ModelSim SE User's Manual - Electrical and Computer Engineering

UM-320 12 - Profiling performance and memory use
ModelSim SE User’s Manual
If memory allocation during elaboration is not a concern, the memory allocation profiler
can be enabled at any time after the design is loaded by doing any one of the following:
select Tools > Profile > Memory
use the -m argument with the profile on command (CR-228)
profile on -m
click the Memory Profiling icon
Handling large files
To allow memory allocation profiling of large designs, where the design itself plus the data
required to keep track of memory allocation exceeds the memory available on the machine,
the memory profiler allows you to route raw memory allocation data to an external file.
This allows you to save the memory profile with minimal memory impact on the simulator,
regardless of the size of your design.
The external data file is created during elaboration by using either the
-memprof+file= or the -memprof+fileonly= argument with the
vsim command (CR-373).
The -memprof+file= option will collect memory profile data during both
elaboration and simulation and save it to the named external file and makes the data
available for viewing and reporting during the current simulation.
The -memprof+fileonly= option will collect memory profile data during both
elaboration and simulation and save it to only the named external file. No data is saved for
viewing and reporting during the current simulation, which reduces the overall amount of
memory required by memory allocation profiling.
Alternatively, you can save memory profile data from the simulation only by using either
the -m -file or the -m -fileonly argument with the profile on
command (CR-228).
The -m -file option saves memory profile data from simulation to the
designated external file and makes the data available for viewing and reporting during the
current simulation.
The -m -fileonly option saves memory profile data from simulation to only the
designated external file. No data is saved for viewing and reporting during the current
simulation, which reduces the overall amount of memory required by memory allocation
profiling.
After elaboration and/or simulation is complete, a separate session can be invoked and the
profile data can be read in with the profile reload command (CR-230) for analysis. It should
be noted, however, that this command will clear all performance and memory profiling data
collected to that point (implicit profile clear). Any currently loaded design will be
unloaded (implicit quit -sim), and run-time profiling will be turned off (implicit profile off
-m -p). If a new design is loaded after you have read the raw profile data, then all internal
profile data is cleared (implicit profile clear), but run-time profiling is not turned back on.