Patent ID: 7979833

Claim:
A system for debugging simulation of a circuit core in a simulated environment, comprising: a pattern recorder connected in simulation to a first core to receive and record input stimuli as at least one input stimuli array, the input stimuli provided to the first core and to receive and record a first output array, wherein the first output array represents each output signal generated by the first core in response to the input stimuli; a pattern player connected in simulation to a second core to provide the recorded at least one input stimuli array to the second core; and a pattern checker connected in simulation to the second core to receive a second output array, wherein the second output array represents each output signal generated by the second core in response to the recorded at least one input stimuli array, the pattern checker determining whether the second output array matches the first output array, wherein the pattern recorder counts and periodically records a number of sampling points at which the input stimuli changed since a previous periodic recording of the number of sampling points, the pattern recorder records a current state of the input stimuli as an input stimuli array for each count of the periodically recorded number of sampling points each time the periodically recorded number of sampling points is greater than zero, the pattern player sequentially reads the periodically recorded number of sampling points at which the input stimuli changed since a previous periodic recording of the number of sampling points, upon the periodically recorded number of sampling points being greater than zero, the pattern player provides a next array of the at least one input stimuli array to the second core for each count of the recorded number of sampling points, upon the periodically recorded number of sampling points being equal to zero, the pattern player continues to provide a current array of the at least one input stimuli array to the second core, the first core is an encrypted version of the second core, the pattern recorder records the number of sampling points at which the input stimuli changed since a previous periodic recording of the number of sampling points in a flag file and the pattern recorder records the at least one input stimuli array in an input pattern file that is separate from the flag file.