Patent ID: 6772370
Filing Date: 2004-08-03
Classification: G06F

Abstract:
A method for generating a test sequence corresponding to pipeline hazards within a pipelined data processing system, comprising:using a hazard list having a plurality of hazards to generate a plurality of first pass test suites, wherein: each hazard includes microarchitecture and macroarchitecture information, each first pass test suite corresponds to a hazard in the hazard list and corresponds to a delay boundary of the corresponding hazard, and a first hazard of the plurality of hazards corresponds to one of a RAW hazard, a WAR hazard and a WAW hazard; assembling the plurality of first pass test suites; setting up a predetermined environment prior to executing each first pass test suite, wherein setting up the predetermined environment comprises setting condition codes to predetermined values; executing the plurality of first pass test suites, wherein executing the plurality of first pass test suites further comprises flushing the pipeline between executing each first pass test suite of the plurality of first pass test suites; determining if the hazards within the hazard list are properly resolved based on the plurality of first pass test suites; generating a plurality of second pass test suites based on the hazards that are properly resolved after executing the plurality of first pass test suites, wherein each test suite of the plurality of second pass test suites includes a first instruction separated from a second instruction by an intermediate delay corresponding to an expected delay of a corresponding hazard; assembling the plurality of second pass test suites; and executing the plurality of second pass test suites, wherein executing further comprises flushing the pipeline between executing each second pass test suite of the plurality of second pass test suites.