Integrating Cocotb to Quartus using Native link

Question

To integrate cocotb to Quartus Prime Native link and Questa, among a few environment variables needed, one has to set the following `vsim` option:&nbsp;`-foreign "cocotb_init $(cocotb-config --lib-name-path fli questa)"`see here:https://docs.cocotb.org/en/stable/custom_flows.htmlThis needs to be actually slightly adapted to questa, and the following option should be used instead:`-foreign \"cocotb_init [exec cocotb-config --lib-name-path fli questa]\"`With all this information in hand, I try to add `questa=-foreign \"cocotb_init [exec cocotb-config --lib-name-path fli questa]\"` in Assignments &gt;&gt; Settings &gt;&gt; EDA Tools Settings &gt;&gt; Simulation Flow Settings &gt;&gt; Simulation Options, and I get the following error in Quartus:&nbsp;Info(125063): set_global_assignment -name EDA_EXTRA_SIM_OPTION "questa=-foreign \\"cocotb_init [exec cocotb-config --lib-name-path fli questa]\\"" -section_id eda_simulation 
Error(125048): Error reading Quartus Prime Settings file /home/msilvaol/LATOME_HLS/firmware/src/latome_fw/s2p_bram/s2p_bram.qsf, line 49 And then when I try to start the simulation, I get the following error:Error(23031): Evaluation of Tcl script /home/sw/intel/25.3/quartus/common/tcl/internal/nativelink/qnativesim.tcl unsuccessfulThe workaround I have at the moment is to do the following:&nbsp;I set Assignments &gt;&gt; Settings &gt;&gt; EDA Tools Settings &gt;&gt; Simulation Flow Settings &gt;&gt; Simulation Options to `questa=COCOTB_CFG`Then, I start the simulation that fails because COCOTB_CFG is not a valid vsim option.&nbsp;I open the file `./simulation/questa/rtlsim/s2p_bram_run_msim_rtl_vhdl.do`, and I replace the line 42from:`eval "vsim -t 1ps $pd_libs -L work -L rtl_work -voptargs=\"+acc\" COCOTB_CFG $ELAB_OPTIONS $DPI_LIBRARIES_ELAB s2p_bram_showahead"`to the actual option that I tried to set in Quartus Prime, as follows:&nbsp;eval "vsim -t 1ps $pd_libs -L work -L rtl_work -voptargs=\"+acc\" -foreign \"cocotb_init [exec cocotb-config --lib-name-path fli questa]\" $ELAB_OPTIONS $DPI_LIBRARIES_ELAB s2p_bram_showahead"Then, I run the .do script again in questa and the simulation with cocotb works using Quartus Prime as the build flow. However, every time the simulation is started again from Quartus Prime, the generated scripts are overwritten, and I have to edit the automatically generated file again.&nbsp;&nbsp;It seems Quartus is parsing the simulation option and adding escape characters in a way that the automatically generated TCL code no longer works.&nbsp;Can you please point out a way that I can set the simulation option correctly?&nbsp;

shengn_altera · Answer

That is expected behaviour if using nativelink. The .do script will be overwritten.
To prevent from overwritten, please don't use nativelink and straight away run the .do script using simulator. Or rename the .do script to prevent from overwritten.

moliv45 · Answer

Hi ShengN_altera​,Yes sure, overwriting is expected. Me editing the automatically generated file was more of a workaround, but not a final solution.&nbsp;The question is more whether there is a way that the Quartus GUI preserves the simulation option exactly as I entered without giving the Error(125048) reported before.&nbsp;

shengn_altera · Answer

May I know you're using Quartus Pro or Quartus Standard for nativelink?

moliv45 · Answer

I am using the Pro version.&nbsp;

shengn_altera · Answer

The Simulation Option has difficulty at handling the \ and " because it's not a Tcl interpreter—it’s just a text field that Quartus (NativeLink) concatenates into a command line. Also nested quoting/escaping in a GUI field is fragile.
I would suggest using another .do script to set path and call the s2p_bram_run_msim_rtl_vhdl.do. For example like below:
parent.do:&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; set FLI_LIB {"cocotb_init [exec cocotb-config --lib-name-path fli questa]\"}&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;do s2p_bram_run_msim_rtl_vhdl.do $FLI_LIB
s2p_bram_run_msim_rtl_vhdl.do:&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; eval "vsim -t 1ps $pd_libs -L work -L rtl_work -voptargs=\"+acc\" -foreign \$1 $ELAB_OPTIONS $DPI_LIBRARIES_ELAB s2p_bram_showahead"
In GUI, you set like this questa=-foreign $1&nbsp;then it'll become like this questa=-foreign \$1&nbsp;in .qsf
Then you run parent.do to call the auto-generated s2p_bram_run_msim_rtl_vhdl.do
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;

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Integrating Cocotb to Quartus using Native link

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