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So I created a shared variable in a purely non-synthesizeable code.

When compiling ModelSim generates a warning:

(vcom-1236) Shared variables must be of a protected type.

Why is it a warning and not an error if the shared variable must be "protected"?
What does protected even mean in this case i.e protected from what?

The shared variable is just a std_logic.

pc3e
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quantum231
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    Starting in IEEE Std 1076-2002 shared variables are of protected types (accessed by methods instead of assigned or evaluated directly). The default standard revision used by recent Modelsim versions is -2002. –  Sep 22 '16 at 02:16
  • What is the northern behind this change for shared variables? Certainly it overcomes some drawbacks that they have right? – quantum231 Sep 22 '16 at 07:36
  • [Protected Shared Variables in VHDL: IEEE Std 1076a](http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.75.8679&rep=rep1&type=pdf) (The first thing that comes up googling using *VHDL mutual exclusion protected type*). –  Sep 22 '16 at 07:49
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    There were issues with vendor implementations of shared variables before 2002. The the newer standard revisions enforce protected types, so shared variables have a well defined behavior: in your designs and in different simulators. That does not mean that all vendors, who claim to support VHDL-2008, have a correct protected type implementation ... !! I have a testcase which shows, that their simulator has the same faulty shared variable implementation like the predecessor product (which supported only VHDL-93) developed by the same company :). – Paebbels Sep 22 '16 at 23:57
  • If you use GHDL use `-frelaxed-rules` switch to relax this issue to warning. – betontalpfa Jun 05 '19 at 16:17

1 Answers1

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Non-protected shared variables are fine if you know what you are doing, and I would personally prefer if Modelsim did not produce the warning. (It is not present if you compile for VHDL-93.)

In your case you could replace your shared std_logic variable with a small protected type with an internal variable and set and get procedures. This would get rid of the warning, but provide zero extra protection.

Not to say that protected types are not useful in some situations.

pc3e
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