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">By default, <span class="cb">cgt</span> do not dump core.
To generate one set this flag to <span class="cb">True</span></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><span class="raw-html"><hr></span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="id3">
<span id="the-controller"></span><h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id54">The Controller</a></h2>
<p>The <em>Controller</em> window is composed of seven tabs:</p>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#the-look-tab">The Look Tab</a> to select the display style.</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#the-filter-tab">The Filter Tab</a> the hierarchical levels to be displayed, the look of
rubbers and the dimension units.</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#the-layers-go-tab">The Layers&amp;Go Tab</a> to selectively hide/display layers.</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#the-netlist-tab">The Netlist Tab</a> to browse through the <em>netlist</em>. Works in association
with the <em>Selection</em> tab.</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#the-selection-tab">The Selection Tab</a> allow to view all the currently selected elements.</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#the-inspector-tab">The Inspector Tab</a> browse through either the DataBase, the Cell or
the current selection.</li>
<li><a class="reference internal" href="#the-settings-tab">The Settings Tab</a> access all the tool's configuration settings.</li>
</ol>
<div class="section" id="id4">
<span id="the-look-tab"></span><h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id55">The Look Tab</a></h3>
<p>You can select how the layout will be displayed. There is a special one
<tt class="docutils literal">Printer.Coriolis</tt> specifically designed for <a class="reference internal" href="#printing-snapshots">Printing &amp; Snapshots</a>.
You should select it prior to calling the print or snapshot dialog boxes.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-Look-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="id5">
<span id="the-filter-tab"></span><h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id56">The Filter Tab</a></h3>
<p>The filter tab let you select what hierarchical levels of your design will be
displayed. Hierarchy level are numbered top-down: the level 0 correspond to
the top-level cell, the level one to the instances of the top-level Cell and
so on.</p>
<p>There are also check boxes to enable/disable the processing of Terminal Cell,
Master Cells and Compnents. The processing of Terminal Cell (hierarchy leaf
cells) is disabled by default when you load a hierarchical design and enabled
when you load a single Cell.</p>
<p>You can choose what kind of form to give to the rubbers and the type of
unit used to display coordinates.</p>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p><em>What are Rubbers:</em> <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> uses <em>Rubbers</em> to materialize
physical gaps in net topology. That is, if some wires are missing to
connect two or more parts of net, a <em>rubber</em> will be drawn between them
to signal the gap.</p>
<p class="last">For example, after the detailed routing no <em>rubbers</em> should remains.
They have been made <em>very</em> visibles as big violet lines...</p>
</div>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-Filter-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="id6">
<span id="the-layers-go-tab"></span><h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id57">The Layers&amp;Go Tab</a></h3>
<p>Control the individual display of all <em>layers</em> and <em>Gos</em>.</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><em>Layers</em> correspond to a true physical layer. From a <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> point of
view they are all the <em>BasicLayers</em> (could be matched to GDSII).</li>
<li><em>Gos</em> stands from <em>Graphical Objects</em>, they are drawings that have no
physical existence but are added by the various tools to display extra
information. One good exemple is the density map of the detailed router,
to easily locate congested areas.</li>
</ul>
<p>For each layer/Go there are two check boxes:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>The normal one triggers the display.</li>
<li>The red-outlined allows objects of that layer to be selectable or not.</li>
</ul>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-LayersGos-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="id7">
<span id="the-netlist-tab"></span><h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id58">The Netlist Tab</a></h3>
<p>The <em>Netlist</em> tab shows the list of nets... By default the tab is not
<em>synched</em> with the displayed Cell. To see the nets you must check the
<strong>Sync Netlist</strong> checkbox. You can narrow the set of displayed nets by
using the filter pattern (supports regular expressions).</p>
<p>An very useful feature is to enable the <strong>Sync Selection</strong>, which will
automatically select all the components of the selected net(s). You can
select multiple nets. In the figure the net <tt class="docutils literal">auxsc35</tt> is selected and
is highlited in the <em>Viewer</em>.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-Netlist-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span>
<span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Viewer-Netlist-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="id8">
<span id="the-selection-tab"></span><h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id59">The Selection Tab</a></h3>
<p>The <em>Selection</em> tab list all the components currently selecteds. They
can be filtered thanks to the filter pattern.</p>
<p>Used in conjunction with the <em>Netlist</em> <strong>Sync Selection</strong> you will all see
all the components part of <em>net</em>.</p>
<p>In this list, you can toggle individually the selection of component by
pressing the <tt class="docutils literal">t</tt> key. When unselected in this way a component is not
removed from the the selection list but instead displayed in red italic.
