Altium Designer 18.0 Open Beta 3 - Final (11 December 2017)

Release Notes

New Features and Improvements
#23529    PCB - Restored "Split Plane" menu item (Tools > Split Plane).
#23052    Schematic - Properties Panel for Bezier curves was implemented.
#22801    Schematic - Restored the Default settings for several primitive types, including: Designator, Harness Connector Type, Sheet Symbol Designator, and others.
#20518    Draftsman - Added ability to save the custom table in a sheet template and a document template.
#22363    Improved icons alignment for pop-up selector on HiDPI.

Data Management
#23670    Data Management - Fixed bug where the Custom Database Parts were not available in the ActiveBOM.
#23636    Data Management - Fixed bug where PCL was not updated in the ActiveBOM in the case of delete item in the PCL.
#23405    Data Management - Fixed bug in the Vault Explorer where it was not possible to switch in the next page.
#23294    Data Management - Fixed bug where the Incorrect behavior of Vault Explorer that was opened as Components panel.
#23262    Data Management - Fixed regression where Multi-selection in .BomDoc was playing some time after selecting BOM items if 'Cross Selection' mode was ON.
#23294    Data Management - Fixed bug that caused the Vault Explorer to be opened as Components panel.
#21056    Data Management - Fixed bug where multiple "GetALU_Items" requests occured that lead to the hanging of AD after release or opening for editing component in a large DB.

Bug fixes
#22651    PCB - Fixed bug where Route Tool Path layer name in Outputs and Panels did not correspond to the displayed one in the PCB Editor.
#23185    PCB - Fixed regression where changing hotspot snap while dragging designator moved it to the current layer.
#23139    PCB - Fixed bug that made it difficult to see which layers were checked in "Rules" > "Layers".
#23285    PCB - Fixed bug where a selection of nets in PCB Panel did not work with Pre-selection filter.
#23554    PCB - Fixed regression that did not allow a polygon to be flipped during pasting.
#22109    PCB - Fixed regression that caused text to become invisible after changing focus on Import from AutoCAD window on PCB and PCBLib.
#22204    PCB - Fixed crash that occurred during rebuilding nets in the PCB editor.
#23382    PCB - Fixed bug where an Access Violation error occurred in module ADVPCB.dll when opening or creating PcbDoc with active localization options for Chinese menu and form.
#23609    Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed bug where the radius was displayed in Round Pad graphics instead of actual X and Y size properties.
#23648    Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed regression where "Value cannot be null" exception occurred when multi-selection contained "No ERC" and another object had a grid entry.
#23524    Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed bug where "Stroke Width" value was applied to text and vice versa in "Leader Dimension" - therefore it was not possible to change Leader text.
#23178    Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed regression where the error "Value cannot be null. Parameter: o"  appeared when the ellipse button on the right side of the coordinate value of the guide manager was clicked.
#23253    Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed bug where Parameter Value was not active by default when Parameter properties was opened.
#23243    Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed regression where text was not selected and the cursor was at the end of the text on the parameter in the list.
#23118    Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed regression that made it impossible to add any content to the Custom Column for the Drill Table on a PCB.
#22614    New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where some surfaces of 3D models were always dark or invisible regardless of lighting point location.
#23567    New Graphic Engine - Fixed regression where Antialiasing was broken in 2D mode.
#20184    New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where "3D Body Placement" and "Measure 3D Objects" tools could not select a point on the 3D model in Orthographic projection.
#23333    New Graphic Engine - Fixed regression where 3D models disappeared in PCB Library when using the "Align Face with Board" tool.
#23321    New Graphic Engine - Fixed regression where polygons were not updated after Net Color Override options were changed.
#19079    New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where the cursor becomes the board rotation axis while switching to the layer set when the "View From Bottom Side" option from the pop-up menu was enabled.
#23638    Multi-board Schematic - Resolved an issue where the wrong data in a "Net Name" appeared in exported excel data after generating XLSX report from Connection Manager.
#22664    Multi-board Schematic - Fixed bug where the rotated text changed location after loading manual template ( * .SchDot ).
#22698    Multi-board Schematic - Fixed bug where the "Exception has been thrown by the target of an invocation" error occurred when loading specific template (.*SchDoc).
#23578    New UI - Resolved an issue with unreadable text in dialog windows "Violations Details" (OS Windows 7 classic theme).
#23385    New UI - Fixed regression in Parameter Manager that caused a selected cell’s row and column to appear as if they were empty and there were no stripes in the cells. Only the selected cell appeared with stripes.
#23426    Draftsman - Fixed regression where "Apply changes to all instances of same BOM item" option did not work.
#16514    View  Configuration Panel - Fixed bug in General Settings where actual grid colors were not displayed in the panel.
#23551    Fixed regression that caused the loop error message to appear if unable to create a backup directory.
#22371    Fixed regression when opening AD with a previously open custom project caused a 'Cannot focus a disabled or invisible window...' error crash.
#21736    Fixed regression where Sheet Symbol Name did not load its preferences from defaults.
#22875    Fixed regression in PCB where HUD was missing in PCB editor when performing "Move" commands.
#23203    Fixed regression where a phantom object appeared in a PCB Footprint when opening a design form AD17.
#23006    Fixed regression where nets on child sheets were not included to "Net Class" if it was defined by "Parameter Set" directive on the top level sheet.
#21830    Fixed regression where 3D Navigator configuration could not be set and defaults were corrupted.
#23361    Fixed bug where redundant connection lines went out of the working area on a particular PcbDoc.
#23363    Fixed bug where the correct synchronization between property "Locked" in the "SCHLIb List" panel and the "Properties" panel for the same parameter was missing.
#23633    Fixed bug where the Multi-board schematic did not work with Altium Designer SE license.
#23296    Fixed bug that caused a Vertical resizing limit for the "Project Options" dialog.
#23483    Fixed bug that caused a  "DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_REMOVED in F3D.TengMain.BeginRender" crash.

