Chapter 43. Tips and Tricks

The following tips and tricks give some helpful ideas for increasing your productivity.

Editing

Code Navigation

Searching

Miscellaneous

Editing

Content assist	Content assist provides you with a list of suggested completions for partially entered text. In the editor press Ctrl+Space.
Module Automatic Instantiation	You need to type the first letters of the module name, then press Ctrl+Space three (3) times.You can recognize module instances by their icon, it looks like a chip with ports ready to be glued in.
Expand Macros (Apply Preprocessing)	You can apply preprocessing over a selected section of code in order to see how macros are expanded. You have multiple options in the right-click context menu Macros. To expand them in the source file, choose Expand One Level Inline or Expand All Levels Inline. To expand them in a temporary file, choose Expand One Level or Expand All Levels. NOTE: You can also expand all macros in the current file by selecting either Expand All Macros Inline, for expansion in the source file, or Expand All Macros, for expansion in a temporary file.
Trace Macro Errors	To debug macro usage errors (especially if macros in macros are used) you can see how the error is propagated from macro to macro (the error trace) either by: - going with the mouse over the error marker on the left and right click - or selecting the error in the Problems View, right click and choosing Macro Trace The macro error trace will be presented in the Console View with hyperlinks to source.
Code templates	Code templates are presented in content assist if applicable.
Matching begin - end	If you double click on/after begin – end, function – endfunction etc. the block is highlighted.
Mismatched endif	You can use comments after endif to track the match with starting ifdef. If the name of ifdef doesn't match the endif comment a warning is issued.
Toggle Comment	You can toggle comment on/off for the current line or the selected lines. Press Ctrl+/ or use the action from the drop down menu on right click in editor.
Expand/Restore Selection	Press Shift + Alt + Up Arrow to incrementally expand the current selection. For example when the cursor is on a word, select the word. Press again to select the whole line. Then, each of the nested enclosing scopes is selected, for example begin...end, then the enclosing function, then the enclosing class and so on. The same principle applies to nested enclosing parentheses, brackets and curly braces, as well as strings. Press Shift + Alt + Down Arrow to restore the previous selection step made with Shift + Alt + Up Arrow
Format source	Use the Source > Format Source action from the editor's right click menu. The whole file is formatted or the current selection, if any.
Override functions	To access the Override menu, in Editor, right click inside a class body > Source > Override Methods .
One key indentation	If you press Tab once at the beginning of a line, it is automatically aligned to the enclosing context. Press twice to insert a tab.
Reminders (TODO markers)	When you tag a comment in source code with TODO, a corresponding tasks is automatically created as a reminder. From the Tasks View, double click on the task takes you to the TODO in the code. Same for for FIXME (higher priority) and XXX (lower priority) markers. You can also add your own tags, see the Reminders (TODO Markers) section of the documentation.
Spell checking	You can enable spell-checking support from the General > Editors > Text Editors > Spelling preference page. Spelling errors are displayed in the Verilog Language editor and corresponding Quick Fixes are available.
Folding	You can fold code sections to improve read-ability. This is how a folded file looks like: Folding actions (to expand or collapse) are available in the toolbar or on right click in the editor. You may also use the +''' or '-' signs on the left side of the editor. - Use '''Collapse All Levels for folding to statement (class, module ...) level. - Use Show First Level for folding to struct member (method, cover...) level. - Use Expand All to fully expand the file. When you type on a folded line, it is automatically expanded. You may see the folded code in a tooltip if you move with the mouse over the + sign.
Folding custom areas	You can define custom folding areas using comments to indicate the start and the end of the area:
Maximize editor	Double-click on the editor tab to maximize editor to full window. Double-click again to restore.
Show line numbers	Check Show line numbers from the General > Editors > Text Editors preference page
Local history	Whenever you edit a file, its previous contents are kept in the local history. Right click in the editor and choose Compare With/Replace With > Local History....
Inactive code highlight	The editor marks with a colored background the areas of code that are not compiled due to preprocessing. See the Inactive Code Highlight documentation section.
Emacs Automation	You can invoke Emacs to perform automation on the file you are currently editing. In the editor window: Right click > Source > Emacs, then select one of: Auto, DeleteAuto, InjectAuto, Indent or use the associated key bindings (the same as in Emacs). Note 1: the shortcuts are available only when Emacs mode is enabled in Eclipse; to enable Emacs mode go to Window > Preferences > General > Keys and select the Emacs scheme. Note 2: you can also add toolbar buttons to perform Emacs automation: go to Window > Customize Perspective > Command Groups Availability and check Emacs Verilog-Mode from the Available command groups on the left. Note 3: To change the default emacs command go to Window > Preferences > DVT and fill in the Emacs command you want to execute
Open file in more editors	To open multiple editors for the same file you should first open the file then right click on the editor's titlebar and select New Editor
Split the editor view	To open multiple editors side by side follow these steps: - open each file in its editor; if you wish to see the same file in a split view, right click on its titlebar and select New Editor - if you wish to split horizontally, drag the title bar of the file you want to split and drop it over the horizontal scrollbar - if you wish to split vertically, drag the title bar of the file you want to split and drop it over the vertical scrollbar
Column selection	You can switch to and from column (block) selection mode either by clicking on the “Toggle Block Selection Mode” button in the toolbar, or by using the <Shift + Alt+ A> shortcut key.
Auto insert JavaDoc comment	To add JavaDoc like comments to code, in Code Editor type above the code declaration /** and then press Enter. Depending on the code type (a class declaration, a function, a task etc.) a comment will be added with the respective JavaDoc tags. For more details: Export Html Documentation