To see where a component is you may make it blink by repeatedly press
the <tt class="docutils literal">t</tt> key...</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-Selection-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="id9">
<span id="the-inspector-tab"></span><h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id60">The Inspector Tab</a></h3>
<p>This tab is very useful, but mostly for <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> developpers. It allows
to browse through the live DataBase. The <em>Inspector</em> provide three entry points:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li><strong>DataBase</strong>: Starts from the whole <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> DataBase.</li>
<li><strong>Cell</strong>: Inspect the currently loaded Cell.</li>
<li><strong>Selection</strong>: Inspect the object currently highlited in the <em>Selection</em> tab.</li>
</ul>
<p>Once an entry point has been activated, you may recursively expore all
it's fields using the right/left arrows.</p>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last"><em>Do not put your fingers in the socket:</em> when inspecting
anything, do not modify the DataBase. If any object under inspection
is deleted, you will crash the application...</p>
</div>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last"><em>Implementation Detail:</em> the inspector support is done with
<tt class="docutils literal">Slot</tt>, <tt class="docutils literal">Record</tt> and <tt class="docutils literal">getString()</tt>.</p>
</div>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-Inspector-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span>
<span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-Inspector-2.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span>
<span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-Inspector-3.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
</div>
<div class="section" id="id10">
<span id="the-settings-tab"></span><h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id61">The Settings Tab</a></h3>
<p>Here comes the description of the <em>Settings</em> tab.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/Controller-Settings-1.png" alt="Controller Basic Snapshot"></center></span></p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="python-interface-for-hurricane-coriolis">
<span id="python-interface-to-coriolis"></span><h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id62">Python Interface for <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> / <span class="sc">Coriolis</span></a></h2>
<p>The (almost) complete interface of <span class="sc">Hurricane</span> is exported as a <span class="sc">Python</span> module
and some part of the other components of <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> (each one in a separate
module). The interface has been made to mirror as closely as possible the
C++ one, so the C++ doxygen documentation could be used to write code with
either languages.</p>
<p><a class="reference external" href="file:../../../index.html">Summary of the C++ Documentation</a></p>
<p>A script could be run directly in text mode from the command line or through
the graphical interface (see <a class="reference internal" href="#python-scripts-in-cgt">Python Scripts in Cgt</a>).</p>
<p>Asides for this requirement, the python script can contain anything valid
in <span class="sc">Python</span>, so don't hesitate to use any package or extention.</p>
<p>Small example of Python/Stratus script:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
from Hurricane import *
from Stratus import *
def doSomething ():
# ...
return
def ScriptMain ( **kw ):
editor = None
if kw.has_key('editor') and kw['editor']:
editor = kw['editor']
stratus.setEditor( editor )
doSomething()
return
if __name__ == &quot;__main__&quot; :
kw = {}
success = ScriptMain( **kw )
shellSuccess = 0
if not success: shellSuccess = 1
sys.exit( shellSuccess )
ScriptMain ()
</pre>
<p>This typical script can be executed in two ways:</p>
<ol class="arabic">
<li><p class="first">Run directly as a <span class="sc">Python</span> script, thanks to the</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
if __name__ == &quot;__main__&quot; :
</pre>
<p>part (this is standart <span class="sc">Python</span>). It is a simple adapter that will
calls <span class="cb">ScriptMain()</span>.</p>
</li>
<li><p class="first">Through <span class="cb">cgt</span>, either in text or graphical mode. In that case, the
<span class="cb">ScriptMain()</span> is directly called trough a sub-interpreter.
