Notes: 2026-06-10 CC Virtualization Simulation subgroup

[Julianus Larson]

Hi,

Thanks for joining the call yesterday. Here are the meeting notes and the slides presented by Alex.

Best regards,

Julianus Larson

Attendees:

Mark Burton
Sumit Semwal
Bertrand Marquis
Randy Linell
Alex Benée
Edgar Iglesias
Bill Mills
Lukas Jünger
Don Harbin
Ilias Apalodimas
Vincent Stehle
Julianus Larson

Quick recap

This was the kickoff meeting for the virtualization simulation subgroup focused on ARM systems emulation and simulation. Alex from Lenaro led the discussion and presented background information on QEMU's current ARM emulation capabilities, noting that Lenaro has implemented 178 ARM features over 14 years, including support for ARMv3.93 baseline and single binary work. The group discussed whether to focus primarily on QEMU or include other simulation environments like ARM's FVP models, with consensus that QEMU should be the primary focus given current interest and expertise. Key areas of interest identified included TCG plugin interfaces, single binary support, split acceleration, and co-simulation capabilities with SystemC and other tools. Mark mentioned ongoing work on single binary and split acceleration patches, while Edgar discussed validation use cases for hypervisors and co-simulation with RTL. The group agreed to meet bi-weekly and focus the next meeting on co-simulation interests, with plans to reach out to additional stakeholders who were not present at this meeting.

Next steps

Alex

• Post meeting notes on mailing list with survey link for potential new members

Edgar

• Contact Xilinx team and forward information about this working group to relevant Xilinx members for potential participation

Ilyas

• Create and share slides categorizing topics discussed across virtualization, simulation, and VirtIO into proper groups
• Maintain the maintenance working group meeting next week with focus on general discussion across groups

Julianus

• Conduct outreach to additional interested parties and ensure they are included in future meetings
• Schedule next subgroup meeting

Mark

• Send invite/forward invitation to Accelera federated simulation working group meetings

Randy

• Reach out to other Core Collective members not present in the meeting who may have interest in this topic

Summary

ARM Systems Emulation Kickoff Meeting

Alex led a kickoff meeting for the virtualization simulation subgroup focused on ARM systems emulation and simulation. The group discussed potential areas of focus including CPU emulation improvements, modeling other hardware devices, and supporting complex modeling scenarios. Alex provided background on Linaro's involvement with QEMU, highlighting their contributions to maintaining the upstream project, implementing ARM features, and developing capabilities like single binary work and TCG plugins.

QEMU Project Status Discussion

Alex discussed the status of the single binary project, which is nearly ready for inclusion in version 11.1 of QEMU, with plans to enable ARM and other architectures. The group debated whether to focus on QEMU as the primary simulation environment or consider other options like ARM's FVP models, with Mark and Ilias agreeing that QEMU should remain the focus unless specific individuals express interest in other emulators. The conversation ended with plans to canvas attendees' interests and discuss research topics for the next meeting.

TCG Plugin Interface Development Progress

Mark discussed the importance of the single binary and split accel projects, noting that Phil and Pierrick are progressing them within Qualcomm. He emphasized the group's focus on simulation and the TCG plugin interface, highlighting the need for a stable API to facilitate integration with other environments. Alex expressed interest in CPU emulation and enhancing the TCG plugin interface to meet the needs of developers working with the latest architectural features.

QEMU ARM Virtualization Validation

Edgar discussed using QEMU for validating ARM virtualization features and testing hypervisors, particularly for automotive applications requiring safety certification. Alex clarified that QEMU is a functional simulator rather than a microarchitecture simulator, and while it can validate instruction and system register behavior, it doesn't perfectly replicate real hardware timing. Mark emphasized that validation can be achieved through different means, including stress testing software and using QEMU for fuzzing and unit testing with GDB, though complete hardware emulation validation remains challenging due to timing differences.

QEMU Co-simulation Development Discussion

The meeting focused on discussing QEMU development and co-simulation interests across different organizations. Edgar agreed to forward meeting information to the Xilinx team, while Randy suggested reaching out to additional CORE Collective members who might be interested. Mark proposed two specific work items: implementing multi-core debug support and developing composable machine functionality, though both initiatives appeared to have stalled previously. The group discussed a new federated co-simulation standard being developed through Accelera, with Mark offering to share details and potentially involve the QEMU community in reviewing the standard once available. The team agreed to hold bi-weekly meetings and focus the next session on co-simulation, while Ilyas volunteered to categorize discussion topics to avoid overlap between working groups.