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crackNum-3.24: README.md

## Decode/Encode Integers, Words, and IEEE754 and other float formats

On Hackage: http://hackage.haskell.org/package/crackNum

`crackNum` shows you exactly how a number is laid out in memory: the bit
pattern, its fields, the classification, and the value in binary, octal,
decimal, and hex. It works in both directions:

  - **Encoding**: give it a value (`2.5`, `-2.3e6`, `NaN`, `0x3.2p5`), and it shows
    the bit-pattern it turns into, together with the rounding that took place.
  - **Decoding**: give it a bit-pattern (`0xdeadbeef`, `0b0110`, `32'hfdc71fc6`),
    and it shows the value it stands for.

### Installation

```
$ cabal install crackNum
```

`crackNum` uses [SBV](http://hackage.haskell.org/package/sbv) and delegates the
actual floating-point reasoning to an SMT solver, so you also need
[z3](https://github.com/Z3Prover/z3) on your `PATH`.

### Supported formats

| Flag      | Format                              | Exponent | Significand (incl. implicit bit) |
|-----------|-------------------------------------|---------:|---------------------------------:|
| `-fhp`    | Half precision (IEEE-754 binary16)  |        5 |                               11 |
| `-fbp`    | Brain float (bfloat16)              |        8 |                                8 |
| `-ftf32`  | TensorFloat-32                      |        8 |                               11 |
| `-fsp`    | Single precision (binary32)         |        8 |                               24 |
| `-fdp`    | Double precision (binary64)         |       11 |                               53 |
| `-fqp`    | Quad precision (binary128)          |       15 |                              113 |
| `-fe5m2`  | FP8, IEEE-754 style                 |        5 |                                3 |
| `-fe4m3`  | FP8, alternate (no infinities)      |        4 |                                4 |
| `-ffp4`   | FP4 (E2M1)                          |        2 |                                2 |
| `-fa+b`   | Arbitrary IEEE-754 float            |        a |                                b |

Integers come in two flavors: `-iN` for a signed `N`-bit 2's complement integer,
and `-wN` for an unsigned `N`-bit word. Both `N` and the arbitrary float sizes
can be as large as you like, within machine-word limits.

Note that TF32 is cracked as its 19 architectural bits; hardware typically
carries these in a 32-bit container with the remaining bits unused.

Rounding mode is selected with `-r`, and defaults to `RNE` if not given:
`RNE` (nearest, ties to even), `RNA` (nearest, ties away), `RTP` (towards
positive infinity), `RTN` (towards negative infinity), and `RTZ` (towards zero).

### Example: Encode a decimal number as a single-precision IEEE754 number
```
$ crackNum -fsp -- -2.3e6
Satisfiable. Model:
  ENCODED = -2300000.0 :: Float
                  3  2          1         0
                  1 09876543 21098765432109876543210
                  S ---E8--- ----------S23----------
   Binary layout: 1 10010100 00011000110000110000000
      Hex layout: CA0C 6180
       Precision: Single
            Sign: Negative
        Exponent: 21 (Stored: 148, Bias: 127)
  Classification: FP_NORMAL
          Binary: -0b1.0001100011000011p+21
           Octal: -0o1.061414p+21
         Decimal: -2300000.0
             Hex: -0x2.3186p+20
   Rounding mode: RNE: Round nearest ties to even.
            Note: Conversion from "-2.3e6" was exact. No rounding happened.
```

### Example: Encode with a different rounding mode
```
$ crackNum -fsp 1.3 -rRTZ
Satisfiable. Model:
  ENCODED = 1.3 :: Float
                  3  2          1         0
                  1 09876543 21098765432109876543210
                  S ---E8--- ----------S23----------
   Binary layout: 0 01111111 01001100110011001100110
      Hex layout: 3FA6 6666
       Precision: Single
            Sign: Positive
        Exponent: 0 (Stored: 127, Bias: 127)
  Classification: FP_NORMAL
          Binary: 0b1.0100110011001100110011
           Octal: 0o1.23146314
         Decimal: 1.3
             Hex: 0x1.4ccccc
   Rounding mode: RTZ: Round towards zero.
            Note: Conversion from "1.3" was not faithful. Status: Inexact.
```

### Example: Decode a single-precision IEEE754 number float from memory-layout
```
$ crackNum -fsp  0xfc00 abc1
Satisfiable. Model:
  DECODED = -2.6723903e36 :: Float
                  3  2          1         0
                  1 09876543 21098765432109876543210
                  S ---E8--- ----------S23----------
   Binary layout: 1 11111000 00000001010101111000001
      Hex layout: FC00 ABC1
       Precision: Single
            Sign: Negative
        Exponent: 121 (Stored: 248, Bias: 127)
  Classification: FP_NORMAL
          Binary: -0b1.00000001010101111000001p+121
           Octal: -0o2.00527404p+120
         Decimal: -2.6723903e36
             Hex: -0x2.02af04p+120
```

