Learn about the new features, enhancements, and important
changes introduced to the Altium 365 platform.
Altium has just released version 2.9.0 of the MCAD CoDesigner. This version has the option to exclude small components when transferring from ECAD to MCAD. The arc behavior was improved, and the support for splines in board shape and cutouts was added. With this release, you can now select a specific SOLIDWORKS configuration of a part to use on the board and view the improvements made for Siemens NX.
Visit New in CoDesigner 2.9.0 for full release notes.
Altium 365 Web Viewer now includes a built-in PDF viewer that allows you to view PDF files in releases without an external PDF viewer application.
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The key features of the PDF Viewer in Altium 365 are listed below:
You can find more information about using PDF in Altium 365 Web Viewer by visiting the PDF in Web Viewer - A365 Getting Started Guide.
With Altium 365, you can grant permission to teams or users based on the specific needs of a project. We have expanded Altium 365’s file-sharing setting, giving you more granular control over who can download source files and reshare projects with others.
Varying Degrees of Granularity
Altium 365 lets you set group or individual permissions so you can share a specific project with your team and provide editing or view-only permission.
Advanced Settings
Additional sharing permissions are available to the project owner and administrators in the Share dialog box. Use the Advanced Settings options to specify the re-sharing and download rights for users with whom the project is shared.
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Sharing by Link
Altium 365 sends a notification to the users with whom your project is shared. Users can also copy and paste a link to the project and send it via chat or email so anyone with a link can view a project without having to download it. To generate a link to the design, click Copy Link and send it to users as needed. For requesting access and resharing, check Managing Access Requests in Altium 365.
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Sharing to Organization
Companies can use access control functions to ensure view-only access within their organization—for all or specific projects inside the Workspace—without needing to invite people to the Workspace or directly share projects. Select “Anyone in can access” in the dropdown menu in the Share dialog box. This grants any user in the organization (with an AltiumLive account) access to view the project using the link. The design will also be visible in these users' “Shared with me” section.
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Pending Approval
As an administrator or user with sharing permissions, you can individually review access requests for the project. When people ask for access, they see a message that an admin needs to approve their request. Once you approve a request, the user can see or edit the project based on the permissions you set.
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You can find more information about using Granular Sharing in Altium 365 by visiting the Getting Started Guide - How to Control Access and Share Your Projects.
We are pleased to announce that Altium 365 is officially SOC 2 Type 1 certified.
The audit was performed by KPMG LLP, which included a review of Altium’s controls related to security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy, based on the Trust Services Criteria (TSC) of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). The report ensures that the system is designed and implemented to meet the following criteria:
Where can I get more information about security and compliance topics?
We recommend that you bookmark our Trust Center to find out more about SOC and information related to Altium’s security, privacy, and compliance.
What are the next steps?
To learn more about our SOC 2 Type 1 certification and the next steps, please access Announcing SOC 2 Type 1 Certification for Altium 365
It is possible to migrate projects from a third-party version control provider to Altium 365 while preserving the history of commits.
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Thus, users benefit from full data management capabilities in Altium 365 for their projects (e.g., domain, full project history, visual comparison of changes, and configuration of permissions in a single place) without losing change history (traceability).
Currently, the supported version control systems are Subversion (SVN) and Git.
You can find more information by visiting Migrating to Altium 365 from external version control systems.
The new 2.8.0 version of MCAD CoDesigner is out. MCAD CoDesigner now supports using a proxy with authentication in MCAD. PCB grid dots are no longer drawn for the "MCAD Coordinates" grid; this resolves the issue in which grid dots created difficulties with snapping on the PCB. This version also fixes a micro-deviation in coordinates that could occur when millimeter units were chosen on either the ECAD or the MCAD side. MCAD CoDesigner now supports the following symbols in the PCB filename: comma (,), single quote ('), and plus (+).
Visit "New in CoDesigner 2.8.0" for full release notes.
The Tasks feature takes design collaboration in Altium 365 to the next level. With Tasks, you never lose important action items and easily obtain a high-level view of the state of your project, all without leaving your design environment.
Note: This is an Open Beta feature, and we'd love to hear from our users on how it could be improved further and about any issues encountered.
Feature highlights:
How can you provide feedback?
Since the tool is in beta, your feedback is valuable to us. Feel free to share your ideas, comments, and suggestions about Tasks through the following channels:
This feature is available with the Pro Subscription Plan only. To learn more about Altium Subscription Plans, please visit https://www.altium.com/subscription/plans
You can find more information on using Tasks in Altium 365 by visiting Getting Started Guide - Tasks.
You can add comments in the layer stackup of your board on Altium 365's web interface.
Our interactive commenting function has been expanded to the layer stackup. You can leave comments on specific layers or vias and keep all the communication in one place (please note that, at the moment, you can only leave comments in the web browser and not within Altium Designer).
You can find more information on how to use the Layer Stackup in Altium 365 by visiting the Getting Started Guide - Layer Stackup.
You can now access the layer stackup of your board on Altium 365's web interface.
