You Favorite Keyboard Shortcuts
- [PCB+SCH] Space to rotate components, change routing orientation
- [PCB+SCH] Tab to change properties of the component you are placing
- [PCB+SCH] Page Up/Down zooms in and out of the design
- [PCB+SCH] Ctrl+Mousewheel zooms in/out
- [PCB+SCH] Shift+Mousewheel pans left/right
- [PCB+SCH] Hold Shift while dragging, makes Altium pan faster.
- [PCB] Ctrl+D Snaps components to the grid, making it easier to align them. If you move multiple components at once, the will probbably result in the being all off the grid.
- [PCB] Ctrl+Click on a net highlights everything connected to that net
- [PCB] Q switches between metric and imperial units
- [PCB] P open the place menu, P » T starts the interactive routing tool
- [PCB] +/- change the routing layer, inserting a via in accordance with your current design rules.
- [PCB] Ctrl+M measures the distance between two points
- [PCB] L brings up the layer dialog for showing and hiding the different board layers
General Environment Tips
- You can reposition all of the Altium panels, windows, etc. After you have it the way you like save it. View » Desktop Layouts » Save Layout. If you mess it up, reset to the default layout View » Desktop Layouts » Default
- Learn the keyboard shortcuts.
- Cross probing is the process of selecting a component in either the schematic, or PCB editor and Altium will locate and/or select their PCB or Schematic counterparts. The easiest way to do this is to use Tools » Cross Probe and select the relevant component.
- The inspector is the way to edit the same parameters on multiple components simultaneously, for example, you would use the inspector to change the footprint on all your resistors.
- Ensure the inspector panel is visible in SCH/PCB. View » Workspace Panels » SCH/PCB » SCH/PCB Inspector
- The inspector requires the components you wish to modify be selected. The easiest way to select multiple components is to start by Finding Similar objects.
- Right click on one of the components you wish to modify, select Find Similar
- In the window which pops up, change Any to Same on fields describing those components you wish to select.
- Ensure Run Inspector is ticked and click OK.
- The Inspector panel will now feature a number of fields which you may edit. Changes to these fields will be applied to all selected components.
- Use The Help
- [PCB] Ctrl + F1 while moving/routing a component will show you relevant key strokes
- [PCB+SCH] F1 over an object/panel will show you relevant help
- Use The Design Rules
- From the PCB select Design » Rules. You should set rules in accordance with the capabilities of the manufacturer who will be making the PCB. At a minimum, ensure there are sensible values for the Routing » Width and Electrical » Clearance rules.
PCB Routing Tips
- If you are overwhelmed by the number of connections when routing a PCB, and you intend to pour a ground plane, you should hide the GND net. View » Connections » Hide Net
- If your board features a few polygon planes, such as ground planes, it is easier to manage them through Tools » Polygon Pours » Polygon Manager. Multiple pours on many layers slow down Altium and make routing hard. Shelve polygons to alleviate this.
- If you become overwhelmed by the complexity of components on multiple layers, try single layer mode, Shift+S (which hides everything except that on the current layer).
Schematic Tips
- Give the nets meaningful names (these names will appear in the PCB document
and this will aid placement and routing) - When you add a new component, give it a designator that is not currently in use. The easiest way to do this is use the Tools » Annotate » Update Changes List » Accept and Create ECO. However be careful, if you are deleting one component, and adding another, with the same designator Altium can get confused.
- When a component pin, port or power port is butted up to a pin of another component it makes an electrical connection. Using the command Edit » Move » Drag, or holding Ctrl when clicking and dragging, and moving either of the objects a wire is automatically placed between the objects
Those Oh My God What Have I Done Moments
- OMG I can’t click on anything and all the components are grayed out
You probably have a mask set. Clear the mask by selecting Clear in the bottom right corner of the window. - The most common reason for being unable to import changes from the schematic editor to the PCB is because you have forgotten to give components a valid designator (i.e. it still is suffixed with a ?), or the footprint for a component can not be found.
- When you import changes from the schematic editor to the PCB you will often see Failed to Match …. Components Using Unique Identifiers. Normally this is because you have copy and pasted components, moving them between sheets for example. In this case the warning is harmless (you should make it go away by matching the SCH and PCB components in Project » Component Links window). It can however be a sign that you have made a mistake in the schematic (see explanation above).
Note: Some page content has been adapted from http://www.eda.co.uk/techwatch.htm
Hello,
All those are excellent tips! I’ve been fighting with Altium because I do not think the context help is so intuitive.