Altium Designer 18.0 Open Beta 2 (27 November 2017)

The second Open Beta version of Altium Designer 18.0 is now available for download. For installation details please check the Installation section below.
This release includes critical Improvements, bug and regression fixes in New Graphic Engine, Properties Panel, PCB and Draftsman. Please see the Release Notes section for the further details.

Important Notes:
A license with valid subscription is required to use Altium Designer 18 Open Beta  

Customers who also use Altium Vault who would like to participate in the Open Beta program should switch to Altium NEXUS in “Vault Compatibility Mode” and connect seamlessly to their existing Vault server with full data integrity and preservation of capabilities. The schematic and PCB capabilities and user interface of Altium NEXUS and Altium Designer 18.0 are identical. For more information on Altium NEXUS, please follow this link:

• https://forum.live.altium.com/#posts/224790

Installation

Altium Designer (Open Beta)
Build: 18.0.8.490
Online installer: https://s3.amazonaws.com/altium-release-manager/Altium_Designer_18/AltiumDesignerSetup_18_0_8.exe
Licenses: Use your Altium Designer license

Altium NEXUS  (Open Beta)
Build: 1.0.8.69
Online installer: https://s3.amazonaws.com/altium-release-manager/Altium_Nexus_1/AltiumNexusSetup_1_0_8.exe
Licenses: Please note that Altium NEXUS will (temporarily) use Altium Designer licenses until January 1st, 2018.
 

Documentation

• New in this Release
• A Fresh User Interface
• Altium Designer 18.0 UI - FAQs
• The Selection Filter
• Designing Systems with Multiple Boards
• Draftsman Improvements
• ActiveRoute Improvements
• Enhanced BOM Management
• Performance Enhancements & New Rendering Engine
• Webinar recording : Altium Designer 18.0 Introduction
• Webinar recording: Altium NEXUS and the future of Altium Vault

Release Notes

New Features and Improvements
#22720   Restored option to ‘show full path in title bar'. To display full path enable the System.LegacyMainWindowCaption setting in Preferences>>Advanced settings.
#23051   PCB - Added the Advanced Options setting Legacy.PCB.3DModelsShowMode to control the display of models, supporting the values - 0(both), 1(Generic only), 2(Extruded only).
#22868   PCB - Restored the Default settings for Drill Table and Dimensions.
#22328   PCB - New shortcut SHIFT+Z was introduced for switching 3D bodies representation On/Off.
#23050   Interactive Properties Panel - added support for editing a PCB Standard dimension.
#23137   Interactive Properties Panel - added support for editing a PCB Leader dimension.
#22593   Schematic - Added text alignment options for Port name and Text Frame.
#23010   Schematic - Selection Filter settings no longer saved in the SchDoc file.
#20795   xSignal connection lines now have the same visibility behavior as net connection lines.
#23244   Added option to run IPP after applying filter through FSO panel.
#22729   Added TXCeedZip replacement for the scripting system.
#22790   Updated to the full version number in the Application title bar.