Developing a layer stackup is a critical element of printed circuit board design. The ability to access and share stackup information via the web browser makes it easier to collaborate with different project stakeholders and manufacturers without the need for them to install and license Altium Designer.
You can find more information on how to use the Layer Stackup in Altium 365 by visiting the Getting Started Guide - Layer Stackup.
Previously, when connectivity was removed from a schematic, this change was not visually reflected when comparing two versions of the document in Altium 365.
Now, with this update, the removed connectivity is displayed as a red dashed line between components or existing wires. To avoid visual clutter, the red dashed line is drawn as the shortest path between the previously connected objects.
The feature’s second update relates to the footprint changes of a component. The differences panel shows when such changes are detected by comparison.
You can find more information on using Schematic Compare in Altium 365 by visiting the Getting Started User Guide - Schematic Compare.
Downloading the entire comment history in detail is sometimes necessary for historical, legal, or auditing purposes. Altium 365 enables the quick and easy export of the entire project's comment history as a single PDF file.
This file can be created as an ad-hoc report using Reports -> Export Comments from the top menu in Altium Designer or included in the release package as part of the output job configuration.
Please access our online documentation for detailed information on this feature: Export Comments in Altium 365. If you want to learn more about commenting in Altium 365, please visit Commenting in your Design.
Altium ECAD solutions support Single Sign-On (SSO), now you can log into MCAD CoDesigner from the MCAD side using SSO as well:
A single sign-on solution simplifies username and password management. You no longer have to keep track of various credentials—simply remember a single, more complex password. SSO allows you to access MCAD CoDesigner much faster.
For more updates on MCAD CoDesigner, please visit: New in CoDesigner
The Altium 365 Trust Center provides detailed information on the steps we take to ensure the security and reliability of the Altium 365 cloud platform, as well as the measures we take to comply with regulatory requirements.
The Altium Trust Center Knowledge Base is a self-service library of our users’ most frequently asked questions about security, reliability, and compliance. If you can’t find the information you are looking for, please send your question to us, and we will add it to the knowledge base.
The Gerber Compare utility is beneficial when PCB designers need to confirm changes in Gerber files before fabrication (e.g., unintentional changes). The recent Altium 365 update includes an intuitive and easy-to-use Gerber comparison feature, allowing designers to reduce time to market while keeping everyone informed during the process and making changes to Gerber files visible before sending them to the manufacturer.
Note: This is an Open Beta feature, and we'd love to hear from our users on how it could be improved further and about any issues encountered.
1. Differences in a macro-level view
Changes are organized into groups with explicit identification on the screen that corresponds to areas of the board that were changed. Changes are displayed per layer.
A. Clicking on a group will display a compare view that highlights any differences between the two revisions. As you can see, each group has a number, which is the number of differences.
B. You can switch quickly between layers on the side panel (see Fig. 3 - Quick view of changes).
C. When you switch between different layers and revisions, the location and zoom settings are preserved.
2. Easy navigation between revisions
You can quickly switch between the old revision, the new revision (that features a full Gerber viewer), and the comparison screen, which shows the difference between the two Gerber files.
3. Quick view of layers that have changed
You don’t need to know which specific layer was modified beforehand—the software will check and display it on the screen with the number of changed areas.
All layers that are not modified appear in gray.
4. Color Coding of Changes
Gerber Compare has the ability to perform a graphical comparison; areas that have not been modified are gray. Red indicates the changes in the previous revision of the Gerber file.
5. Cross-probing capability
This feature also includes bi-directional cross-probing capability between the change on the side panel and the detail. Once you identify a specific change of interest, you can highlight relevant information about it.
6. Distance Measurement
The Distance Measurement tool reports the point-to-point distance, the X (horizontal) distance, and the Y (vertical) distance in both metric (mm) and imperial (mil) units. The Measurements panel provides quick access to these measurements. Its primary function is to help you compute the exact measurements to use in the PCB manufacturing process.
How can you access Gerber Compare?
How can you provide feedback?
Since the tool is in beta, your feedback is valuable to us. Feel free to share your ideas, comments, and suggestions about Gerber Compare through the following channels:
You can find more information on using Gerber Compare in Altium 365 by visiting Getting Started Guide - Gerber Compare.
Sharing access to projects in an Altium 365 workspace can be restricted to preserve data privacy. In the past, users without sharing permissions needed to contact someone with sharing permissions and request access to others. To make this process more manageable but still preserve security properties, we've implemented “Requesting access to a project for someone else”.
If you are not familiar with the sharing controls in Altium 365, we suggest you check the guide: Allowing Access to Your Project: Design Collaboration.
You will know that you don’t have access to share projects because a sharing dialog box will display this information when you click the share button: “You do not have permissions to share this project. Supply the emails of people requiring access below. An administrator for the project will act on this request.”
Select “Add a Note” if you want to add a message explaining why this request is needed (optional).
If you receive a link to an Altium 365 project and don't have access to it, the message “You need access to the project” will show up, and you can request access with an optional message for the owner of the project:
Once access is requested, anyone who can share the project receives a notification email.