I have a precise question about the cross probe feature. Can it be just permanent? In OrCAD, when you select any object in Layout it highlights in its capture counterpart, without making a request for every single component.
Thanks.
Hi, thanks for this tips but I`ve a problem. do you know how rotate (short key) a component [PCB]? I neen rotate later that I place It because [PCB+SCH] Space is to ratate when i place.
Thanks for your time
Hi,
This is my first time designing a PCB and I’m stuck with finding the correct footprint for my PCB. I’ve used the existing symbol from the misc. device library only to realised that the headers in the library are way too small.
How can I find the correct symbol of header?
Thanks for a very useful website. I have a problem whereby a polygon pour region beneath a BGA, on an internal plane, assigned a net 1V2, are not being connected to by BGA balls connected to the net 1V2 from the top layer. I had expected the action of having created the polygon and issuing a component fanout command to create escape routes via vias to polygon connected the net 1V2. Any suggestions?
Thanks
Thanks for the great tips. Is there a keyboard shortcut to mirror a SCH component while dragging? Space-bar will rotate it, but I’d like to mirror about a horizontal line (e.g. to flip the + and - on an op-amp).
Thanks!
I’m having the same problem, how to flip component horizontal or vertical? X and Y keys are assigned to some other commands… The component is not locked.
Thanks, John, The tips above are very helpful.
Fliping and rotating in PCB editor works if you have a component “in hand”, so start dragging it and then use this shortcuts.
On footprint, I have white reference cross which represent a reference point.
It seems to be fixed.
Is there way to move it around to make easier to performs relative measurement between pads and lines.
If this is not possible, what the quick way to select and move whole drawning until I align certain pad or lines
@sebastian: start dragging the component and press space
fliping is done by H for horizontal and V vertical
http://www.altium.com/community/trainingcenter/training-videos.cfm#
Hi
I am trying to figure out How can I move the component on my pcb without cutting the trace?
And trace should snap to it and should change accordingly when I change the component placement.
SRK
Hi SRK,
Press the CTRL button and then click on the component and move it.
This will help you.
To rotate press space and to mirror components use Y or X.
goodluck!
ewgast, I tried what you suggested. But only the component moves, the trace just stays in the same position.
(I selected the object then ctrl move.)
Hi ?
I’ve been struggling with the facts that all my Sch.Doc components & wiring look perfect according to the Schematic diagram!
But Im having The persisting problem says. ” Net e.g: C3_1 HAS NO DRIVING SOURCE!!!) Even though It look exactly as it should be. What would you suggest?
Well…. I actually have an idea! { I can go in Projects/ Project options/Error Reporting (and Change From the default which says to report that as an error & i can make it No Report!!!!}
But i think that is not probably the best way to do it isnt?
Plz your help will gladly be appreciated .
Nshuti
The causes for this failures are numerous, PCB design and fabricating is one of them.If the pCB is not designed properly, it often need a high level of rework. It is often happens that a circuit which functions well over a breadboard may not work properly when implemented on a PCB. This leads to complexity over circuit and system engineers need to be spend at least 2-3 days to rectify the problems.
35 tips to design a reliable pcb </a
Hi John,
I’m new at Altium, and still finding my way around. Your site has come in handy for me a few times already.
I have a question about creating components - I can generally find a similar component or at least one with the same footprint… and I’ve successfully pulled in the correct footprint from the “Summer 2010″ library, but the next time I start Altium it says something like “no footprint found”. Do I need to add them to my local PCB library first? How do I do that?
thanks,
Mike.
Hi John,
I have a problem when selecting any object in Altium.
The cursor does not go to the center of the object (component, pad, line, whatever). For example, i would like to move the origin to the exact center of a pad, but when I place the cursor on the pad, it does not appear the typical cross and the square, which guides the cursor to its center.
It seems that the option has disappeared.
Thanks a lot for the attention, and for teh useful tips!
Raquel Serrano
Hi all,
i got some problems while updating my PCB from schematic. i updated all the components & their footprints. when i went ‘design > import changes from project’ the PCB showed error. the whole PCB is covered with the cross marks. can anyone suggest what is the solution of this problem??
Niloy
Muchas gracias por estos tips, no podía hacer mirror (flip) en un componente, no sabía que se hacía “in hand”, y para mover un componente en el pcb sin que desruteara, que había que presionar “ctrl”. Muchas Gracias. Es bueno recibir ayuda, pero mucho mejor es ayudar.
hello
thank you for all.
