diff --git a/docs/source/using_yosys/more_scripting/data_flow_tracking.rst b/docs/source/using_yosys/more_scripting/data_flow_tracking.rst new file mode 100644 index 000000000..e13dfac7d --- /dev/null +++ b/docs/source/using_yosys/more_scripting/data_flow_tracking.rst @@ -0,0 +1,71 @@ +Dataflow tracking +------------------- +Yosys can be used to answer questions such as "can this signal affect this other signal?" via its *dataflow tracking* support. +For this, four special cells, ``$get_tag``, ``$set_tag``, ``$overwrite_tag`` and ``$original_tag`` are inserted into the design and then the ``dft_tag`` is run, which converts these cells into ordinary logic. +Typically, one would then use ``sby`` to prove assertions involving these cells. + +Ordinarily in Yosys, the state of a bit is simply ``0`` or ``1`` (or one of the special values, ``z`` and ``x``). +During dataflow tracking they are augmented with a set of tags. +For example, the state of a bit could be ``0`` and the set of tags ``"KEY"`` and ``"OVERFLOW"``. + +In addition to their usual operations on the logical bits, Yosys operations must now also process the status of the tags. +For this, tags are simply *forwarded* or *propagated* (i.e. copied) from inputs to outputs, according to the following general rule: + + A tag is forwarded from an input to an output if the input can affect the output, for that particular state of all other inputs. + +For example, XOR, AND and OR cells propagate tags as follows: + +#. XOR simply forwards all tags from its inputs to its output, because inputs to XOR can always affect the output. +#. AND forwards tags only if the other input is ``1``. Because if one input is ``0``, the other input can never affect the output. +#. Similarly, OR forwards tags only if the other input is ``0``. + +There are two exceptions to this rule: +#. In general, propagation is only determined approximately. + For example, unless the ``dft_tag`` code knows about a cell, it simply assumes the worst-case behaviour that all inputs can affect all outputs. + It also does not try to determine whether the effect of a signal is cancelled out, for example ``A ^ A`` or ``A ^ (B ^ A)`` is independent of ``A``, but its tags would be propagated nonetheless. +#. If tag groups are used, the rules are modified (see below). + +Because of this propagation behaviour, we can answer questions about what signals are affected by a certain signal, by injecting a tag at that point in the circuit, and observing where the tag is visible. + +Example use cases +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ +As an example use case, consider a cryptographic processor which is not supposed to expose its secret keys to the outside world. +We can tag all key bits with the ``"KEY"`` tag and use ``sby`` to formally verify that no external signal ever carries the ``"KEY"`` tag, meaning that key information is not visible to the outside. +As a caveat, we have to manually clear the ``"KEY"`` tag during cryptographic operations, as proving that the cryptographic operations themselves do not leak key information is beyond the ability of Yosys. +However we can still easily detect, if e.g. an engineer forgot to remove debugging code that allows reading back key data. + +As a different use case, we can modify all adders in the design to set the ``"OVERFLOW"`` tag on their output bits, if the addition overflowed, and then add asserts to all flip-flop inputs and output signals that they do not carry the ``"OVERFLOW"`` tag, i.e. that the results of overflowed additions never affect system state. +Note that in this particular example we use the ability of tag insertion to be conditional on logic, in this case the overflow condition of an adder. + +Semantics of dataflow tracking cells +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ + +``$set_tag`` has inputs ``A``, ``SET``, ``CLR``, an output ``Y`` and a string parameter ``TAG``. +The logic value of ``A`` and all tags other than the one named by the ``TAG`` parameter are simply copied to ``Y``. +If ``SET`` is ``1``, then the named tag is added to ``Y``. +Otherwise, if ``CLR`` is ``1``, then the named tag is removed. +Otherwise, the tag is unchanged, i.e. it is present in ``Y`` if it is present in ``A``. + +``$get_tag`` has an input ``A`` and an output ``Y`` and a string parameter ``TAG``. +``$get_tag`` inspects ``A`` for the presence or absence of a tag of the given name and sets ``Y`` to ``1`` if the tag is present. +The logical value of ``A`` is completely ignored. + +``$overwrite_tag`` functions like ``$set_tag``, but lacks the ``Y`` output. +Instead of providing a modified version of the input signal, it modifies the signal ``A`` "in-place", i.e. if a signal is input to ``$overwrite_tag``, that is equivalent to interposing a ``$set_tag`` between its driver and all cells it is connected to. +The main purpose of ``$overwrite_tag`` is adding tags to signals produced within a module that cannot or should not be modified itself. + +``$original_tag`` functions identically to ``$get_tag``, but ignores ``$overwrite_tag``, i.e. when converting the ``$overwrite_tag`` to ``$set_tag`` as described above, it is equivalent to inserting the ``$get_tag`` *before* the ``$set_tag``. + +Tag groups +~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ +Tag groups are an advanced feature that modify the propagation rule discussed above. +To use tag groups, simply name tags according to the schema ``"group:name"``. +For example, ``"key:0"``, ``"key:a"``, ``"key:b"`` would be three tags in the ``"key"`` group. + +The propagation rule is then amended by + + Inputs cannot block the propagation of each other's tags for tags of the same group. + +For example, an AND gate will propagate a given tag on one input, if the other input is either 1 or carries a tag of the same group. +So if one input is ``0, "key:a"`` and the other is ``0, "key:b"`` the result would be ``0, "key:a", "key:b"``, rather than simply ``0``. +Note that if we add an unrelated ``"overflow"`` tag to the first input, it would still not be propagated. \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/docs/source/using_yosys/more_scripting/index.rst b/docs/source/using_yosys/more_scripting/index.rst index 090b9e0b9..6265e5d0e 100644 --- a/docs/source/using_yosys/more_scripting/index.rst +++ b/docs/source/using_yosys/more_scripting/index.rst @@ -12,5 +12,6 @@ More scripting selections interactive_investigation model_checking + data_flow_tracking .. troubleshooting