Documentation

Quickstart Guide

Go from account activation to a verified RTL block in four steps. This guide covers the full process for team members provisioned through the Skycore early access program.

Quickstart

Skycore is offered through the early access program. After team approval, each provisioned engineer receives account credentials and API access. This guide covers initial setup and the first generation run.

Prerequisites: A provisioned Skycore account, Team or Studio tier. An existing EDA project directory. Familiarity with Verilog or SystemVerilog behavioral modeling.

Step 1: Configure Your Environment

Once your account is provisioned, an activation email provides your workspace URL. Each organization has an isolated workspace, and every team engineer signs in with individual credentials.

1
Sign into your workspace

Open your provisioned workspace URL and authenticate with the credentials in your activation email. At first sign-in, you must create a new password and set up two-factor authentication.

2
Set up the Skycore CLI

Use the CLI as the main interface for adding generation runs to your existing EDA flow. Install it with the package manager you prefer.

bash 
# pip (Python 3.9+)
pip install skycore-cli

# Authenticate with your workspace token
skycore auth login --workspace your-org.skycore.dev

# Verify installation
skycore --version
output 
skycore-cli 0.9.4
Authenticated as: [email protected]
Workspace: your-org.skycore.dev

Step 2: Link a Project

A Skycore project maps to a directory in your EDA flow. Connecting it stores the output language target, Verilog/SystemVerilog, process node, and simulation tool chain so each generation run uses those settings automatically.

1
Initialize your work directory

From your RTL working directory, run skycore init. Skycore creates the .skycore/ configuration folder and adds the project to your workspace.

2
Configure parameters

The init process asks for the process node, output language preference, and simulation tool, Cadence Xcelium, Synopsys VCS, or Mentor Questa. Update these later with skycore config set.

bash 
cd /path/to/your/rtl/project
skycore init

# Follow the interactive prompts:
# Process node: 65nm / 28nm / 22nm / custom
# Output language: Verilog / SystemVerilog
# Simulation tool: xcelium / vcs / questa

# Confirm settings
skycore config show

Step 3: Define Your First RF Block

Skycore takes natural language block descriptions through the interactive prompt, CLI, or REST API. Include the block type, target frequency band or range, key performance targets such as NF, IIP3, and gain, process node, and interface requirements.

Implementation topology is not required. Skycore chooses a suitable behavioral model structure and derives a reasonable parameter set from your performance targets. You may change any choice after generation.

bash 
# Launch the interactive prompt
skycore generate --interactive

# Or pass a description directly
skycore generate \
  --block "LNA for 24 GHz automotive radar, NF < 2.0 dB, gain 15 dB, \
  single-ended 50-ohm input, 28nm CMOS, SystemVerilog output" \
  --output src/lna_24ghz_radar.sv

Step 4: Create and Verify

Generation and verification run through one Skycore pipeline. Once generation finishes, the platform creates a UVM testbench that matches the declared interface and performance envelope, then starts simulation with your configured tool chain.

output 
[skycore] Parsing block description...
[skycore] Process node: 28nm CMOS
[skycore] Block type: LNA (single-ended)
[skycore] Generating behavioral RTL...

  Generated: src/lna_24ghz_radar.sv (74 lines)
  Generated: tb/lna_24ghz_radar_tb.sv (UVM, 3 test sequences)

[skycore] Launching verification (Xcelium)...

  Test 1/3: gain_nominal_tb       PASS  (gain: 15.2 dB)
  Test 2/3: nf_sweep_tb           PASS  (NF: 1.87 dB at PVT corners)
  Test 3/3: iip3_linearity_tb     PASS  (IIP3: +7.4 dBm, within spec)

[skycore] Verification complete: 3/3 tests passed
[skycore] Coverage report: .skycore/reports/lna_24ghz_radar_20260618.html

When a test fails, Skycore provides a structured failure trace showing which performance parameter exceeded the declared envelope. Iterate by refining the block description, editing parameters in the generated file, or asking for another topology with skycore regenerate --topology cascode.

Up Next

After your first generation run, review these areas:

  • API Reference: Add generation runs directly to CI scripts or Makefile flows
  • Custom verification rules: Create constraint templates for your block library
  • Team project settings: Share project configuration with your team via the workspace dashboard

For questions about provisioned access or quota limits, contact the Skycore team at [email protected].