SnapEDA Import Guide

Question

Cadence Allegro Version 16

Cadence Allegro Version 17

OrCAD Capture

Altium

Eagle

KiCad

PADS

Pulsonix

Accepted Answer

Import Steps

Follow these steps to import footprints into Cadence Allegro V16:

Add files to your padstack path (See How)
Double-click allegro-builder.bat to run the script

FAQ for Cadence Allegro Import

What if the batch file won’t run on my machine?

Footprints can also be imported manually. The second half of the tutorial video above also demonstrates these steps.

1. Add files to your padstack path

2. Import pad shapes

Note: some parts don’t contain pad shapes. This step can be skipped if no .psx files exist.

For each pad shape script file (*.psx) in the .zip file:

In Allegro, select File > Script
In the Scripting window, click Browse
In the file browser window, change File of Type to All Files (*.*)
Select the file ending in .psx, then click Open.
In the Scripting window, click Replay.

3. Import padstacks

For each of the pad designer script files (*_pad.scr) in the .zip file:

From the Windows Start Menu, navigate to the Cadence application folder, then select PCB Editor Utilities > Pad Designer
In the Pad Designer window, select File > Script
In the Scripting window, click Browse
In the file browser window, change "File of Type" to "Script Files" (*.scr)
Select a file ending in "_pad.scr", then click Open
In the Scripting window, click Replay

4. Import package

In Allegro, select File > Script
In the Scripting window, click Browse
Select the file ending in "_pkg.scr" for the part downloaded from SnapEDA, then click Open
In the Scripting window, click Replay

How should I handle multiple installations of Cadence Allegro?

If you have multiple installations of Cadence Allegro on your machine, it may be necessary to use the Cadence SPB Switch Release utility to ensure environment variables are properly set.

From the Start menu, choose Programs, then choose Cadence SPB Switch Release
From the list in the Select Release frame, select the release version you want to switch to. Any changes to environment variables will appear in the Env Changes list.
Click OK to make the switch

How do I edit the padstack path?

In Allegro, select Setup > User Preferences
In Categories, select Paths > Library
In Category : Library, click ... after padpath
The Items window shows where you should place a copy of the downloaded .zip archive file contents.
Restart Allegro upon making changes to the padpath settings

Note: Frequent users may want to create a new path for each download to store padstacks.

I’m using an older version of Allegro and it’s repeatedly asking to import the padstack.

If this happens, simply close the command window.

Accepted Answer

Import Steps

Follow these steps to import into Cadence Allegro V17:

First time importing a part from SnapEDA?

Make sure you have completed the first-time setup tasks (See How)

Add files to your padstack path (See How)
Double-click allegro-builder.bat to run the script

FAQ for Cadence Allegro Import

What if the batch file won’t run on my machine?

Footprints can also be imported manually. The second half of the tutorial video above also demonstrates these steps.

1. Add files to your padstack path

2. Import pad shapes

Note: some parts don’t contain pad shapes. This step can be skipped if no .psx files exist.

For each pad shape script file (*.psx) in the .zip file:

In Allegro, select File > Script
In the Scripting window, click Browse
In the file browser window, change File of Type to All Files (*.*)
Select the file ending in .psx, then click Open.
In the Scripting window, click Replay.

3. Import padstacks

For each of the pad designer script files (*_pad.scr) in the .zip file:

From the Windows Start Menu, navigate to the Cadence 17 application folder, then select Product Utilities > PCB Editor Utilities > Padstack Editor...
In the Pad Designer window, select File > Script
In the Scripting window, click Browse
In the file browser window, change "File of Type" to "Script Files" (*.scr)
Select a file ending in "_pad.scr", then click Open
In the Scripting window, click Replay

4. Import package

In Allegro, select File > Script
In the Scripting window, click Browse
Select the file ending in "_pkg.scr" for the part downloaded from SnapEDA, then click Open
In the Scripting window, click Replay

How should I handle multiple installations of Cadence Allegro?

If you have multiple installations of Cadence Allegro on your machine, it may be necessary to use the Cadence SPB Switch Release utility to ensure environment variables are properly set.

From the Start menu, choose Programs, then choose Cadence SPB Switch Release
From the list in the Select Release frame, select the release version you want to switch to. Any changes to environment variables will appear in the Env Changes list.
Click OK to make the switch

How do I edit the padstack path?

In Allegro, select Setup > User Preferences
In Categories, select Paths > Library
In Category : Library, click ... after padpath
The padpath Items window shows where you should place a copy of the downloaded .zip archive file contents.
Restart Allegro upon making changes to the padpath settings

Note: Frequent users may want to create a new path for each download to store padstacks.

I’m using an older version of Allegro and it’s repeatedly asking to import the padstack.

If this happens, simply close the command window.

What are the first-time setup tasks?

After you download your first part on SnapEDA, you need to update your Windows PATH environment variable to point to the Allegro V17 executables.

