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Bonjour,   J'essaie d'installer DesignSpark PCB 13.0.3 sur Windows 11, mais le logiciel refuse de démarrer.   Le message d'erreur indique :   « Init.dll n'est pas conçu pour s'exécuter sous Windows ou il contient une erreur. État de l'erreur : 0xc0e90002. »   Après vérification dans l'Observateur d'événements Windows, j'ai constaté un événement CodeIntegrity 3077 indiquant que "DesignSpark.exe" tente de charger "Init.dll", mais que le fichier ne respecte pas les exigences de signature de la stratégie de sécurité.   Le fichier "Init.dll" affiche la version 29.0.4.2 et ne présente aucune signature numérique dans ses propriétés. Smart App Control est activé sur mon PC.   J'ai déjà réinstallé le logiciel à partir de l'installateur officiel "DesignSparkPCB_V13_0_3", dont la version du fichier est 13.0.3002.0, sans résoudre le problème.   Pourriez-vous m'indiquer comment faire fonctionner cette version sous Windows 11 avec Smart App Control activé, ou me fournir un correctif officiel ?   Merci pour votre aide.

Hi everyone, I'm a beginner in PCB design, and honestly, I'm finding it a bit harder than I expected! I'm trying to understand things like component placement, routing traces, choosing the right number of layers, and making sure the board will actually work when manufactured. There seem to be so many things to consider, and I'm not always sure what I should focus on first. I'd love to hear about your own experiences, especially anything you wish you'd known when you first started designing PCBs. Thanks in advance for any advice!

When designing a PCB, we usually focus on component placement, routing, trace width, clearances, and signal integrity. But what about solder mask color? Does it make any practical difference in inspection, assembly, or long-term maintenance, or is it mainly an aesthetic choice? Green is still a common choice for production boards, but black, blue, red, and white solder masks are also widely seen in different applications. For example, black can give a product a clean appearance, while white can be useful for LED boards because of its reflective surface. On the other hand, darker solder masks may make some solder joints or defects harder to spot during visual inspection. I was looking into the practical differences between these options and came across some discussions of PCB manufacturing requirements, including the color options offered by manufacturers such as PCBCool. I'm curious about what other engineers have experienced in actual projects. Have you noticed any meaningful difference in visual inspection when working with different solder mask colors? Do you consider solder mask color during the initial PCB design stage, or decide it later based on the product enclosure and appearance? Have you encountered any manufacturing, cost, or lead-time differences when choosing a non-standard color? I'd be interested to hear your experiences, particularly from people who have designed and manufactured boards in production quantities. Are there situations where you'd strongly recommend one color over another?

I have encountered a Catch 22 situation a number of times. Here is a simple example that illustrates the problem:- Create a schematic with two resistors and connect them together with a single net: N0001 Translate the schematic to a PCB. Rename the Net on the PCB from N0001 to N0002 Rename the Net on the Schematic from N0001 to N0003 Now try and forward the design change to the PCB. If you try to run Back Annotation as suggested it fails with the following error:- === Back Annotate renames from the PCB design to all Schematic designs in project "Test1". Error: Could not find  Net " N0001". === You are now completely stuck. If you manually change N0002 on the PCB to match the Schematic (i.e. N0003) this is what happens:-. However if you now try to forward design changes from the Schematic you get this:- Attempting Back annotation again gives another error:- === Back Annotate renames from the PCB design to all Schematic designs in project "Test1". Error: Could not find  Net " N0001".Error: Could not find  Net " N0002". === For those old enough to remember the Colossal Cave adventure program: "You are in a maze of twisty passageways , all alike". There is no way out. In this simple example with multiple renames, the user can eventually find a way out by manually trying to match the Schematic and PCB. In a more realistic example it becomes a nightmare. What is needed is to allow the user the option to override the Back Annotation requirement and force renames made to the Schematic to the PCB. You get similar problems if some components on the PCB have newer or older versions compared with those on the Schematic (or vice-versa). It is often unclear whether the user needs to update the component on the PCB or the Schematic. I have found that updating components can have unexpected side effects such as Values dissappearing from the Schematic.

DesignSpark PCB stores all PCB geometry using an internal resolution of 0.1 µm, ensuring precision for modern electronics, including fine-pitch BGAs and miniature surface-mount components. Switching between metric and imperial units affects only data entry and display, not design accuracy.    The software uses integer-based calculations to avoid rounding errors during design operations. Metric values provide maximum precision, while imperial dimensions are exact down to 1 thou, with only negligible rounding for fractional-thou values. This precision applies to tracks, pads, vias, masks, and spacing. Advanced features such as Pad Style Exceptions help designers optimize footprints for high-density and advanced PCB applications. https://www.rs-online.com/designspark/understanding-precision-in-designspark-pcb  

After some while i started again with designspark. for unknown part i was transferred to PCB Part Libraries. i can find what i need, but on each library they are asking for username password. Is that the designspark password and username, or a account created by the underlying parties. i seemes not be able to log in on all off the three parties.  I get email or account allready exis, but no password or nam/email seems to get mee logged in

I have upgraded my designspark license to engineer. I removed the existing software from my PC  Re isntalled designsparck PCB v13.0.3# when i log back is software still reports explorer i select help , reset license , this signs me out when i sign back in it still reports engineer    

I have a project that needs 6 audio jacks (3.5mm).So I am on the hunt for a nut driver (that fits the weird shape0 to tighen the mounting nut. Does any one there know where I can get such animail? 