Data Management
#18854   Data Management - Fixed regression where the preview of a footprint 3D model was not completely loaded in Vault Explorer.
#21204   Data Management - Added 'Check out to:' title to the checkout path box in the Check Out dialog (File > Check Out).
#22101   Data Management - A default ActiveBOM can now be defined in the New Documents Defaults page of the Preferences. Use this to pre-configure: column visibility and order, currency, the number of supply chain solutions, designator groupings, and so on.
#22604   Data Management - Fixed regression in Vault Explorer where parameters did not show after releasing a sim model to the Server.
#22616   Data Management - Fixed bug where edited parameters do not show after releasing component to Server.
#22689   Data Management - Fixed low performance issue during component creation on a large database (TI Vault). SCE/Performance.
#22699   Data Management - Fixed bug where price breaks had NAN value after solution was manually edited in BomDoc.
#22733   Data Management - Fixed regression where it was not possible to change a component's library Source in the Properties panel.
#22792   Data Management - Fixed Regression where unreachable repositories were missing from the Design Repositories Preferences page.
#22793   Data Management - Fixed regression where the application would freeze while opening a managed project whose repository was unreachable.
#22842   Data Management - Fixed bug where errors occurred during attempt to create a project where a client license in not being used.
#22849   Data Management - Fixed regression where was impossible to create / open a .BomDoc due to 'Input string was not in a correct format' error message.
#22881   Data Management - Fixed bug where BOM component height was not filled if datasource is [project] or [ActiveBOM].
#22946   Data Management - Fixed regression where X2 crashes when trying to create new PCL for a component.
#22959   Data Management - Fixed regression in TC2 where Parts Providers options were not being applied during preferences import.
32Bit
#23011   Data Management - Added support page for DBlibs provider and 3D mouse.
#23177   Data Management - Made corrections in warning about disabling Vault support in AD.

Bug Fixes
#10328   PCB - Made additional fixes for a bug where locked textures were not displayed.
#21032   PCB - Fixed bug where the icons in the popup selection dialog were not being scaled for high DPI settings.
#22174   PCB - Fixed regression where PCB Editor Display Preference was falsely marked as modified.
#22204   PCB - Fixed crash that occurred during the rebuilding nets in the PCB editor.
#22392   PCB - Fixed regression where a red outline in 3D and an improper region in 2D were displayed for the 3D body when changing its type to Generic during placement.
#22585   PCB - Fixed regression where components in multi-schema design were cycling in the Properties panel by themselves.
#22755   PCB - Fixed regression in Interactive Routing where a double via was added when attempting to add a fanout via.
#22760   PCB - Fixed Regression where the 3D scene could become stuck while flipping the board.
#22806   PCB - Fixed regression in Interactive routing where via size could not be edited to the user's choice.
#22851   PCB - Fixed regression where an exception would occur when running the RMB > Violations > Show All Violations command.
#22917   PCB - Fixed regression where it was not possible to clear previous measurements while still running a Measurement command.
#22926   PCB - Fixed regression where the 2D view mode of the board was changed by changing settings in the PCB 3D Print Settings dialog.
#22943   PCB - Fixed regression where a value changed in the IPP was reset if AutoBackup ran during an interactive process.
#23053   PCB - Fixed bug where Selection filter had blocked child Primitives.
#22960   PCB - Fixed bug where an Access Violation would occur when the clearance boundaries were displayed during interactive routing in a specific PCB design.
#23043   PCB - Fixed regression where it was not possible to reset the Pad designator during placement.
#22919   PCB - Fixed bug where an Access Violation occurred in the Netlist Manager when attempting to Edit a pin in the focused net.
#23045   PCB - Fixed bug where vias continued to show connection lines after being connected to a polygon on specific customer boards.
#23282   PCB - Fixed regression where was polygon layer and the net cannot be changed in the PCB List panel.
#13975   New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where selection and editing primitive handles displayed incorrectly.
#16672   New Graphic Engine - Fixed regression where the surface of a transparent 3D body was through-the-thickness transparent if it coincided with the board surface.
#19870   New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where autofit issues occurred after opening PCBs in Orthographic and Perspective projections.
#20448   New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where Rigid-flex PCB was partly invisible through a transparent housing 3D model.
#21398   New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where the Net names on selected PCB primitives disappeared after 3D > 2D switching.
#21789   New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where the layer drawing order for transparent Multi-Layer primitives was random.
#22468   New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where the Space Navigator view controlling speed was slow for large PCB designs.
#22955   New Graphic Engine - Fixed bug where the 3D Model Standoff height was incorrectly rendered with a greater gap from the board surface.
#22432   Draftsman - Fixed regression where it was not possible to change the drill table column order for some items.
#22719   Draftsman - Fixed typo 'Lair' to 'Layer' in Drill Drawing properties panel.
#23047   Draftsman - Fixed regression where "Layer stack legend" custom column was not editable.
#23102   Draftsman - Fixed regression where "ArgumentNullException Value cannot be null" error occurs while update particular Draftsman document.
#22478   Draftsman - Fixed regression where SMD and Through-Hole pad graphics disappeared for non-displayed components on a Board Assembly View.
#22486   Draftsman - Fixed bug where no hotkey was assigned for the placement of Additional Views (V) and Annotations (N).
#20470   Interactive Property Panel - Fixed bug where footprint 3D Model displayed with a delay and the UI froze after a double-click on a component on a schematic.
#22359   Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed regression where Tab needed to be pressed twice to activate the Properties panel if it is docked but not pinned.
#22733   Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed regression where it was not possible to change a component's library Source in the Properties panel.
#22866   Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed regression where an "object accessed after being destroyed" error would occur if a second command was run after pressing Tab to access the IPP during a command.
#22905   Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed Regression where an "object accessed after being destroyed" error could occur because certain data updates were not correctly tracked and managed.
#22218   Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed bug where the title block in a user-defined template was reset during opening.
#23107   Interactive Properties Panel - Fixed Regression where "Object accessed after being destroyed" message appeared after modifying net primitives then closing and reopening the PCB without saving.
#22714   Schematic - Fixed regression where negation overline bar formed incorrectly with numbers for netlabel/pin name/etc.
#22859   Schematic - Fixed regression where it was possible to load a schematic template from a location other than the Schematic Template folder.
#22778   Multi-board Assembly - Fixed bug where the colors of some parts (components) did not match those in the source PCB.
#22241   Multiboard Schematic - Fixed bug where “System.NullReferenceException:” appeared after deleting a dangling connection.
#22722   Fixed size of the text box in Object Class Name dialog.
#21618   Fixed truncated text in the Netlist Options list (Options for Project dialog, Options tab).
#19734   Fixed bug where System preferences, Notifications, and User Account buttons were duplicated in several toolbars.
#22595   Fixed bug where 'Paste keepout object' function also assigned a net.
#21888   Fixed bug where invalid operation in GDI+ (Code: 4) occurred on Project Compilation with particular Preferences and machine.
#21935   Fixed bug where Note window in Confirmation dialog was unreadable.
#22254   Fixed bug where the 'Explore' workspace button in the Project panel is always inactive.
#22594   Fixed bug where it was not possible to edit Sheet Number and Sheet Total in Schematic Document properties.
#22912   Fixed bug where the 'Move Component' operation executed the Undo operation which caused the Solder Mask Expansions values to change.
#23048   Fixed bug where an Access Violation error occurred during interactive routing.
#20464   Fixed regression where a 3D model was not displayed when selecting a component in the Libraries panel.
#22371   Fixed regression where opening AD with a previously open custom project would cause a 'Cannot focus a disabled or invisible window...' error crash.
#22558   Fixed regression where Custom AutoFilter did not work.
#22646   Fixed regression where parameters for not fitted components in the BOM were reverting to original, non varied values.
#22914   Fixed regression where data entry style was changed from replacing to append in PCB List and SCH List panels.
#22930   Fixed regression where it was impossible to open a .SchLib that was created by a script that reads a CSV file and creates similar components (same symbol) with different parameters.
#22931   Fixed regression where Local History autosave generates files every second during an interactive process.
#22419   Fixed bug where the number of selected objects was incorrect when clicking Apply in Find Similar Objects.
#22438   Fixed regression where undo-redo functions did not work after a document has been closed.
#22873   Fixed regression where PcbLib 'Delete' key was not working after loading User Preferences.
#23031   Fixed regression where endless compilation was occurring when Variants dialog was open or when compiling a project with components from a SvnDBLib as alternative parts.

