When optimization directives are applied, the HLS compiler outputs information to the console (and log file) detailing the progress. In the following example the PIPELINE directives was applied to the C function with an II=1 (initiation interval of 1) but synthesis failed to satisfy this objective.
INFO: [SCHED 11] Starting scheduling ...
INFO: [SCHED 61] Pipelining function 'array_RAM'.
WARNING: [SCHED 63] Unable to schedule the whole 2 cycles 'load' operation
('d_i_load', array_RAM.c:98) on array 'd_i' within the first cycle (II = 1).
WARNING: [SCHED 63] Please consider increasing the target initiation interval of the
pipeline.
WARNING: [SCHED 69] Unable to schedule 'load' operation ('idx_load_2',
array_RAM.c:98) on array 'idx' due to limited memory ports.
INFO: [SCHED 61] Pipelining result: Target II: 1, Final II: 4, Depth: 6.
INFO: [SCHED 11] Finished scheduling.
By seeking to create a design which satisfies a lower optimization target, the tool is able to provide three important types of information:
- What target performance can be achieved with the current C code and optimization directives.
- A list of the reasons why it was unable to satisfy the higher performance target.
- A design which can be analyzed to provide more insight and help understand the reason for the failure.
In message SCHED-69 above the reason given for
failing to reach the target II is due to limited ports. The
design must access a block RAM, and a block RAM only has a
maximum of two ports.
The next step after a failure such as this is to analyze what the issue is. In this example, analyze line 52 of the code and/or use the Analysis perspective to determine the bottleneck and if the requirement for more than two ports can be reduced or determine how the number of ports can be increased.
After the design is optimized and the desired performance achieved, the RTL can be verified and the results of synthesis packaged as IP.