User Guide: Metrics Waveform Viewer

The Metrics Waveform Viewer allows you to view waveforms from the Metrics eXentsible Dump (.mxd) waveform files. If you do not have an .mxd file yet, one can be generated by following the Tutorial: DSim Cloud Walkthrough.

NOTE: The screenshots in this article may not exactly match what you see on your computer. The functionality and performance of the Metrics Waveform Viewer remain the same.

Load the waveform

1. Open the waveform file. For example, waves.mxd from the Tutorial.

2. If you used the waveform file from the Tutorial, carry_lookahead_adder_tb will appear in the Design Hierarchy. Click carry_lookahead_adder_tb under Design and select all the desired signals under it. Use Ctrl+click or Shift+click to select multiple signals, or click the checkmark beside the carry_lookahead_adder_tb Object to select all its signals. Either click Insert or drag the signals to the waveform window.

Waveform Viewer Layout

After you've inserted the signals into the waveform viewer, the entire waveform viewer layout is displayed.

A description of the layout elements follows.

1. Help and Settings

Help: Waveform viewer control shortcuts and documentation.

Settings: Settings for Cursor Snap Mode and Signal Value Format.

2. Design Hierarchy

The design hierarchy displays the different scopes of the design that contain signals.

3. Objects

The objects are the signals of the selected scope from the design hierarchy.

4. Signals

The signals that have been inserted by you from the objects. Their values correspond to the point in time of the Cursor (solid white bar). You can rearrange the order by clicking and dragging the signal rows up/down. You can select multiple rows with Ctrl+click or Shift+click. You can expand bus signals by hovering over their name and clicking the + button:

You can collapse bus signals by hovering over their name and clicking the - button:

5. Row Editing

Hover your mouse over the different Row Editing buttons.

Group selected rows: form a named group with the multiple signals selected.

Ungroup selected rows: separate a named group into its individual signals.

Edit row: once a group header is selected, edit the group name and/or colour of rows.

Remove selected rows: delete the signals or group header selected.

6. Zoom

Controls to Zoom in, Zoom out, Zoom to fit (in window), and Custom Zoom (between times). You can also zoom in between two points in time by clicking at the first point, holding down the mouse button, moving the mouse right to the second point, and releasing the mouse button.

7. Pan

Controls to Pan left and Pan right, keeping the same zoom level.

8. Cursors

A. Place marker: insert a yellow marker at the current Cursor. Ctrl+click is the keyboard shortcut.

B. A sequential number and its simulation time will appear at the top of the marker. Click this number to edit the marker.

C. Cursor drop-down menu to select between the current Cursor, Baseline, and a marker. The Baseline can be placed anywhere by pressing Alt+click at the current mouse location. Once selected, the Cursor/Baseline/marker time is displayed.

D. Time drop-down menu to select the timescale. Once selected, the time difference between a cursor/marker and the Baseline is displayed. The time unit marked with (source) indicates the base unit of the waveform file.

By moving the Baseline and Cursor/marker, you can measure the time between two points.

9. Current Simulation Time

The current simulation time axis changes automatically with the zoom level, pan, and timescale. The unit of time is shown in the time drop-down menu.

10. Total Simulation Time

The total simulation time axis stays the same, displaying the total time from the start to the end of the simulation run. The unit of time is shown in the time drop-down menu. Once you’ve selected a zoom window, either by using Custom Fit or zooming between two points with the mouse, the zoom window will be shown as two blue bars on the total simulation time axis. You can click and drag this zoom window to pan through the simulation waveforms. You can use the mouse wheel over this axis area to zoom in (wheel down) and out (wheel up). The blue zoom window indicates where your current simulation time is in relation to the total simulation time.

11. Signal Waveforms

Single-bit waveforms are displayed in blue with all their transitions.

Multi-bit waveforms (buses) are displayed in green and change only when their data change.

The SystemVerilog state X (Don’t Care) is displayed in red.

The SystemVerilog state Z (High Impedance) is displayed in yellow.