Code Navigation

Tooltips	When you position the mouse over a type, method, field etc., a tooltip will pop-up showing information on corresponding declaration.
Hyperlinks	If you place the mouse over a type, method, field, macro etc. and press the Ctrl key, a hyperlink will be presented. Click on the hyperlink to jump to definition. You can also jump to a definition if you put the cursor on the relevant name and press F3
Inheritance tree and members (Type Hierarchy View)	You can view the inheritance tree and all the members of a class by placing the mouse over it '''and pressing the '''F4 key.
Design hierarchy of a module (Design Hierarchy View)	You can view the design hierarchy of a module by placing the mouse over it and pressing Shift+F4.
Class Diagrams	You can create class diagrams to inspect or document the architecture of a verification environment. For more details see the Diagrams > Class Diagrams
Current Scope	The scope at cursor (function/class...) is always presented in the status bar.
Quick Type	You can quickly open a specific type definition. Press Ctrl+Shift+T. The Quick Types View will pop-up and you can enter any regular expression to locate a type. Select and press Enter or click to jump to its definition.
Quick Outline	Press Ctrl+O to open the Quick Outline for an overview of your file. You can enter any regular expression to locate a place to jump in the current file.
Quick Compile Order	You can quickly open a file that is included via the top files. Just press Ctrl+I. The Quick Compile Order View will pop-up and you can enter any regular expression to locate a file. Select and press Enter or click to open the file.
Quick Type Hierarchy	Position the cursor on the entity (struct, method ...) name and press Ctrl+T to see the Quick Type Hierarchy View. For methods and others, non-grayed icons means parent implementations are available.
External Implementation	You can view the external implementations in the Layers View. Position the cursor on the relevant name and press Shift+F3 or right click and choose Show Layers from the menu.
Types View	You can view all the types (scalars, classes, module) in the project (including their fields, methods etc.) in the Types View. Open the view from menu Window > Show View > Other... > DVT > Types.
Checks View	You can view all the checks (immediate, concurrent, deferred immediate assert and assume constructs) in the project in the Checks View. Open the view from menu Window > Show View > Other... > DVT > Checks.
Coverage View	You can browse all the coverage definitions in the project using the Coverage View. Open the view from menu Window > Show View > Other... > DVT > Coverage.
Compile Order View	You can see the include tree of the files in your project in the Compile OrderView.Open the view from menu Window > Show View > Other... > DVT > Compile Order.
Macros View	You can see all the macros in your project in the Macros View.Open the view from menu Window > Show View > Other... > DVT > Macros.
Outline View	You can see the summary contents of the current file (structs, field, methods) in the Outline View.Open the view from menu Window > Show View > Other... > General > Outline.
Mark occurrences	When working in the SystemVerilog editor, turn on Mark Occurrences in the toolbar or press Alt+Shift+O.
Override Annotations	Override Annotations indicate that a function/task overrides a parent class implementation.
Bookmarks	Similar with a web browser, you can add bookmarks in your code without altering the code. Right click on the left vertical bar of the editor and choose Add Bookmark... Specify a meaningful name: You can jump to bookmarks from Bookmarks View. Open the view from menu Window > Show View > Other... > General > Bookmarks.
Go to line	Press Ctrl+L shortcut or double click in the status bar to jump to a specific line.
Back/Forward navigation	You can navigate between editors in a browser like way using the Back/Forward Navigation
Go to last edit location	Useful when you navigated around in the code, before proceeding with the source change.Click on Last Edit Location button in the toolbar to jump to the file where you were previously editing.