The arguments of the script are passed through the <tt class="docutils literal">**kw</tt> dictionnary.</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="32%" />
<col width="68%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head" colspan="2">**kw Dictionnary</th>
</tr>
<tr><th class="head">Parameter Key/Name</th>
<th class="head">Contents type</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'cell'</tt></td>
<td>A Hurricane cell on which to work. Depending
on the context, it may be <tt class="docutils literal">None</tt>.
For example, when run from <span class="cb">cgt</span>, it the cell
currently loaded in the viewer, if any.</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'editor'</tt></td>
<td>The viewer from which the script is run, when
lauched through <span class="cb">cgt</span>.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</li>
</ol>
</div>
<div class="section" id="plugins">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id63">Plugins</a></h2>
<p>Plugins are <span class="sc">Python</span> scripts specially crafted to integrate with <span class="cb">cgt</span>.
Their entry point is a <span class="cb">ScriptMain()</span> method as described in
<a class="reference internal" href="#python-interface-to-coriolis">Python Interface to Coriolis</a>. They can be called by user scripts
through this method.</p>
<div class="section" id="chip-placement">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id64">Chip Placement</a></h3>
<p>Automatically perform the placement of a complete chip. This plugin, as well
as the other P&amp;R tools expect a specific top-level hierarchy for the design.
The top-level hierarchy must contains the instances of all the I/O pads and
<strong>exactly one</strong> instance of the chip's core model.</p>
<p><span class="raw-html"><center><img src="./images/chip-structure-1.png" alt="Chip Top Structure"></center></span></p>
<p>The designer must provide a configuration file that define the rules for the
placement of the top-level hierarchy (that is, the pads and the core).
This file must be named after the chip's name, by appending <tt class="docutils literal">_chip.py</tt>
(obviously, it is a <span class="sc">Python</span> file). For instance if the chip netlist file
is called <tt class="docutils literal">amd2901_crl.vst</tt>, then the configuration file must be named
<tt class="docutils literal">amd2901_crl_chip.vst</tt>.</p>
<p>Example of chip placement configuration file (for <tt class="docutils literal">AM2901</tt>):</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
chip = \
{ 'pads.south' : [ 'p_a3' , 'p_a2' , 'p_a1' , 'p_r0'
, 'p_vddick0', 'p_vssick0', 'p_a0' , 'p_i6'
, 'p_i8' , 'p_i7' , 'p_r3' ]
, 'pads.east' : [ 'p_zero' , 'p_i0' , 'p_i1' , 'p_i2'
, 'p_vddeck0', 'p_vsseck0', 'p_q3' , 'p_b0'
, 'p_b1' , 'p_b2' , 'p_b3' ]
, 'pads.north' : [ 'p_noe' , 'p_y3' , 'p_y2' , 'p_y1'
, 'p_y0' , 'p_vddeck1', 'p_vsseck1', 'p_np'
, 'p_ovr' , 'p_cout' , 'p_ng' ]
, 'pads.west' : [ 'p_cin' , 'p_i4' , 'p_i5' , 'p_i3'
, 'p_ck' , 'p_d0' , 'p_d1' , 'p_d2'
, 'p_d3' , 'p_q0' , 'p_f3' ]
, 'core.size' : ( 1500, 1500 )
, 'chip.size' : ( 3000, 3000 )
, 'chip.clockTree' : True
}
</pre>
<p>The file must contain <em>one dictionnary</em> named <tt class="docutils literal">chip</tt>.</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="29%" />
<col width="71%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head" colspan="2">Chip Dictionnary</th>
</tr>
<tr><th class="head">Parameter Key/Name</th>
<th class="head">Value/Contents type</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'pad.south'</tt></td>
<td>Ordered list (left to right) of pad instances names
to put on the south side of the chip</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'pad.east'</tt></td>
<td>Ordered list (down to up) of pad instances names
to put on the east side of the chip</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'pad.north'</tt></td>
<td>Ordered list (left to right) of pad instances names
to put on the north side of the chip</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'pad.west'</tt></td>
<td>Ordered list (down to up) of pad instances names
to put on the west side of the chip</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'core.size'</tt></td>
<td>The size of the core (to be used by the placer)</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'chip.size'</tt></td>
<td>The size of the whole chip. The sides must be great
enough to accomodate all the pads</td>
</tr>
<tr><td><tt class="docutils literal">'chip.clockTree'</tt></td>
<td>Whether to generate a clock tree or not. This calls
the ClockTree plugin</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p>Configuration parameters, defaults are defined in <tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">etc/coriolis2/&lt;STECHNO&gt;/plugins.conf</span></tt>.</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="43%" />
<col width="22%" />
<col width="35%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Parameter Identifier</th>
<th class="head">Type</th>
<th class="head">Default</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td colspan="3"><strong>Chip Plugin Parameters</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.block.rails.count</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">5</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The minimum number of rails around the core
block. Must be odd and suppérior to 5.