Altium Designer 17.1 is now available

The latest update of Altium Designer 17.1 is now available for download.You can install version 17.1.9 (build 592) from the Download section of the site or update in Altium Designer 17.1 (DXP > Extensions and Updates).

In this update contains several important bug and regression fixes in PCB, Draftsman, Data Management. Also, this update includes:

• Minimum Solder Mask sliver rule check reverted to 17.0 state (BC:1122)
• Fix the annoying bug that caused Datasheet data to be missed
• Fix a bug in PCB where Phantom Drill Pair remains after it is deleted and more

Please check the full list of release notes below.

Release Notes

#20989    Data Management - Resolved an issue in which invalid information showed for a component template when using "Where used" feature.
#22190    Data Management - Fixed bug where Symbol and Footprint item revision field were not mapped to schlib and pcblib attribute while the object has been opened via file-less editing.
#22336    Data Management - Resolved an issue with a decimal symbol in case of different formats on server/client PC settings (Win7x86 only).
#17982    Draftsman - Fixed bug that caused it to not be possible to select some designators on BAV.
#18773    Draftsman - Fixed Regression that caused Exception to occur when editing parameters for a document that is not in a project (Free Document).
#20998    Draftsman - Added backward compatibility for Draftsman files.
#21457    Minimum solder mask sliver rule check was reverted as it works in AD17.0 (BC:1122).
#20794    Fixed regression that caused ComponentLinkURL with the page number to call out Error in Schematic.
#19354    Fixed bug in Output Job that caused Alternate Part with the same Footprint to destroy BOM when datasource PCB was selected.
#19634    Fixed bug that caused Datasheet data to be missed after the update of a component model.
#20405    Fixed bug where supplier search does not work when logged in to SolidWorks PCB Services.
#20604    Fixed bug that caused missing components after importing from xDxDesigner.
#20792    Fixed bug causing rounding issues for 3D models in IDF export.
#20798    Fixed bug in PCB where Phantom Drill Pair remains after it is deleted.
#20799    Fixed bug that caused components that have alternate part with a different footprint to present both parts in the Pick and Place file for "No Variations" (BC:7786).
#20800    Fixed bug in PCB that caused the Layer Stack Table to not update automatically if layer stack was changed (BC:4619).
#20801    Fixed bug that caused inability to generate DWG/DXF output when a ' / ' was used in a file name.