I checked your hints ,but ,the link is still unable to import changes from the schematic editor to the PCB …!!!
what can i do ?
regards
Hi Raquel,
I faced the same situation.The problem is Electrical Grid
use Shift+E the grid changes in to 3 modes
1.None
2.Electrical Grid
3.Electrical Grid {On all layers)
The third mode solved my problem.I think snapping is allowed only in those modes.
You can see the mode at the bottom of the window near where the real time X,Y co-ordinates is being displayed.
Best Wishes
Steve
I have a component lying outside of the sheet that I cannot delete. ITs to the left of X,Y = 0,0; so I cant expand the sheet to get to it. Any idea?
hi,
i have 10 identical circuits in one PCB, is there a way to place all 10 circuits the same as the 1st one without doing it manually in Protel or Altium?
many thanks.
HI,
yes there is a easy way by creating sheet. i cant remember how but its easy.
i will try find and say the way
to mirror:
click, and hold mouse button on component, then push the X or the Y button !
owh!
how can we select single or multiple objects in schematic or in pcb and objects are selected and zoomed in other side like in pads? Cross probe selects only one object and cross select does not zoom on the selected object or sheet.
I’ve created a schematic/footprint library for a component. When I make a schematic and then import it to the pcb, it shows the footprint, but it doesn’t show the wires that were placed in the schematic file so I can’t put traces to the pins of my footprint. what could be causing this? Thanks for any help.
I have created a schemtaic FPGA design. The problem that I face is that I used the memory instrument to read intel hex file of 2048 bytes (1024 word). When I configure the memory to 16 bit word length and 1024 word, Altium designer produce an error saying its too small for the hex file. And when I make the memory 2048 X 16, I can read the intel hex but it leave 32 zeros after each 32 bytes, in addition, the address should be 11 bits and I have only ten.
Can any one help me on reading the intel hex file correctly based on 16 bits?
With thanks
Regards
Yahya
Beutiful hint sheet, thanks!
Everyone has so many questions for you… Are you sure you don’t want to become a professional Altium instructor!?
Something that used to bug me was ALWAYS hitting that stupid clear button, I found SHIFT + C will clear things as well (PCB + SCH).
I like working with the entire screen in Layout mode so I use ALT + F5, it’s a lot easier to see what’s going on.
Something that I’m sure a lot of people have figured out but is worth mentioning is that when your trying to focus on a pad or a part, and want Altium to select that pad, and not have to try and align the pins is by making sure the correct layer is selected, then Altium will select that pad.
When I am working with high speed signals and required to measure segments I use both the “From-To Editor” in PCB and “Shift clicking” all relevant segments, saving it to a memory with CTRL + # (recall with ALT + #) and pressing “R, S” to see the segment length. This is useful for matching up segments of a Differential signal, or one portion of a branch of a tree structure (like a length matched design for four or eight DDR2 chips).
If Altium freaks out and crashes and then continues to DLL out even when you start up a new session hold CTRL when starting it up and then the default workspace won’t be loaded.
PCB List is your friend, sometimes a component or trace will be way out of view on a layout and you can’t access it. I found that finding it with the PCB list is a good way to find, and delete it.
Dear friend
sunrise optoelectronics corp limited is a leading PCB manufacturer.
We are the professional supplier of single sided, double sided,and multilayer boards(max.12layers), High-frequency multilayer board(many kinds of high-frequency material), High TG board, Characteristic impedance board, HDI board, halogen-free etc.
Our price is more attractive than other PCB supplier,cooperating with me, you can cast down pcb manufacturing cost, increase pcb performance and quality, reduce technology matters happening chance, We will give you promptly response and quote to you asap. Feel free to email to me ,Welcome to give us your comments or suggestions.
Looking forward to hearing from you, and we are eager to have the opportunity to establish a long term business relationship with you !
Regards!
Jason
Shen Zhen SunRise Technology Co.,Ltd
——————————————————————————–
shajing Shenzhen 518104 China
Skype: yaoqiang0816
msn:jason0816@msn.cn
Cel:008613670202152
Tel:008675536853676
Fax:008675561511371
E-mail:szxrpcb@163.com
Web:www.ys-pcb.com
Excellent items from you, man. I’ve take note your stuff prior to and you are just too great. I really like what you have bought here, certainly like what you’re stating and the way in which in which you are saying it. You’re making it entertaining and you continue to care for to keep it sensible. I can’t wait to read far more from you. That is actually a great website.
That is really interesting, You’re a very skilled blogger. I’ve joined your rss feed and look ahead to in search of more of your great post. Additionally, I have shared your site in my social networks
qwudqpdgjpqenj toms shoes mmpnaarfstjq