One rail for the clock and at least two pairs
of power/grounds</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.block.rails.hWidth</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">12</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The horizontal with of the rails</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.block.rails.vWidth</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">12</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The vertical with of the rails</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.block.rails.hSpacing</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">6</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The spacing, <em>edge to edge</em> of two adjacent
horizontal rails</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.block.rails.vSpacing</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">6</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The spacing, <em>edge to edge</em> of two adjacent
vertical rails</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.pad.pck</tt></td>
<td>TypeString</td>
<td><span class="cb">pck_px</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The model name of the pad connected to the
chip external clock</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.pad.pvddeck</tt></td>
<td>TypeString</td>
<td><span class="cb">pvddeck_px</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The model name of the pad connected to the
<tt class="docutils literal">vdde</tt> (external power) and suppling it to
the core</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.pad.pvsseck</tt></td>
<td>TypeString</td>
<td><span class="cb">pvsseck_px</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The model name of the pad connected to the
<tt class="docutils literal">vsse</tt> (external ground) and suppling it to
the core</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.pad.pvddick</tt></td>
<td>TypeString</td>
<td><span class="cb">pvddick_px</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The model name of the pad connected to the
<tt class="docutils literal">vddi</tt> (internal power) and suppling it to
the core</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">chip.pad.pvssick</tt></td>
<td>TypeString</td>
<td><span class="cb">pvssick_px</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The model name of the pad connected to the
<tt class="docutils literal">vssi</tt> (internal ground) and suppling it to
the core</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last">If no clock tree is generated, then the clock rail is <em>not</em> created.
So even if the requested number of rails <tt class="docutils literal">chip.block.rails.count</tt> is, say 5,
only four rails (2* <tt class="docutils literal">power</tt>, 2* <tt class="docutils literal">ground</tt>) will be generateds.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="clock-tree">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id65">Clock Tree</a></h3>
<p>Insert a clock tree into a block. The clock tree uses the H strategy.
The clock net is splitted into sub-nets, one for each branch of the
tree.</p>
<ul>
<li><p class="first">On <strong>chips</strong> design, the sub-nets are createds in the model of the
core block (then trans-hierarchically flattened to be shown at
chip level).</p>
</li>
<li><p class="first">On <strong>blocks</strong>, the sub nets are created directly in the top block.</p>
</li>
<li><p class="first">The sub-nets are named according to a simple geometrical scheme.
A common prefix <tt class="docutils literal">ck_htree</tt>, then one postfix by level telling
on which quarter of plane the sub-clock is located:</p>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li><tt class="docutils literal">_bl</tt>: bottom left plane quarter.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">_br</tt>: bottom right plane quarter.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">_tl</tt>: top left plane quarter.</li>
<li><tt class="docutils literal">_tr</tt>: top right plane quarter.</li>
</ol>
<p>We can have <tt class="docutils literal">ck_htree_bl</tt>, <tt class="docutils literal">ck_htree_bl_bl</tt>, <tt class="docutils literal">ch_htree_bl_tl</tt> and so on.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p>The clock tree plugin works in four steps:</p>
<ol class="arabic simple">
<li>Build the clock tree: creates the top-block abutment box, compute the
levels of H tree neededs and place the clock buffers.</li>
<li>Once the clock buffers are placed, calls the placer (<span class="sc">Etesian</span>) to place
the ordinary standart cells, whithout disturbing clock H-tree buffers.</li>
<li>At this point we know the exact positions of all the DFFs, so we can
connect them to the nearest H-tree leaf clock signal.</li>
<li>Leaf clock signals that are not connecteds to any DFFs are removed.</li>
</ol>
<p>Netlist reorganisation:</p>
<ul class="simple">
<li>Obviously the top block or chip core model netlist is modificated to
contains all the clock sub-nets. The interface is <em>not</em> changed.</li>
<li>If the top block contains instances of other models <em>and</em> those models
contains DFFs that get re-connecteds to the clock sub-nets (from the
top level). Change both the model netlist and interface to propagate
the relevant clock sub-nets to the instanciated model. The new model
with the added clock signal is renamed with a <tt class="docutils literal">_clocked</tt> suffix.