 

ALTIUM DESIGNER® 18 HIGH PERFORMANCE MADE SIMPLE FREE LIVE WEBINAR

 

 

November 15, 2017 10AM PT / 1PM ET (Duration: 30 Minutes)     Register   Forward to Friend

 

Please join this free live webinar to see what's new including: Modern User Interface - Fresh and intuitive environment, with optimizations that will enable clearer visualization of your workflow. Powerful PCB Design - 64-bit architecture and multi-threaded task optimizations that will let you design and release large, complex boards faster than ever. Interconnected Multi-Board Assembly - Connectivity management and enhanced 3D engine that will allow you to render design models and multi-board assemblies - faster and with better shading and realism. Several other key updates that will significantly enhance your user experience and productivity.

 

Also, in case you haven't seen...Atlium Designer Open Beta is now available!   If you'd like to take it for a spin now, please follow these instructions:   Installation Altium Designer (Open Beta) Build: 18.0.7.293 Online installer: LINK Licenses: Use your Altium Designer license

 

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Altium NEXUS™ and the Future of Vault

Altium® has officially announced the upcoming launch of a new product that is designed to simplify the experience of working together with other engineers, designers, and stakeholders in the electronic product design process. Altium NEXUS will include cloud-enabled server technology to support collaboration, process management, and data management, hosted in either public or private (on-premise) environments. The core schematic and PCB design technology of Altium NEXUS is identical to that of Altium Designer® 18, sharing 100% of the design capabilities - now and always.

As such, Altium Designer 18.0 and beyond will no longer connect to Vault. Customers and users of Vault can switch to Altium NEXUS in "Vault Compatibility Mode" and connect seamlessly to their existing Vault server with full data integrity and preservation of capabilities. There is no additional charge to customers who are on active maintenance subscriptions, and as stated above, the schematic and PCB capabilities, and user interface of Altium NEXUS and Altium Designer 18.0 are identical.

As a standalone product Vault 3.0 will be our last release with new capabilities, yet the Vault technology will continue to evolve and advance as a core part of Altium NEXUS. In the near future, Altium NEXUS will offer a "Native Mode" version that will expose new capabilities for collaboration, data management, and process management. These new capabilities are made possible through the integration and continued development of technologies from Vault as well as recent Altium acquisitions of Ciiva, Perception Software, and more.

Webinar Recording

Altium NEXUS and the future of Altium Vault

Altium Designer 18.0

Altium Designer 18.0 “Open Beta” cycle has started!
The first Open Beta version of Altium Designer 18.0 is now available for download. For installation details please check the Installation section below.

Altium Designer 18 includes many improvements including:

• a new look and streamlined user interface
• additional memory utilization with 64-bit support
• a new graphical engine for improved rendering and speed
• multi-threading support to speed up common operations (project compile, polygon repour, DRC, Gerber, etc.)
• PCB file load and Net build optimization
• Multi-board support
• New ActiveBOM

Important Notes:
A license with valid subscription is required to use Altium Designer 18 Open Beta

Customers who also use Altium Vault who would like to participate in the Open Beta program should switch to Altium NEXUS in “Vault Compatibility Mode” and connect seamlessly to their existing Vault server with full data integrity and preservation of capabilities. The schematic and PCB capabilities and user interface of Altium NEXUS and Altium Designer 18.0 are identical.
For more information on Altium NEXUS, please follow this link: https://forum.live.altium.com/#posts/224791

Installation

Altium Designer (Open Beta)
Build: 18.0.7.293
Online installer: https://s3.amazonaws.com/altium-release-manager/Altium_Designer_18/AltiumDesignerSetup_18_0_7.exe
Licenses: Use your Altium Designer license

Altium NEXUS  (Open Beta)
Build: 1.0.7.36
Online installer: https://s3.amazonaws.com/altium-release-manager/Altium_Nexus_1/AltiumNexusSetup_1_0_7.exe
Licenses: Please note that Altium NEXUS will (temporarily) use Altium Designer licenses until January 1st, 2018

Altium Designer 17.1.6 Update (7 July 2017)

Hi all, Altium Designer 17.1.6.538 is now publicly available

 

This update of 17.1 version contains some corrections in the newly introduced Keepouts, which caused the most heated discussion of users after the release of AD17.1. Also, we want to highlight a bunch of corrections and improvements in Draftsman tool, Bug Crunch fixes as well as improvements in Data Management tools and much more. Please find the complete list of release notes below.

