(Inspired by the QuickCheck tool for testing Haskell programs.)

BlueCheck is a generic test-bench written in the Bluespec HDL. It is generic in the sense that it can be used to test any design.

To use it, the developer simply provides a specification of correctness: a set of properties, written in Bluespec, about the design under test.

BlueCheck then automatically tests these properties, reporting any counter-examples found.

It's main features are:

• Automatic test-sequence generation, with support for definining custom generators when the default one doesn't suffice.

• Iterative-deepening: the lengths of test-sequences are increased gradually over time with aim of finding simple failures first.

• Shrinking: once a failing test-sequence is found, BlueCheck tries to make it shorter by repeatedly ommitting possibly-unneeded elements. This helps find simple failures quickly.

• Fully synthesisable: it can run on FPGA as well as in simulation, allowing thorough testing. Counter-examples found on FPGA are automatically trasferred to a host PC to be viewed or replayed in simulation.

• Ease of use: rigourous HDL-level test frameworks can be constructed by writing a very small amount of code.

Technical documentation will appear here shortly. For now, take a look at the examples in SimpleExamples.bsv and StackExample.bsv. These can be built using make.sh.

BlueCheck is inspired by the influential QuickCheck tool by Koen Claessen and John Hughes.

For numerous vital suggestions, thanks to Alex Horsman, Alexandre Joannou, Theo Markettos, Simon Moore, and Jon Woodruff.