Searching

Search for task. function, field etc.	To search for the declaration of a specific type, method, field etc.: - Press Ctrl+H to open the Search Dialog - Click on the Vlog Search tab. - Type the name in the Search String (if you select in the editor before pressing Ctrl+H, the Search String is automatically set to the selection). - Select type or function etc. and Declarations - Click Search.
Search for references	To search where a method (or field etc.) is used, hold Ctrl, hover over it's name and select Show Usages or right click on it's name > Show > Usages or right click on it's name > References > Project. The results are presented in the Search View. You can also search for references from the Search Dialog (Ctrl+H).
Search for whole word	To search for a whole word in all files, in comments or not: - Press Ctrl+H to open the Search Dialog * Click on the vlog Search tab. - Type the name in the Search String (if you select in the editor before pressing Ctrl+H, the Search String is automatically set to the selection). - Select Whole Word and Do not search in comments or All occurrences - Click Search.

Miscellaneous

All shortcuts	Press Ctrl+Shift+L to see all shortcuts.
Project Properties	Select the project in the Navigator View, right click and choose Properties. Or from menu Project > Properties.
OVM Field Editor	The OVM Field Editor enables you to inspect and edit OVM field registrations. To bring up the OVM Field Editor, right click inside a class definition and select 'OVM Field Editor' from the pop-up menu, or simply press Shift Alt F.
UVM Field Editor	The UVM Field Editor enables you to inspect and edit UVM field registrations. To bring up the UVM Field Editor, right click inside a class definition and select 'UVM Field Editor' from the pop-up menu, or simply press Shift Alt G.
Project templates	A project template is a parameterized directory tree. Both in the file contents (.v, .sv, .sh - practically any file) and in the file or directory names you can use parameters. Combined with TODO markers, you can use a project template as a customized wizard.For more details see the Project Templates chapter in VlogDT User Guide.
System Variables and -f Support	See: Build_Configurations
Generic launch (make, scripts etc.)	You can launch external scripts: Menu Run > Run.... Select DVT Generic configuration and click the New button.# Specify name, working directory and command. Click Run. You can also use the Run > Quick Run menu (or Ctrl+U shortcut key) to quickly launch any existing Run Configuration:
Create dialogs for scripts & flows	You can create Custom Dialogs for your own scripts: Follow the wizrd from menu New > Example > DVT > DVT Custom Dialog, then create a run configuration with the command echo ${dvt_dialog_prompt:customdialog.swtxml} and run it.
Open terminal	You can open a fully working command-line terminal inside of DVT: In the Navigator View right-click on the desired location and select Open Terminal Here
External Builders	An external builder allows you to invoke any script/tool and back-annotate its output (errors, warnings etc.) to the source code. It is a mean that allows you to connect any 3d party tool (compiler, linter etc.) to DVT error signaling engines.You can configure one or more external builders on a project: - The commands you define will be invoked on project clean, full build and incremental build. - The patterns you define will be applied on the command output to recognize errors, warnings etc. - The pattern matches will be back-annotated to the source code and presented in a similar way DVT signals errors (file, line, in the Errors View etc.)DVT ships with some predefined example configurations to get you started.For more details see the External Tools>External Builders chapter in VlogDT User Guide.
External Documentation	You can browse and search through 3rd party documentation using the Eclipse help system.For more details see the External Tools>External Documentation chapter in VlogDT User Guide.