In the email, “Open sharing settings” is a clickable link so that the admin can go directly to the sharing and access controls. All your pending requests will be visible there.
After accepting the request, an email notification is sent automatically to the accepted user.
For more information on the subject, you can read the Altium 365 User Guide: Sharing a Design in Altium 365
The purpose of Schematic Compare is to provide a domain-aware comparison—that is, show essential modifications (like component, net, and connectivity changes or removal) and disregard secondary events (like moving a component that does not affect connectivity).
Note: This is an Open Beta feature, and we’d love to hear from our users on how it could be improved further and about any issues encountered.
1. Compact overview of the differences
With built-in Schematic Compare, you can easily visually compare changes between schematics. This automated process allows you to quickly and accurately analyze the differences and review each change individually. This representation refers to the latest version of the schematic data but with the color code of changes compared to the chosen older schematic.
Schematic Compare only shows logical differences; the graphical changes are not displayed (such as moving a symbol on a sheet or changing a text string).
2. Easy navigation
The Differences panel on the left-hand side shows the differences in the Components or the Nets between the two selected commits or releases. The differences detected in the board design are listed in the Differences Panel. You can cross probe to the latest version of the schematic/layout, where these differences are color coded and highlighted:
You can select a component in the Differences panel to view its properties. The component’s properties shown refer to the latest schematic.
3. Elements can be found by name in the search bar
If you are looking for a specific element, you can type its name in the search bar (shown below):
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4. Detailed change track
The list on the left displays all parameters of the selected element, comparing the old and new parts. In this way, you do not need to search for the data inside the schematics to see which parameters have changed or which nets have been added or removed; do this quickly in an overview in Schematics Compare to save time.
How can you provide feedback?
Since the tool is in beta, your feedback is valuable to us. Feel free to share your ideas, comments, and suggestions about Schematic Compare through the following channels:
You can find more information on using Schematic Compare in Altium 365 by visiting the Getting Started Guide - Schematic Compare.
MCAD CoDesigner now displays the complete history of accepted and rejected changes, along with any comments the engineer has entered if a change is rejected.
The history of changes is shown in MCAD CoDesigner's panel, making the interaction between the electrical and mechanical engineers more transparent. As soon as changes are applied/rejected on one side, the engineer on the other side is notified, and any rejection comments are displayed.
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Please access our online documentation for detailed information on the feature: Support for Change History and Rejection Comments.
With Altium 365 Interactive Commenting, your comments provide you instant access and complete visibility to any design changes, so your explanations are all in one place.
Collaboration in Real-Time through the Comments Panel
Like a news feed, the comments panel on the right-hand side displays comments chronologically, and you, as a team member, can efficiently manage these comments in one place:
Use Drawing Markup Tools to Add Comments
After starting a new comment or reply, you can use the @mention feature to notify one or more members of your organization. Just type the @ symbol followed by the name of the user or email.
When you post your comment, the person you @mentioned will receive an email notification. Anyone who started the comment thread will also be notified. Notification emails let your colleagues know that there's been new activity in the comment thread and that you have left a comment. They can reply to your comment or click a link in the notification email to open the document and go straight to the comment in its context.
Please note that comments or replies can only be edited by the person who created them.
In the Comments panel, comments are side-by-side with the page content to help you focus on the most relevant feedback for the part of the document you’re working on. You can see a single list of all comments in your document, including resolved comments. To turn the Comments panel on and off, simply click the Comments button in the upper-right corner of your window.
Resolve a Comment Thread
Comments in documents generally represent questions, ideas, or concerns about the project. When those have been addressed, comments allow you to mark that thread as resolved. Resolved comment threads can appear in the side view, but you can choose to show unresolved comments only.
Notification Settings – you can choose to receive email alerts for all comment activity, for only those comments where you are mentioned or assigned, or not receive email alerts at all.
Please access our online documentation for detailed information on this feature: Working with Altium 365 - Commenting in Your Design.
Altium 365’s Project History shows changes to the project's documents and the timeline since the project was launched.
We are introducing a new feature for tracking the history throughout the project— Project History. When you click the History in the sidebar, you can scroll down quickly to see the entire timeline, as well as details about significant events: (Who, What, When, Why, and How).
You can quickly find components by typing the query in the search bar in the upper right-hand corner of the screen.
The Project History feature includes an embedded compare function that shows the differences between two versions of Schematics, BOM, or Gerber files - you can compare between commits or releases.
This operation lets you create a new project without having to configure them from scratch. Once you create the new project, you can modify its settings independently from the original project. You can also choose which folder you want to save the cloned project.
It’s easy to navigate back to your project history, view past versions of documents and revert to previous versions if needed. Download the complete project or only the snapshot copy in a fast way.
1. Access the Altium 365 workspace
2. Go to Projects and open the project to which you want to see the history of the activity.
3. Click on the History tab on the left side pane.
4. Scroll through the screen to see all releases and commits since the creation of the project.
Please access our online documentation for detailed information on the feature: Project History in an Altium 365 Workspace.