Release Notes

#17494    Fixed bug where non-keepout primitives can be copied/pasted on Keep-Out Layer and keep-out primitives on a non-signal improper layer.
#17691    Fixed bug where Managed OutJobs could only utilize Vault based BOM templates locally.
#17787    Fixed pasting of graphics from the clipboard in Schematic.
#18044    Fixed regression bug where polygon cutouts do not appear in ODB++ assigned on mask layers.
#18174    Data Management - Improved Item Manager performance for projects with Vault components.
#18283    Vault Explorer - Fixed bug where switching to preview on Windows 10 Creator causes BSOD (BC:8015).
#18308    Draftsman - Fixed regression bug where titles appear in the PDF generated from an output job (BC:8074).
#18345    Draftsman - Added support for individual variants in OutJoub for Draftsman drawings.
#18368    Fixed regression bug where PCB file from the previous version cannot be open in AD17.1.
#18372    Fixed bug where keepout object options clear after Union creation.
#18414    Eagle Importer - Fixed regression bug which caused a wrong placement of objects on the top layer.
#18415    Fixed regression bug where projects under Version Control are not recognized as so by AD 17 (BC:7966).
#18445    Fixed regression bug where was not possible to open Supplier Links dialog if Future Electronics supplier is installed.
#18513    Fixed regression bug where lifecycle state change does not work in "Full item history" window.
#18566    Draftsman - Fixed regression bug where in 17.1 not showing reference designators for parts not fitted (BC:8001).
#18628    Library Panel - Fixed bug where the status of the Load all Pages preference in was not saved between AD launches.
#18628    Library Panel - Added ability to save/load list of the visible columns while performing import/export of the preferences.
#18628    Library Panel - Fixed bug where Component Type attribute was not available for the Vault-based libraries.
#18629    Added ability to define a position of the visible parameters of the Vault components, by preserving position data from the symbol.
#18630    Fixed bug where open pick and place file in source section caused Source out of date.
#18701    Data Management - Added suggest to update related components after component template modification.
#18702    Fixed bug where update related items feature allows to open component with different templates in one batch editor.
#18727    Draftsman - Fixed regression bug where data is not loaded if components with variants have multiple (incorrect) Unique IDs (BC:8005).
#18809    Draftsman - Fixed regression bug where 3D bodies are not displayed on Assembly Views on not-English Windows with non-English project path.
#18909    Fixed bug where Component Links Parameters not migrated to a component by Library Migrator.
#18925    Fixed regression bug where supply chain info shows up in the left top corner of the screen when navigating through components in Vault Explorer with opened Supply chain aspect.
#19024    Draftsman - Fixed regression bug where some of the not fitted Hatching Pattern settings are not working.
#19103    Improved open BOM document performance to use price data cache instead of additional requests to the server.
#19191    Draftsman - Fixed regression bug where Components with Assembly Drawing source are not displayed under Detain View on PDF output (BC:8121).

Altium Vault 3.0.11 Update (26 May 2017)

The latest update of Altium Vault 3.0 is now available for download. The link to Altium Vault 3.0.11 (build 562) is in the Download section of the Altium website.

This update includes several bug fixes, such as bug with migration from satellite vault, or bug, where vault did not work via proxy and more (see release notes for details).

Please, do not forget to make a backup of your data before updating.

Release Notes

#16034    Part Catalog - Fixed bug which appears if a database contains more than three ODBC part source.
#17095    Added support to acquire components from a Vault connected via HTTPS.
#17114    Improved proxy server support.
#17397    Fixed bug which caused migration from the Satellite Vault has been failed.
#17473    Health Monitor - Added status of proxy settings.

Full list of Altium Vault 3.0 Release Notes
 

Altium Designer 17.1

You can install Altium Designer version 17.1.5 (build 472) from the Download section of the Altium website.

Please note that a new installation is required for Altium Designer 17.1

The key concept of this release is stabilization of 17.0 version. The major accent has been made on the Bugs fix. Besides that, several existing tools were slightly improved, such as Keepout, Violation, Accordion. As well as Draftsman drawing editor tool has undergone several major improvements as drawing performance, Increased the number and flexibility of settings in current instruments, added the ability of placement new Isometric view.

What’s New

Allow selected DRC violations to be waived and document the waived violations (BC:219)

The main benefit is the ability to exclude existing/formal DRC errors from the further checks and thereby ensure the project’s releases in Vault. Each Design Rule Violation can be excluded from further checks. A waived violation includes the information about the reason this particular violation has been excluded and author info. All waived violations will not appear in further check results (Messages Panel) and won't block the project release in a Vault, but will be added to the violations report.

Support for object specific keepouts (BC:1424, BC:3483)

Various topological objects on a board can have personal limitations/restrictions. For example, vias could be prohibited in one board region, but tracks could be allowed at the same time. The Keepout primitive has an additional setting now, which determines types of objects to which the restriction applies.
                                  