### Example: Encode as an E4M3 FP8 float
```
$ crackNum -fe4m3 2.5
Satisfiable. Model:
  ENCODED = 2.5 :: E4M3
                  7 6543 210
                  S -E4- S3-
   Binary layout: 0 1000 010
      Hex layout: 42
       Precision: 4 exponent bits, 3 significand bits
            Sign: Positive
        Exponent: 1 (Stored: 8, Bias: 7)
  Classification: FP_NORMAL
          Binary: 0b1.01p1
           Octal: 0o2.4
         Decimal: 2.5
             Hex: 0x2.8
```

### Example: Decode an FP4 (E2M1) float
```
$ crackNum -ffp4 0b0111
Satisfiable. Model:
  DECODED = 6.0 :: FP4
                  3 21 0
                  S E2 S
   Binary layout: 0 11 1
      Hex layout: 7
       Precision: 2 exponent bits, 1 significand bit
            Sign: Positive
        Exponent: 2 (Stored: 3, Bias: 1)
  Classification: FP_NORMAL
          Binary: 0b1.1p+2
           Octal: 0o6
         Decimal: 6.0
             Hex: 0x6
```

### Example: Encode a TensorFloat-32 number
```
$ crackNum -ftf32 2.5
Satisfiable. Model:
  ENCODED = 2.5 :: FloatingPoint 8 11
                  1          0
                  8 76543210 9876543210
                  S ---E8--- ---S10----
   Binary layout: 0 10000000 0100000000
      Hex layout: 2 0100
       Precision: 8 exponent bits, 10 significand bits
            Sign: Positive
        Exponent: 1 (Stored: 128, Bias: 127)
  Classification: FP_NORMAL
          Binary: 0b1.01p1
           Octal: 0o2.4
         Decimal: 2.5
             Hex: 0x2.8
   Rounding mode: RNE: Round nearest ties to even.
            Note: Conversion from "2.5" was exact. No rounding happened.
```

### Example: Decode a custom (2+3) float from memory-layout
```
$ crackNum -f2+3 0b10011
Satisfiable. Model:
  DECODED = -0.75 :: FloatingPoint 2 3
                  4 32 10
                  S E2 S2
   Binary layout: 1 00 11
      Hex layout: 13
       Precision: 2 exponent bits, 2 significand bits
            Sign: Negative
        Exponent: 0 (Subnormal, with fixed exponent value. Stored: 0, Bias: 1)
  Classification: FP_SUBNORMAL
          Binary: -0b1.1p-1
           Octal: -0o6p-3
         Decimal: -0.75
             Hex: -0xcp-4
```

### Example: Encode an integer as a 7-bit signed word
```
$ crackNum -i7 12
Satisfiable. Model:
  ENCODED = 12 :: IntN 7
                  654 3210
   Binary layout: 000 1100
      Hex layout: 0C
            Type: Signed 7-bit 2's complement integer
            Sign: Positive
          Binary: 0b1100
           Octal: 0o14
         Decimal: 12
             Hex: 0xc
```

### Example: Decode a 4-bit unsigned word
```
$ crackNum -w4 0xE
Satisfiable. Model:
  DECODED = 14 :: WordN 4
                  3210
   Binary layout: 1110
      Hex layout: E
            Type: Unsigned 4-bit word
          Binary: 0b1110
           Octal: 0o16
         Decimal: 14
             Hex: 0xe
```

### Example: Decode two half-precision floats in two lanes
```
$ crackNum -l2 -fhp 32\'hfdc71fc6
== Lane 1 ============================================================
Satisfiable. Model:
  DECODED = NaN :: FloatingPoint 5 11
                  1       0
                  5 43210 9876543210
                  S -E5-- ---S10----
   Binary layout: 1 11111 0111000111
      Hex layout: FDC7
       Precision: Half (5 exponent bits, 10 significand bits.)
            Sign: Negative
        Exponent: 16 (Stored: 31, Bias: 15)
  Classification: FP_NAN (Signaling)
           Value: NaN
            Note: Representation for NaN's is not unique
== Lane 0 ============================================================
Satisfiable. Model:
  DECODED = 0.0075912476 :: FloatingPoint 5 11
                  1       0
                  5 43210 9876543210
                  S -E5-- ---S10----
   Binary layout: 0 00111 1111000110
      Hex layout: 1FC6
       Precision: Half (5 exponent bits, 10 significand bits.)
            Sign: Positive
        Exponent: -8 (Stored: 7, Bias: 15)
  Classification: FP_NORMAL
          Binary: 0b1.111100011p-8
           Octal: 0o3.706p-9
         Decimal: 0.0075912476
             Hex: 0x1.f18p-8
```

If you use the verilog notation (`N'h...`), the number of lanes is inferred from
the width, so `-l` is optional in that case.

### Graphical interface (optional)

Optionally, crackNum comes with a GUI: pick a format on the left, type a value,
and see the encoding/decoding in detail. It is entirely optional — crackNum is
fully functional as a command-line tool without it. The GUI is just a thin
front-end that calls the `crackNum` binary underneath, so it supports exactly
the same formats.