Context Sensitive Help	A focused set of help topics that is related to the current context can be shown to users on demand using context-sensitive help. This form of user assistance is delivered to users when a platform-specific trigger is activated (e.g. F1 key on Windows, Ctrl+F1 on GTK, Help key on Carbon).For more details see the Getting Started > Context Sensitive Help chapter in VlogDT User Guide.
Mapping Linux to Windows	Linux directories can be mapped to Windows drives, thus allowing editing files from Windows. For example /home/simi is mapped to Z:\. This has an impact on paths configured for a DVT project, for example INCDIRs etc. The paths are set using Linux conventions, however Eclipse runs in Windows and the DVT builder needs to know about the mapping in order to compile the files. To specify the mapping, set the system variable %DVT_CROSSPLATFORM_MAP% before invoking Eclipse. You can add multiple mappings separated by ";" e.g.: /projects/=p:\;/home/lars/=Z:\lars\
Recover from abnormal inconsistencies	In the event of unexpected behavior (missing results in search, types in type browsing, hyperlinks, tooltips etc.) please manually trigger a clean build from menu Project > Clean....
OVM Smart Log	DVT ships with predefined filters for OVM that allow you to view colored and hyper-linked logs like the one below: See OVM Smart Log for more details.
UVM Smart Log	DVT ships with predefined filters for UVM that allow you to view colored and hyper-linked logs like the one below: See UVM Smart Log for more details.
OVM to UVM Migration	DVT provides an OVM to UVM migration wizard that automatically performs all the necessary changes within an existing OVM project. To start the wizard: right click on a project/file/directory in the navigator, then select Refactor > Migrate OVM to UVM. See OVM to UVM Migration documentation page for more details.
Add a new file extension to compile list extensions	Go to Window > Preferences > General > Content Types, select a category from the list (for example Verilog Source File) then click on Add and then on Ok.
Sharing workspace settings	Export all Workspace/ Eclipse customization: - Go to File > Export > General > Preferences - Make sure Export all is selected - Select a file where the preferences should be exported Now you can share this file with your team. When it is imported into another instance of Eclipse (by using File > Import > General > Preferences), the configuration (all options available in Window > Preferences) is replaced by the imported one. Note: you should restart Eclipse for the changes to be enforced ( File > Restart).
Using System Variables in Linked Resources	You can use System Variables in the path of linked resources. For example ${DVT_ENV-SYSTEM_VARIABLE_NAME}/work is equivalent to $SYSTEM_VARIABLE_NAME/work in a console.
Waive problems reported by DVT	You can use Compile Waivers to promote, demote or disable the problems reported by DVT. To quickly create a new waiver, in the Problems View right click on any problem reported by DVT and waive it. DVT proposes some default values for the waiver description, path and message. You can easily change them to fine-tune the waiver. To quickly start up a new waivers file click on the Edit waivers button in the Problems View. The .dvt/waivers.xml is created with a default content and opened. You can easily create your own waivers from the default generated ones. In the waivers editor you can use autocomplete for tags, attributes and attribute values.
Open a file in DVT from the terminal	You can use the Command Line Interface like this: $> dvt_cli.sh -workspace ~/dvt_workspace openFile $(readlink -f my/file.sv) The command can be shortened by defining this alias in your ~/.cshrc: alias dvtopen 'dvt_cli.sh -workspace ~/dvt_workspace openFile `readlink -f \!*`' or by defining this function in your ~/.bashrc: dvtopen () { dvt_cli.sh -workspace ~/dvt_workspace openFile $(readlink -f $1); } Then the command gets much shorter: $> dvtopen my/file.sv