For example, the sub-block model <tt class="docutils literal">ram.vst</tt> will become <tt class="docutils literal">ram_clocked.vst</tt>.</li>
</ul>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p class="last">If you are to re-run the clock tree plugin on a netlist, be careful
to erase any previously generated <tt class="docutils literal">_clocked</tt> file (both netlist and
layout: <tt class="docutils literal">rm <span class="pre">*.clocked.{ap,vst}</span></tt>). And restart <span class="cb">cgt</span> to clear it's
memory cache.</p>
</div>
<p>Configuration parameters, defaults are defined in <tt class="docutils literal"><span class="pre">etc/coriolis2/&lt;STECHNO&gt;/plugins.conf</span></tt>.</p>
<table border="1" class="docutils">
<colgroup>
<col width="43%" />
<col width="22%" />
<col width="35%" />
</colgroup>
<thead valign="bottom">
<tr><th class="head">Parameter Identifier</th>
<th class="head">Type</th>
<th class="head">Default</th>
</tr>
</thead>
<tbody valign="top">
<tr><td colspan="3"><strong>ClockTree Plugin Parameters</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">clockTree.minimumSide</tt></td>
<td>TypeInt</td>
<td><span class="cb">300</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The minimum size below which the clock tree
will stop to perform quadri-partitions</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">clockTree.buffer</tt></td>
<td>TypeString</td>
<td><span class="cb">buf_x2</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The buffer model to use to drive sub-nets</td>
</tr>
<tr><td rowspan="2"><tt class="docutils literal">clockTree.placerEngine</tt></td>
<td>TypeString</td>
<td><span class="cb">Etesian</span></td>
</tr>
<tr><td colspan="2">The placer to use. Other value is <tt class="docutils literal">Mauka</tt>
the simulated annealing placer which will go
into retirement very soon</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</div>
<div class="section" id="recursive-save-rsave">
<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id66">Recursive-Save (RSave)</a></h3>
<p>Perform a recursive top down save of all the models from the top cell
loaded in <span class="cb">cgt</span>. Force a write of any non-terminal model. This plugin is used
by the clock tree plugin after the netlist clock sub-nets creation.</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="section" id="a-simple-example-am2901">
<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id67">A Simple Example: AM2901</a></h2>
<p>To illustrate the capabilities of <span class="sc">Coriolis</span> tools and <span class="sc">Python</span> scripting, a small
example, derived from the <span class="sc">Alliance</span> <span class="cb">AM2901</span> is supplied.</p>
<p>This example contains only the synthetized netlists and the <span class="cb">doChip.py</span> script
which perform the whole P&amp;R of the design.</p>
<p>You can generate the chip using one of the following method:</p>
<ol class="arabic">
<li><p class="first"><strong>Command line mode:</strong> directly run the script:</p>
<pre class="literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:AM2901$ ./doChip -V --cell=amd2901
</pre>
</li>
<li><p class="first"><strong>Graphic mode:</strong> launch <span class="cb">cgt</span>, load chip netlist <tt class="docutils literal">amd2901</tt> (the top cell)
then run the <span class="sc">Python</span> script <span class="cb">doChip.py</span>.</p>
</li>
</ol>
<div class="note">
<p class="first admonition-title">Note</p>
<p>Between two consecutive run, be sure to erase the netlist/layout generateds:</p>
<pre class="last literal-block">
dummy&#64;lepka:AM2901$ rm *_clocked*.vst *.ap
</pre>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
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</html>