VectorCAST
VectorCAST is an embedded software testing platform that automates unit, integration, and coverage testing across the software development lifecycle. It is built for teams working in C, C++, and Ada on safety-critical and high-integrity systems.
VectorCAST removes the manual overhead from unit testing. Test harnesses, regression execution, coverage collection, and certification reporting all run automatically. Your engineers focus on the work that requires engineering judgment, not the infrastructure around it.
VectorCAST is used by embedded software developers, test engineers, and software quality leads in aerospace, automotive, medical device, industrial, and railway programs where compliance with standards like DO-178C, ISO 26262, IEC 62304, and EN 50716 is required.
Advantages
VectorCAST is designed specifically for the constraints and requirements of embedded software development, not adapted from general-purpose tools.
Reduce manual test effort significantly
VectorCAST produces test cases directly from source code, so your team spends time validating results rather than writing boilerplate.
Achieve and prove structural coverage
Statement, branch, and MC/DC coverage analysis is built in and reportable in formats suitable for certification review. Project-level and unit-level coverage display together in a single viewer, so you assess completeness across the entire program without switching between views.
Maintain traceability from requirements to test results
Integrate with requirements management tools including IBM DOORS, Polarion, Visure, Jama and codeBeamer to keep your test artifacts linked and auditable throughout the project lifecycle.
Work within your existing development environment
VectorCAST integrates with Jenkins, Visual Studio Code, MathWorks Simulink, and over 80 compilers. Native GoogleTest support means existing test suites come across without rewriting. It fits into your workflow rather than replacing it.
Accelerate certification with qualification documentation
Tool qualification packages for DO-178B/C and tool validation packages for IEC 61508, ISO 26262, EN 50716, and IEC 62304 are available, including certificates from TÜV SUD.
Application Areas
VectorCAST is used wherever software failures carry safety or mission consequences.
Aerospace
Structural coverage certification for airborne systems per DO-178B and DO-178C. VectorCAST qualification packages provide the documentation, test cases, and procedures required for tool qualification.
Automotive
Software verification and validation for automotive functional safety per ISO 26262. Supports requirements traceability, regression testing, and coverage reporting across ECU software projects.
Medical
Software safety verification for medical devices per IEC 62304. Supports the full test documentation chain from unit test to system-level coverage.
Industrial
Functional safety certification for programmable electronic systems per IEC 61508. Used in product development programs requiring systematic software verification.
Railway
Software verification and validation for railway applications per EN 50716. Supports structured testing with traceability and coverage evidence generation.
VectorCAST Products
VectorCAST/C++
Test C and C++ components at the unit and integration level. Automate test execution, collect structural coverage, and generate reports suitable for safety-critical verification programs.
VectorCAST/Ada
Test Ada software components with the same level of automation and coverage analysis. Designed for mission-critical and safety-critical programs using Ada as the primary development language.
VectorCAST/QA
Integrate with your build system to track code coverage and test status at the project level over time. Useful for teams running continuous integration who need trending and aggregate visibility.
Licensed Add-Ons
VectorCAST/Coupling
Automated analysis and instrumentation for data coupling and control coupling verification, required by standards such as DO-178C at higher design assurance levels.
VectorCAST/Timing
Statistical timing analysis for safety-critical software. Replaces static WCET estimation with formal statistical methods derived entirely from measured execution data. Supports ISO 26262, DO-178C, EN 50716, IEC 61508, IEC 62304, and IEC 60880.
Bring Your Existing Test Suite into VectorCAST
Teams building safety-critical software often have an existing C++ test suite — GoogleTest or other xUnit frameworks. With VectorCAST Coded Tests there is no need to start over. Bring your existing suites directly into VectorCAST without rewriting them. Execution, MC/DC coverage analysis, and certification reporting all work from the first run. Mock support for C functions is built in, and for new tests, write in a familiar xUnit-style C++ syntax and manage everything through the same certified environment.
What your existing test suite gains
MC/DC structural coverage
Statement, branch, and MC/DC coverage measured and reported automatically across your existing tests. No external instrumentation, no additional tooling.
Requirements traceability
Link your test cases to requirements and generate audit-ready traceability reports. The connection from requirement to test result is auditable without manual assembly.
Certified tool qualification
TÜV-certified qualification kits are available for DO-178C and other applicable standards. Your test suite now runs in a qualified environment.
Built-in mocking and stubbing
Fault injection and unit isolation without third-party mocking frameworks. VUnit mock support for C functions keeps test code self-contained.
ATG for new tests
Automatic Test Generation produces reviewable C++ source files for new coverage gaps, giving you a starting point without manual authoring.
VS Code integration
Run Coded Tests and view coverage inline in your source from the VectorCAST Test Explorer extension, without leaving the IDE.
AI-Powered Requirements-Based Test Generation
Requirements-based testing is a certification requirement in most safety-critical programs. It is also one of the most labor-intensive parts of the verification workflow: mapping requirements to code, authoring test cases for each one, and keeping traceability intact as both requirements and code change.
Reqs2x, the AI-powered Requirements-Based Test Creator in VectorCAST 2026, automates that work. Reqs2x maps requirements to the functions that implement them and generates aligned test cases using large language models. Nothing enters the verification workflow until an engineer has reviewed and approved it.
How it works
Import Requirements
Import requirements through the Requirements Gateway, so your existing workflow stays exactly as it is.
Automatic mapping
Reqs2x maps each requirement to the functions that implement it using program slicing. No manual cross-referencing.
AI-generated test cases
Large language models generate executable test cases aligned with each requirement. Every artifact is fully transparent—inputs, outputs, and mappings are visible at each step.
Engineer review
Generated mappings and test cases go through an engineer review step before entering any verification workflow. Nothing is accepted automatically. AI-generated artifacts are subject to the same review and quality controls as hand-written test code.
Built for safety-critial programs
Vector's AI approach uses modular, task-specific agents designed for precisely defined use cases within controlled contexts. Each agent does one thing in one place, which makes its behavior predictable and its outputs reviewable. The design supports alignment with MISRA C:2025, ISO/IEC AI frameworks, and the EU AI Act.
The Bring Your Own Model approach lets your organization select the large language model that fits your infrastructure and data privacy requirements. On-premises, cloud, and hybrid deployments are all supported.
Qualification and Certification
Avionics DO-178 Tool Qualification
The VectorCAST Tool Qualification Package for DO-178B and DO-178C includes tool qualification documentation, test cases, and procedures. It is designed to let teams qualify VectorCAST for use on programs governed by DO-178B/ED-12B or DO-178C/ED-12C.
TÜV SÜD Certified
The VectorCAST Tool Validation Package provides documentation, certificates, and templates for use on safety-critical projects. Industrial, Automotive, Medical, and Railway (IEC 61508, ISO 26262, EN 50716, IEC 62304)