Note: This step requires administrative access to the computer. Those without administrative access should follow the manual import steps detailed above.

Find the folder that contains the Allegro executables located at [Allegro V17 installation path]/tools/bin
Copy this file path to the clipboard for later use
Go to the Windows start menu and search for Control Panel
Double click on System within the control panel
Click on Advanced system settings on the left hand side of the screen
Click on the Environment Variables button
Select the column labeled Path in the System Variables table at the bottom of screen
Click the Edit.. button
Click New to add a new folder to your system's path
Paste the file path from Step 1 into the new slot
Click OK to save the environment variables

Why is this first-time step required?

The automated batch file included with the exported Allegro V17 files relies on Windows’ ability to execute allegro scripts from the command line from any location in the file system. The location of the allegro executable files changed from Allegro V16 to V17 and Windows cannot locate these files without being pointed to the right location.

Accepted Answer

Import Steps

Follow these steps to import into OrCAD Capture:

Select File > Import Design.
Select the EDIF tab
For the Open field, click the Browse... button, and select the .edf file you downloaded
For the Configuration file field, click the Browse... button, then select the EDIF2CAP.CGF file included in the .zip folder
Click Ok

Accepted Answer

Import Steps

Follow these steps to import symbols & footprints into Altium Designer or CircuitStudio:

Select File > Import Wizard
Select PCAD library from the list and click Next
Click Next again to skip importing a P-CAD design
In the dialog to import a PCAD library, add the file downloaded from SnapEDA
Follow the rest of the prompts

Note: Make sure to click Next on the option to import P-CAD designs. This is where many people get stuck!

Accepted Answer

Follow these steps to import into Eagle:

Open Eagle and go to the Control Panel
Expand Libraries and you’ll see the lbr folder
Locate the part you’ve downloaded from SnapEDA and drag it to the lbr folder in Eagle’s control panel
You’ll now see the new part displayed under the lbr folder, right click and select use
The part is now ready to be used in a schematic or board

Tip: To better organize your parts in Eagle, you can right-click on the lbr folder and create a new ‘SnapEDA’ folder to store the parts you’ve downloaded from SnapEDA

Accepted Answer

Import Steps For KiCad 4 and Newer

Extract the content of the downloaded .zip file
In KiCad, Open Eeschema
Select Preferences > Component Libraries
In the Component library files section, click Add
Select the .lib library file
Open PcbNew
Click Preferences > Footprint Libraries Wizard
Follow the steps in the wizard to select and import the footprint library (.mod file)

Import Steps For Older Versions of KiCad

Import Symbols

Launch Eeschema.
Select Preferences > Library.
In the from... window, in the User Defined Search Path area, click Add.
In the Default Path for Libraries windows, navigate to the location where your previously extracted the ZIP contents, then click Select Folder.
In the Path type window, click No (unless you use project-specific libraries).
In the from... window, in the Component Library Files area, click Add.
In the Library files: window, select the LIB file, then click Open. The symbol now shows in the Component Library Files list.
In the from... window, click OK.

Import Footprints

Launch Pcbnew.
Select Preferences > Library.
In the from... window, in the User defined search paths area, click Add.
In the Default Path for Libraries windows, navigate to the location where your previously extracted the ZIP contents, then click Select Folder.
In the Path type window, click No (unless you use project-specific libraries).
In the from... window, in the Component Library Files area, click Add.
In the Footprint library files window, select the MOD file, then click Open. The footprint now shows in the Footprint library files list.
In the from... window, click OK.

Accepted Answer

Extract files to your preferred path

Extract the .zip file
Start PADS Layout
Select File > Library
Browse to your preferred library from the drop-down menu, or create a new library if you wish

To import the symbol

Select the CAE Decals option
Click Import... and browse to the extracted folder and select the .c library file

To import the footprint

Select the PCB Decals option
Click Import... and browse to the extracted folder and select the .d library file

To import the part

Select the Parts option
Click Import... and browse to the extracted folder and select the .p library file

Accepted Answer

Follow these steps to import into Pulsonix:

Extract files to your preferred path

Extract the .zip file
In Pulsonix, go to Setup > Libraries

To import the symbol

Click on the Schematic Symbols tab
Create a new library by clicking on New Library...
Browse to your preferred folder and save the new library
Click on Import and browse to the folder where you extracted the contents from the zip file
Select the .plx file

To import the footprint

Click on the PCB Footprints tab
Create a new library by clicking on New Library...
Browse to your preferred folder and save the new library
Click on Import and browse to the folder where you extracted the contents from the zip file
Select the .plx file and click Open
Check the box User Layer Mapping and click OK
On the new window, check Use Mapping File and browse to the folder where you extracted the contents from the zip file
Open layer_mapping.map and click OK

To import the part

Click on the Parts tab
Create a new library by clicking on New Library...
Browse to your preferred folder and save the new library
Click on Import and browse to the folder where you extracted the contents from the zip file
Select the .plx file
Set technology to [None]