Important Notice: The Keepout primitive cannot be added as a regular primitive now! Only the following menu command can be used for adding the Keepout: Place > Keepout. The target layer, where this limitation applies, can be set after the placement of the keepout. Starting with this release, there is no Keepout option in the properties of regular primitives, and vice versa, there is no ability to select a net, a mask or a solder paste in Keepout properties.

Backward Compatibility: All objects with the Keepout option turned on will be converted to Keepout primitives when the board is opened with this version of Altium Designer.

Other improvements

Draftsman

• Performance - re-implementation on DirectX (significantly improved the speed of scaling, panning, and moving the complex views in a drawing).
• Isometric view (BC:6632). The new type of view allows displaying the board from different sides of an isometric projection.

                                 

• Ability to split a BOM into several tables (BC:6704)
  • When used a document's template, new pages are created for each new BOM table
  • Each BOM can be split into a several tables which could be placed on different sheets of the document
• Manual control of the title position for drawing view
• Added Component Parameters as a source for a callout
• Added ability to enable fill, change fill color, and set transparency for circular and rectangular shapes
• Added ability to display and configure footprint parameters in Assembly view; analogous with existing Designator automatic positioning

ActiveRoute

• Added support of Rooms when routing diff pairs            
• Prevents splits into diff pairs
• Improved diff pair quality
• Increased max Route Guide width to 3x
• Route Guide: Left arrow = min width; right arrow = max width
• Gloss is applied to tracks outside Route Guide

Gloss

• Updated selection principles to allow the selection of a pin or a via to signify an end of the desired section
• Tries to repair dangerous pad entries. Corner must be disabled in SMD Entry rule, and the setting in the SMD To Corner rule is taken into account
• Uses preferred gap, where possible, when glossing a diff pair
• Fixed glossing issues on pin swapping subnets. Gloss now treats Subnet Jumper tracks as fixed
• Added support for room-based rules. Gloss now adheres to Clearance and Diff Pair Routing rules scoped to rooms

Check out what’s New in Altium Designer 17.1

Includes Popular BugCrunch Fixes:

#13712 Draftsman - Added support for isometric view in Draftsman document (BC:6632).
#13755 Draftsman - Added ability to split a BOM into several tables (BC:6704).
#13956 Draftsman - Added ability to manually position the Designator in an Assembly View (BC:6733).
#15131 Fixed bug that caused tenting on thermal vias to stay on the original side, rather than following the component which was moved to the bottom side (BC:3647).
#15134 Added support for hide/show Mechanical Layers 17-32 from a script (BC:310).
#15679 Added support for object specific keepouts (BC:1424, BC:3483).
#15835 Draftsman - Added support for variant parameters (BC:6647).
#15836 Draftsman - Added support for a variant selection of a Draftsman document in an OutJob (BC:6869), and support for variant-based objects, such as special strings (BC:6690).
#15897 Added support to allow users to waive selected violations after DRC and to document the waived violations (BC:219).
#16916 Rounded the solder mask expansion for rectangular pads, so they match polygon pour rounded shapes in order to avoid exposing copper in the corners (BC:7660).
#17286 Added "Use Left/Right selection" option to DXP preferences. When this option is checked OFF, the selection should always be 'inside area' like in AD 16.1 (BC:7292).

Altium Designer 17.0.11 Update (28 February 2017)

The latest update of Altium Designer 17.0 is now available for download. You can install version 17.0.11 (build 656) from the Download section of the site or update in Altium Designer 17.0 (DXP > Extensions and Updates).

This update is about bug fixes and stability improvements. Several bugs were fixed that caused access violations and crashes of AD. In addition, the release adds the ability to use special symbols in Target Folder

PDN Analyzer 1.1 (build 95) is now available

PDN Analyzer 1.1 (build 95) is now available. If you have purchased a subscription, you can install it from within Altium Designer 17.0 (DXP > Extensions and Updates).

Note: This release will only work with Altium Designer 17.0 and later versions.

Check out what's New in PDN Analyzer 1.1

Release notes

#10723    Added support to display the voltage relative to the nearest ground when probing. Both the VCC and GND voltages are reported.
#11329    Added ability to set up config files for many power rails and run them as a batch.
#11868    Updated the battery symbol.
#15160    The output .csv file now uses comma delimiters.
#15161    Disabled unnecessary processing of Mechanical layers in ODB++
#15162    Updated PDN Analyzer so ODB++ is only regenerated within a session if the layout changes.
#15837    Added ability to navigate/zoom in on areas of highest current density.
#16536    Fixed regression bug that caused mid-layer polygon object to not be displayed.

There is also a bug fix in Altium Designer 17.0.10 for PDN Analyzer:
#10696    When probing the signals, lose the ability to maneuver in 3-D (shift + right mouse doesn't rotate the image).

A “Hotfix” update of Altium Vault 3.0 is now available for download

A "Hotfix" update of Altium Vault 3.0 is now available for download. The link to Altium Vault 3.0.9 (build 414) is in the Download Section of the Altium website.

