Next to unit testing UVM drivers, which was the topic of Testing UVM Drivers (Without The Sequencer), the second most popular question for which I had no good answer has been “How can I use SVUnit to test my UVM sequences?”.
Thankfully, SVMock seems to have made life easier here as well. With SVMock we can isolate a sequence from sequencer and driver such that it can be unit tested on it’s own before it’s used as part of a larger system. Here’s an example of how it works. Continue reading
So. A couple weeks ago I introduced SVMock. It’s a mocking framework for use with SVUnit that makes it easier to isolate, check and control behaviour of Systemverilog classes. Unsurprisingly, the response to that announcement averaged out to tepid. A few people were immediately interested. I’m sure a huge number of people didn’t care, probably because mocking has never been on their unit test radar. Then there were people in the middle who were interested but I didn’t give them enough to get over the great-but-now-what hurdle.
This post is for the last group, the people that reckon SVMock can help them write better unit tests but don’t quite see how. The test subject to get the point across: the uvm_driver. Continue reading
A few times over the last while people have suggested I add a mocking framework to SVUnit. Took me a while, but I finally got around to it. SVMock version 0.1 is now available on GitHub. I’m actively working on it but the base functionality is there and ready for use.
If you’re new to mocking, in the context of unit testing it’s a technique for replacing dependancies of some unit-under-test to make it easier to test. Mocks increase isolation so you can focus on development without the hassle of including large chunks of code, infrastructure or IP you don’t necessarily care about. Mocks inject new sample points and assertions that make it easier to capture interactions with surrounding code. They also offer increased control by substituting potentially complex dependancy usage models for direct control over interactions. In short, mocking helps you focus on what you care about and ignore the stuff you don’t.
Now to SVMock… Continue reading