Very occassionally I find the DSPCB icon is missing and substituted by a grey box.This just occured when I updated to latest v13.0.3 on one of my systems. As the icons are contained within the DesignSpark.exe file, you can restore the icon simply by right-clicking on the desktop shortcut and selecting Properties.Then select the Shorcut tab and click the "Change Icon" button. In the new form, select "Browse" and navigate to the installation folder and select the DesignSpark.exe file. Select the icon and all is restored.

updated to v13.0.3 Password not working, lost password. Where is the password reminder located

I am using DesignSpark PCB Creator 13.0.2 on Windows 11. I am trying to use the Align function to align multiple components, but all Align commands are always greyed out. I can reproduce the issue even in a completely new PCB design containing only two resistor components. Steps to reproduce: Create a new PCB design. Place two resistor components. Make sure the editor is in Select Mode. Left-click the first component to select it as the master/reference item. Hold Ctrl and left-click the second component to add it to the selection. The status bar correctly shows "Multiple Items". Open Edit → Align. However, Left, Center, Right, Top, Middle and Bottom are all greyed out. "By Pins" and "By Edges" are also unavailable. The built-in Help for "Align" says: "The Align functions on the Edit menu allow several selected design items to be lined up using one of their sides as alignment (left, right, top or bottom)." It also states that: "These tools can be used in all design and library editor applications" and specifically describes aligning components using "By Pins" or "By Edges". I have also tested this in a completely new PCB, so the problem does not appear to be related to my existing PCB design. Environment:DesignSpark PCB Creator 13.0.2Windows 11Subscription: Creator Is the Align function intentionally unavailable with the Creator subscription, or is this a bug in DesignSpark PCB 13.0.2? If Align is available in Creator, could you please explain what condition is required to enable these commands?

I am using DS11 to re-visit a legacy project created in 2017. I think the original libraries were from DS PCB 7 After making some benign drawing changes to the schematic (no changes to components), I ran the Schematic/PCB Check. It forced me to run a Back Annotation with the following results:- === Back Annotate renames from the PCB design to all Schematic designs in project "1 kHz LP Filter 2". Change Value on Component 'C4' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C5' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C6' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C7' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C8' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C9' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C10' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C11' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C12' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C13' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C14' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C15' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C16' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C17' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C18' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C19' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C20' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C21' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C22' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C23' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C24' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C25' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C27' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C26' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C28' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.schChange Value on Component 'C29' - 'Value'. - 1 kHz LP Filter 2 v1.sch === When I ran the Schematic/PCB Check again, it came up with 26 errors, all relating to the same component:-  The Report indicated:- === Checking integrity of Schematic and Pcb designs in project "1 kHz LP Filter 2"============================================================================== Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"Use Update to reload Component "Capacitor_1" to add/alter Value "Value"The designs are the same. === When I tried to use Update as suggested, it removed the capacitor values on all instances of that component from the schematic. This is despite checking 'Keep existing component values' in the Update Components diaglog box:- I could find no way to prevent this from happening. I ended up having to re-add the component values to the schematic for all 26 capacitors. I am baffled. What is going on here and what do I need to do to avoid this problem?  

Hi Does anybody know how to remove the component terminal crosses when I copy an old schematic into V13. I've tried deleting the connection and adding but the connection terminal cross still remains. I've searched the forum and every menu but can't seem to find an option to change it. If I create a new schematic it works as intended i.e. shows the cross until connected. When Copied   Original Version

I have designed a small double side PCB and used Via with 0.9mm pad and 0.5mm hole size. When the gerber file was loaded and checked DFM, a flag  as "Missing plated through hole' flag in DFM check." has been raised . The property of Vias show the above sizes and 'plated'  box is checked. I seek help from experts please.

Hi, I am attempting to add a drawing boarder to a new (my first) pcb schematic but the schema libary is not present.  I have followed the relevant tutorial to add and enable the schema library but it is not present in the installation.  I have searched for it outside of DS.   The AI assistant has come to the same conclusion and told me to post a request on this forum.  Please mey I know how to locate a copy of this schema library for download.  I note also that F9 mentioned in the Tutorial and by AI is not present.  I think this may now be F3 in 13.0.2  Thanks  Graham