RTL Viewer Command (Tools Menu)

You open the RTL Viewer by clicking Tools > Netlist Viewers > RTL Viewer.

The RTL Viewer allows you to view a schematic of the internal structure of the design netlist.

The RTL Viewer and Technology Map Viewer each consist of these main parts:

  • The Netlist Navigator pane—displays a representation of the project hierarchy.
  • The Find pane—allows you to find and locate specific design elements in the schematic view.
  • The Properties pane displays the properties of the selected block when you select Properties from the shortcut menu.
  • The schematic view—displays a graphical representation of the internal structure of the design.

Netlist Viewers also contain a toolbar that provides tools to use in the schematic view.

  • Use the Back and Forward buttons to switch between schematic views.
  • The Refresh button to restore the schematic view and optimizes the layout. Refresh does not reload the database if you change the design and recompile.
  • Click the Find button opens and closes the Find pane.
  • Click the Selection Tool and Zoom Tool buttons to alternate between the selection mode and zoom mode.
  • Click the Fit in Window button resets the schematic view to encompass the entire design.
  • Click the Fit Selection in Window button resets the schematic view to encompass the entire selection.
  • Use the Hand Tool to change the focus of the viewer without changing the perspective.
  • Click the Area Selection Tool to drag a selection box around ports, pins, and nodes in an area.
  • Click the Netlist Navigator button to open or close the Netlist Navigator pane.
  • Click the Color Settings button to open the Colors pane where you can customize the Netlist Viewer color scheme.
  • Click the Display Settings button to open the Display pane where you can specify the following settings:
    • Show full name or Show only <n> characters. You can specify this separately for Node name, Port name, Pin name, or Bus index name.
    • Turn Show timing info on or off.
    • Turn Show node type on or off.
    • Turn Show constant value on or off.
    • Turn Show flat nets on or off.
    • Turn Maintain selection when expand hierarchy on or off.
    • Turn Enable rollover on or off.
    • Turn Show located objects in new tab on or off.
  • The Bird's Eye View button opens the Bird's Eye View window which displays a miniature version of the design and allows you to navigate within the design and adjust the magnification in the schematic view quickly.
  • The Show/Hide Instance Pins button can alternate the display of instance pins not displayed by functions such as cross-probing between a Netlist Viewer and Timing Analyzer. You can also use this button to hide unconnected instance pins when filtering a node results in large numbers of unconnected or unused pins. The Netlist Viewer hides Instance pins by default.
  • If the Netlist Viewer display encompasses several pages, the Show Netlist on One Page button resizes the netlist view to a single page. This action can make netlist tracing easier.
  • Click the Highlight list to apply a highlight color to the objects that you select in the schematic. Unhighlight objects with Unhighlight or Unhighlight All from the right-click menu.