How do you make a sanity script version-conscious?
From PDVerse PnR Interview Handbook · pdVerse Mentor Guide
Short Answer
Use get_design_checks to confirm available check bundles and man to confirm syntax in the installed release.
Technical Explanation
Command names and defaults can change between releases. A dependable script first asks the installed tool what it supports.
What To Check
• Warning sign: A copied script calls an unavailable check name or relies on changed defaults. • Inspect: Compare one named object across the related reports; the same object should tell a consistent story. • Correct: Gate optional checks by supported names, record the tool version, and keep release-specific logic explicit.
Command Checks & Actions
• get_design_checks: lists checks supported by the installed release
• man check_design: opens the installed command reference
• man check_timing: opens the installed command reference
Run the commands in order. Each line answers a separate part of the check.Healthy, Suspicious & Hard-stop Results
• Expected: Use get_design_checks to confirm available check bundles and man to confirm syntax in the installed release. • Investigate: A copied script calls an unavailable check name or relies on changed defaults. • Stop before floorplanning when required logic or timing coverage is missing or unexplained. Gate optional checks by supported names, record the tool version, and keep release-specific logic explicit.
Common Mistake
Do not assume the check passed just because ICC2 continued: A copied script calls an unavailable check name or relies on changed defaults. Fix or narrowly justify the named objects, then rerun the same command.
What The Interviewer Is Testing
Be ready to explain why this matters before floorplanning: A copied script calls an unavailable check name or relies on changed defaults.
Follow-up Question & Model Response
Model response: “I would save the report, inspect one affected object in the correct block and scenario, and make or request this correction: Gate optional checks by supported names, record the tool version, and keep release-specific logic explicit. Then I would reopen the clean checkpoint and rerun the same evidence.”
Practical Example
Symptom: A copied script calls an unavailable check name or relies on changed defaults. Corrective path: Gate optional checks by supported names, record the tool version, and keep release-specific logic explicit.
Continue practising