rvsim 0.10.2

High-performance RISC-V cycle-accurate system simulator

RISC-V 64-bit System Simulator

A cycle-accurate system simulator for the RISC-V 64-bit architecture (RV64IMAFD). Features a 5-stage pipelined CPU, comprehensive memory hierarchy, and can boot Linux (experimental).

Technologies Used

• Languages: Rust (Simulator), C (Libc/Software), RISC-V Assembly, Python (Analysis)
• Concepts: Pipelining, Virtual Memory (SV39), Cache Coherence, Branch Prediction, OS Development
• Tools: Make, GCC Cross-Compiler, Cargo

Key Implementation Details

CPU Core (Rust)

• 5-Stage Pipeline: Implements Fetch, Decode, Execute, Memory, and Writeback stages with full data forwarding and hazard detection.
• Branch Prediction: Multiple swappable predictors including Static, GShare, Tournament, Perceptron, and TAGE (Tagged Geometric History).
• Floating Point: Support for single and double-precision floating-point arithmetic (F/D extensions).

Memory System

• Memory Management Unit (MMU): Implements SV39 virtual addressing with translation lookaside buffers (iTLB and dTLB).
• Cache Hierarchy: Configurable L1, L2, and L3 caches supporting LRU, PLRU, and Random replacement policies.
• DRAM Controller: Simulates timing constraints including row-buffer conflicts, CAS/RAS latency, and precharge penalties.

Example Programs (C & Assembly)

• Custom Libc: A minimal standard library written from scratch (includes printf, malloc, string manipulation).
• Benchmarks: Complete programs including chess engine, raytracer, quicksort, and performance microbenchmarks.
• User Programs: Various test applications (Game of Life, Mandelbrot, 2048, etc.).

Performance Analysis

• Automated Benchmarking: Python scripts to sweep hardware parameters (e.g., cache size vs. IPC) and visualize bottlenecks.
• Design Space Exploration: Hardware configuration comparison and performance analysis tools.

Project Structure

rvsim/
├── crates/              # Rust workspace
│   ├── hardware/        # CPU simulator core
│   └── bindings/        # Python bindings (PyO3)
├── rvsim/               # Python package for scripting
├── software/            # System software
│   ├── libc/            # Custom C standard library
│   └── linux/           # Linux boot configuration
├── examples/            # Example programs
│   ├── benchmarks/      # Performance benchmarks
│   └── programs/        # User applications
├── scripts/             # Analysis and utilities
│   ├── benchmarks/      # Performance analysis scripts
│   └── setup/           # Installation helpers
└── docs/                # Documentation

Installation

Python bindings (via pip):

pip install rvsim

Build from Source

Requirements:

• Rust toolchain (1.70+)
• riscv64-unknown-elf-gcc cross-compiler
• Python 3.10+ with maturin (for Python bindings)

Quick Start

Build everything:

make build

Run a benchmark:

rvsim -f software/bin/benchmarks/qsort.bin

Run a Python script:

rvsim --script scripts/benchmarks/tests/smoke_test.py

Available Make Targets

make help           # Show all available targets
make python         # Build and install Python bindings (editable)
make software       # Build libc and example programs
make test           # Run Rust tests
make lint           # Format check + clippy
make run-example    # Quick test (quicksort benchmark)
make clean          # Remove all build artifacts

Python Scripting

The simulator supports Python scripting for hardware configuration and performance analysis:

from rvsim import SimConfig, Simulator

# Configure a machine model
config = SimConfig.default()
config.pipeline.width = 4
config.pipeline.branch_predictor = "TAGE"
config.cache.l1_i.enabled = True
config.cache.l1_i.size_bytes = 65536

# Run a binary
Simulator().with_config(config).binary("software/bin/benchmarks/qsort.bin").run()

See docs/ for full API documentation and architecture details.

Documentation

• Getting Started - Installation and quickstart guide
• Architecture - CPU pipeline, memory system, ISA support
• API Reference - Rust and Python API documentation
• Scripts - Performance analysis tools

Linux Boot (Experimental)

⚠️ Experimental Feature — The simulator can boot Linux, though full boot is still in progress:

make linux          # Download and build Linux (takes time)
make run-linux      # Attempt to boot Linux

License

Licensed under either of the following, at your option:

• MIT License
• Apache License, Version 2.0

Unless you explicitly state otherwise, any contribution intentionally submitted for inclusion in this project shall be dual-licensed as above, without any additional terms or conditions.