bluecheck's Introduction

BlueCheck

(Inspired by the QuickCheck tool for testing Haskell programs.)

BlueCheck is a generic test-bench written in the Bluespec HDL. It is generic in the sense that it can be applied to any Bluespec module.

To use it, the developer simply provides a specification of correctness: a set of properties, written in Bluespec, about the module under test.

BlueCheck then automatically tests these properties, reporting any counter-examples found.

It's main features are:

Automatic test-sequence generation, with support for defining custom generators when the default one doesn't suffice.
Iterative-deepening: the lengths of test-sequences are increased gradually over time with aim of finding simple failures first.
Shrinking: once a failing test-sequence is found, BlueCheck tries to make it shorter by repeatedly omitting possibly-unneeded elements. This helps find simple failures quickly.
Fully synthesisable: it can run on FPGA as well as in simulation, allowing thorough testing. Counter-examples found on FPGA are automatically transferred to a host PC to be viewed or replayed in simulation.
Ease of use: rigorous HDL-level test frameworks can be constructed by writing a very small amount of code.

There is various documentation about BlueCheck:

MEMOCODE 2015 paper, Copyright IEEE: pdf;
MEMOCODE 2015 slides: pdf;
Examples in SimpleExamples.bsv and StackExample.bsv: these can be built using make.sh;
Frequently Asked Questions: pdf

Acknowledgements

BlueCheck is inspired by QuickCheck by Koen Claessen and John Hughes.

For helpful suggestions, thanks to Nirav Dave, Alex Horsman, Alexandre Joannou, Theo Markettos, Simon Moore, Peter Sewell, Robert Watson, Jon Woodruff, and Andy Wright.

For code contributions, thanks to Nirav Dave and Andy Wright.

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