Avoiding pitfalls in simulating real-time computer systems

The software simulation of a computer target system on a computer host system, known as an interpretive computer simulator (ICS), functionally models and implements the action of the target hardware. For an ICS to function as efficiently as possible and to avoid certain pitfalls in designing an ICS, it is important that the details of the hardware architectural design of both the target and the host computers be known. This paper discusses both host selection considerations and ICS design features that, without proper consideration, could make the resulting ICS too slow to use or too costly to maintain and expand.