![crackNum GUI](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/LeventErkok/crackNum/master/crackNumGUI.png)

**macOS** — a native Swift/AppKit app (`GUI/swiftGUI/`). It is not part of the
Hackage package, so you need a clone of the repository to build it. You also
need the Swift compiler that comes with the Xcode Command Line Tools
(`xcode-select --install`):

```
$ git clone https://github.com/LeventErkok/crackNum.git
$ cd crackNum/GUI/swiftGUI
$ make install      # builds CrackNum.app and copies it into /Applications
```

**Linux** — a Tcl/Tk script (`GUI/tclGUI/crackNum.tcl`). The script ships with the
package and is installed alongside the binary, so there is nothing to build; you
only need `wish` (Tk 8.6+):

```
$ nix profile install nixpkgs#tk   # or: sudo apt install tk / sudo dnf install tk
```

Then `crackNum --gui` just works. If you want to run a modified copy of the
script, either put it on your PATH as `crackNum.tcl`, or point at it directly
with `CRACKNUM_TCL=/path/to/crackNum.tcl`.

On both platforms, launch the GUI from the command line via the `--gui` option,
which forwards any format/rounding flags and value to the app:

```
$ crackNum --gui                 -- open the graphical interface
$ crackNum --gui -fsp 2.5        -- open it with single-precision selected, and 2.5 cracked
$ crackNum --gui 0xdeadbeef      -- open it pre-filled with a value to decode
```

Bad flags are diagnosed before the GUI comes up: `crackNum -ft32 4 --gui`
reports the unknown format instead of opening an empty window.

### Usage info
```
Usage: crackNum value OR binary/hex-pattern
  -i N                 Signed   integer of N-bits
  -w N                 Unsigned integer of N-bits
  -f fp                Floating point format fp
  -r rm                Rounding mode to use. If not given, Nearest-ties-to-Even.
  -l lanes             Number of lanes to decode
  -h, -?    --help     print help, with examples
  -v        --version  print version info
  -d        --debug    debug mode, developers only
            --gui      launch the graphical interface

Examples:
 Encoding:
   crackNum -i4    -- -2                    -- encode as 4-bit signed integer
   crackNum -w4    2                        -- encode as 4-bit unsigned integer
   crackNum -f3+4  2.5                      -- encode as float with 3 bits exponent, 4 bits significand
   crackNum -f3+4  2.5 -rRTZ                -- encode as above, but use RTZ rounding mode.
   crackNum -fbp   2.5                      -- encode as a brain-precision float
   crackNum -ftf32 2.5                      -- encode as a TensorFloat-32 float
   crackNum -fdp   2.5                      -- encode as a double-precision float
   crackNum -fqp   2.5                      -- encode as a quad-precision float
   crackNum -fe4m3 2.5                      -- encode as an E4M3 FP8 float
   crackNum -fe5m2 2.5                      -- encode as an E5M2 FP8 float
   crackNum -ffp4  2.5                      -- encode as an FP4 (E2M1) float
   crackNum -fsp   0x3.2p5                  -- encode as single-precision from hex-float

 Decoding:
   crackNum -i4      0b0110                -- decode as 4-bit signed integer, from binary
   crackNum -w4      0xE                   -- decode as 4-bit unsigned integer, from hex
   crackNum -f3+4    0b0111001             -- decode as float with 3 bits exponent, 4 bits significand
   crackNum -fbp     0x000F                -- decode as a brain-precision float
   crackNum -ftf32   19\'h0000F            -- decode as a TensorFloat-32 float
   crackNum -fdp     0x8000000000000000    -- decode as a double-precision float
   crackNum -fhp     0x8000                -- decode as a half-precision float
   crackNum -ffp4    0b0111                -- decode as an FP4 (E2M1) float
   crackNum -l4 -fhp 64\'hbdffaaffdc71fc60 -- decode as half-precision float over 4 lanes using verilog notation

 GUI:
   crackNum --gui                     -- launch the graphical interface
   crackNum --gui 0xdeadbeef          -- launch the GUI, pre-filled with the given value

 Notes:
   - For encoding:
       - Use -- to separate your argument if it's a negative number.
       - For floats: You can pass in NaN, Inf, -0, -Inf etc as the argument
                     along with a decimal (2.3, -4.1e5) or hexadecimal float (0x2.4p3)
       - FP4 (E2M1) has neither NaN nor Inf, so those inputs are rejected. Finite
         values outside its range of [-6, 6] saturate to the nearest end-point.
   - For decoding:
       - Use hexadecimal (0x) binary (0b), or N'h (verilog) notation as input.
         Input must have one of these prefixes.
       - You can use _,- or space as a digit to improve readability for the pattern to be decoded
       - With -lN parameter, you can decode multiple lanes of data.
       - If you use verilog input format, then we will infer the number of lanes unless you provide it.
```

VIM users: You can use the http://github.com/LeventErkok/crackNum/blob/master/crackNum.vim file to
use CrackNum directly from VIM. Simply locate your cursor on the text to crack, and use the
command `:CrackNum options`.