One of the main reasons for this "Hotfix" update was to quickly deliver a solution for the regression bug in Windows Server 2008 R2, where low-performance occurred due to an incorrect system proxy setup.  Also, installation of all latest updates for Windows 2008 will fix this issue as well.
Other important fixes were made to the update scripts to prevent SQL Runtime errors from occurring during the update from previous versions.

Please, do not forget to make a backup of your data before updating.

Release Notes

#16520    Fixed regression bug in Windows Server 2008 R2 where low-performance has occurred due to an incorrect system proxy setup.
#16578    Fixed bug in the update scripts, which caused a SQL Runtime Error to occur when updating from Vault 2.6.5 to 3.0.7 on an Oracle database.
#16614    Fixed bug in the update scripts, which caused SQL Runtime Errors (-104,-607) to occur when updating from Vault 2.5.13 to 3.0.7.
#16636    Fixed an issue where sessions hang after reboot. As well, prevented a potential problem with sessions hanging during changing session's lifetime.

Altium Designer 17.0.10 Update (8 February 2017)

The latest update of Altium Designer 17.0 is now available for download. You can install version 17.0.10 (build 617) from the Download section of the site or update in Altium Designer 17.0 (DXP > Extensions and Updates).

In this release, we focused on fixing bugs. Over 60 bugs including seven BugCrunch issues were resolved.

Release notes

#15398   Fixed regression bug that caused Eagle library import to fail.
#15633   Fixed issue that prevented releasing mid-size projects due to "out of memory" errors.
#15635   Fixed bug that caused the Release to Vault hotkey to not work (BC:7365).
#15760   Fixed bug that caused incorrect designators to be assigned to "not fitted" components (BC:7447).
#15805   Fixed bug that caused an access violation in module 'WorkspaceManager.DLL' during PCB Physical Differences comparison.
#15998   Fixed bug where TC2 mode does not work when a user logged into Vault as an administrator while ignoring TC2 configuration.
#16116   Fixed issue with DecimalSeparator being absent in scripting system due to an update in an underlying runtime library (BC: 7343).
#16119   Fixed bug that caused objects in imported Eagle .brd files to be assigned to the wrong layer.
#16136   Removed requirement to select items when generating an ECO via the ItemManager.
#16157   Fixed sorting in new Pick and Place file generator.
#16194   Fixed regression bug that causes an access violation to occur in FPGA Pins after launching FPGA Signal Manager with a project which uses a Lattice MachXO device.
#16198   Fixed bug that prevented generating BOMs from old designs created with templates in the project (with relative paths). Restored "Relative Path to Template File" functionality in BOM Configuration as it was in AD 16.1.12.
#16206   Fixed an issue where checkout directories for SVNDblib Symbol and Footprint are no longer subdirectories of the Repository Working Folder (BC:7364).
#16209   Fixed bug where graphical glitch appears in a drop down list control (Windows 10 OS).
#16212   Fixed bug where special string for the SVN folder revision is named differently in PCB and Sch.
#16217   Fixed bug that caused issues in scripts using TCoordRect (BC:7503).
#16259   Fixed bug where "Object reference not set to an instance of an object" error message appears when creating a managed project.
#16340   Draftsman - Fixed regression bug where Variant Drawing Style in Draftsman document was not on top of all other entities (BC:7567).
#16377   Fixed regression bug where access violation appears after performing left-to-right selection during the holding keyboard button.
#16382   Fixed a bug that disabled using the "Shift+c" keys or the "Clear" button to deselect objects that were selected in the schematic editor (BC:7351).

Altium Designer 17.0.9 is now available for download.

The latest update of Altium Designer 17.0 is now available for download. You can install version 17.0.9 (build 563) from the Download section of the site or update in Altium Designer 17.0 (DXP > Extensions and Updates).

Our main goals for this update were to improve stability, resolve performance issues with loading PCB files, and fix the crashes that occur the most often. Consequently, bug fixes for other issues were postponed to the next update (17.0.10).

Check out what’s New in Altium Designer 17.0
 

Release Notes

#15215    Footprint Parameters - Fixed a bug where parameters are not transferred to a PCB in the case where you use an alternate part with the same footprint.
#15634    Optimized PCB loading speed.
#15733    Fixed a bug that prevented autosave from saving a backup file (BC:7345).
#15758    Fixed a regression bug that occurred when an ECO was generated. Alternate parts with different footprints were deleted from all channels except the first channel.
#15792    Draftsman - Fixed a bug that caused an access violation when printing a document with a custom table, through OutJob.
#15917    Fixed a regression bug where an access violation occurred in 'KERNELBASE.dll' when dragging Via (BC:7309).
#15988    Fixed a bug that caused an access violation to occur during Layer stack table move or change Draw Board Map option.
#16038    Fixed bug that caused an access violation in module 'AdvSch.dll' while modifying a line on a schematic or a schematic library. 

Full list of Altium Designer 17.0 Release Notes