Sigasi Visual HDL is aimed at engineers who want to edit HDL code in the context of the whole project. The current product line runs in Visual Studio Code. A meaningful evaluation starts with a correct project definition, not a single isolated source window.
Understanding the editions
| Edition | Documented focus | Question for your team |
|---|---|---|
| Designer | HDL editing, navigation and project-aware feedback | Do everyday code changes become safer and easier to understand? |
| Professional | Additional graphical views, UVM-related features and documentation | Which views help with handover and debugging? |
| Enterprise | Extended automation through the CLI | Which checks should run without an interactive IDE? |
The current manufacturer feature matrix determines the scope of each edition. According to Sigasi, Community is limited to non-commercial use and requires Talkback; it is therefore not a universal alternative for a commercial team evaluation.
Project data as a shared foundation
The current manual describes Modular Projects as the standard format. Before migrating an existing project, establish where the authoritative file set, library assignments and compiler configuration are maintained. Then check whether the editor analysis correctly reflects a fresh build.
External compilation is a separate checking stage
Documented compiler tasks allow diagnostics from external tools to be integrated. A dedicated task type exists for Riviera-PRO. This step does not automatically execute a complete behavioural simulation. A testbench, elaboration, execution and result evaluation remain necessary.
An included CLI does not license every use
Sigasi states that the CLI has been included in the VS Code package since Visual HDL 2025.3. Whether a specific CLI feature may be used still depends on the edition and licence terms. Check this before automated team or CI use.
What a trial should demonstrate
- Editor and simulator see the same files and libraries.
- Navigation and renaming work on representative source code.
- Diagnostics can be associated with a specific project target.
- The required external compiler run is reproducible on the intended operating system.
The shared workflow provides technical context. For a Sigasi Visual HDL evaluation , specify the project format, languages, operating system and required automation.