A case study of Compaq's simulation environment migration to Windows NT

Providing a Windows NT design environment is possible now that electronic design automation (EDA) applications are available on Windows NT, and Intel-based systems are available that provide the needed configurations and performance to run Verilog regressions. This paper describes the approach Compaq took to implement a Windows NT compute farm for running batch Verilog regressions. During a six-month period, approximately 225,000 EDA jobs ran in a UNIX compute farm at Compaq. Fifty percent of these jobs are Verilog regressions. By deploying a Windows NT compute farm for running Verilog regressions, Compaq can provide increased complete capacity for a heavily used application. The topics covered in this paper include the migration strategy used at Compaq and the results achieved to date. Also, information is provided about Compaq's current design environment that provides the framework for understanding the direction taken during the migration. This case study provides a methodology for other organizations to follow in their transition to a Windows NT design environment.