Abstract: The invention provides run-time support for efficient simulation of digital hardware in a software development enviromnent, facilitating combined hardware/software co-simulation. The run-time support includes threads of execution that minimize stack storage requirements and reduce memory-related run-time processing requirements. The invention implements shared processor stack areas, including the sharing of a stack storage area among multiple threads, storing each thread's stack data in a designated area in compressed form while the thread is suspended. The thread's stack data is uncompressed and copied back onto a processor stack area when the thread is reactivated. A mapping of simulation model instances to stack storage is determined so as to minimize a cost function of memory and CPU run-time, to reduce the risk of stack overflow, and to reduce the impact of blocking system calls on simulation model execution.