System Requirements

PCB Auto Router uses your graphics card to accelerate routing, so it has specific GPU and driver requirements. Please check this page before installing.

Basic Requirements

Item Requirement
Operating system Windows 10 / 11 (64-bit); Ubuntu 20.04+ / Debian 11+ (64-bit)
CPU architecture x86-64 (ARM is not supported)
Graphics card OpenGL 4.3 and Vulkan 1.2 support, with the vendor's official driver installed
Memory 4GB minimum, 8GB or more recommended
VRAM Depends on board size and layer count, see VRAM Estimates below
Disk space At least 500MB free
Network Required for sign-in, Pro activation and automatic updates

macOS is not supported.

GPU Requirements

The software has two GPU requirements, each for a different purpose:

  • OpenGL 4.3: used to display the UI and the board. Without it the software cannot start and shows "Could not create an OpenGL 4.3 window".
  • Vulkan 1.2: used for autorouting and autoplacement. Without it you can still open, view and manually edit boards, but you will see "Vulkan initialization failed" and autorouting is unavailable.

Minimum requirements by vendor. Laptop versions of these GPUs also work (actual support depends on the driver):

Vendor Type Minimum Recommended Common models
NVIDIA Gaming GPU GeForce GTX 650 or newer GTX 1650 / RTX 3050 or newer GTX 1050 / 1060 / 1650, RTX 2060 / 3060 / 4060 / 5060, MX series
NVIDIA Workstation GPU Quadro K series or newer T1000 / RTX A2000 or newer Quadro P2000, T1000, RTX A2000 / A4000, RTX 2000 / 4000 Ada
AMD Gaming GPU Radeon RX 400 series or newer RX 580 / RX 6600 or newer RX 580, RX 5500 XT, RX 6600, RX 7600, RX 9060 XT
AMD Workstation GPU Radeon Pro WX series or newer Radeon Pro WX 4100 / W6600 or newer Radeon Pro WX 3200 / 5100, Radeon Pro W6600 / W7600
AMD Integrated Ryzen APU (Radeon Vega graphics) or newer Radeon 680M or newer Vega 8, Radeon 680M / 780M / 890M
Intel Integrated 6th Gen Core (HD Graphics 520 / 530) or newer Iris Xe or newer UHD 620 / 630 / 770, Iris Xe, Arc graphics in Core Ultra
Intel Discrete Arc A series or newer Arc A380 or newer Arc A380 / A750 / A770, Arc B580
Intel Workstation GPU Arc Pro A series or newer Arc Pro A40 or newer Arc Pro A40 / A50 / A60

NVIDIA does not make integrated graphics for PCs. GTX 600 / 700 series cards are old; install the last driver NVIDIA released for them.

On computers with both a discrete GPU and integrated graphics, routing uses the discrete GPU by default, which is much faster. To choose a GPU manually, use Advanced → GPU Selection in the software menu and restart the software (the system graphics control panel does not affect routing).

VRAM Estimates

VRAM usage during routing depends mainly on board size and layer count, roughly in proportion to "area × layers". The table below gives estimates; actual usage also depends on routing density and rule settings:

Board size 2 layers 4 layers 6 layers 8 layers 16 layers
5×5 cm 40–60MB 80–120MB 120–180MB 160–240MB 320–480MB
10×10 cm 160–240MB 320–480MB 480–720MB 640–960MB 1.2–1.9GB
10×15 cm 240–360MB 480–720MB 0.7–1.1GB 0.9–1.4GB 1.9–2.8GB
15×15 cm 360–540MB 0.7–1.1GB 1.1–1.6GB 1.4–2.1GB 2.8–4.2GB
20×20 cm 0.6–0.9GB 1.2–1.9GB 1.9–2.8GB 2.5–3.8GB 5.0–7.5GB
20×30 cm 0.9–1.4GB 1.9–2.8GB 2.8–4.2GB 3.8–5.6GB 7.5–11.2GB
30×30 cm 1.4–2.1GB 2.8–4.2GB 4.2–6.3GB 5.6–8.4GB 11.2–16.9GB
40×40 cm 2.5–3.8GB 5.0–7.5GB 7.5–11.2GB 10.0–15.0GB 20.0–30.0GB
  • With Advanced → Parallel Routing enabled, VRAM usage multiplies by the number of threads.
  • Integrated graphics have no dedicated VRAM and use system memory instead, so make sure you have enough RAM.
  • If you run out of VRAM, turn off parallel routing or use a GPU with more VRAM.

Graphics Drivers

  • Windows: download and install the latest driver from your GPU vendor's website. Do not use the built-in "Microsoft Basic Display Adapter"; it does not support OpenGL and the software will not start.
  • NVIDIA: https://www.nvidia.com/drivers
  • AMD: https://www.amd.com/support
  • Intel: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/download-center/home.html
  • Linux: the Mesa drivers that ship with the system are fine for Intel / AMD GPUs; for NVIDIA GPUs, the official proprietary driver is recommended. Use these commands to check your driver:
glxinfo | grep "OpenGL core profile version"   # needs 4.3 or higher
vulkaninfo --summary | grep apiVersion         # needs 1.2 or higher

If the commands are missing, run sudo apt install mesa-utils vulkan-tools first.

EDA Support

EDA How to use
KiCad Plugin, requires KiCad 9.0 or later, see KiCad Plugin
EasyEDA (JLCEDA / LCEDA in China) Plugin, see EasyEDA Plugin
Altium Designer No plugin needed: export DSN, route it, then import the RTE back into AD, see Altium Designer Autorouting
Cadence Allegro No plugin needed: export DSN from Allegro, route it, then import the SES file back into Allegro
Other EDAs Any EDA that can export Specctra DSN and import SES

Unsupported Environments

The following environments usually have no usable GPU acceleration, and the software may fail to start:

  • Remote Desktop (RDP): Windows Remote Desktop does not provide hardware OpenGL by default. Run the software locally, or use a GPU-accelerated remote tool such as Parsec or AnyDesk.
  • Virtual machines: running in VMware, VirtualBox or other virtual machines is not supported. Run it directly on the host.
  • Computers without a graphics driver: including new computers that only have the system's default driver. Install the vendor's driver first.

FAQ

"Could not create an OpenGL 4.3 window" on startup?

Your graphics driver is outdated or your GPU is too old. Update your graphics driver first.

If your computer has both a discrete GPU and integrated graphics, the UI may be running on integrated graphics that do not support OpenGL 4.3. Switch the software to the discrete GPU in Windows Settings:

  1. Open Settings → System → Display → Graphics (on Windows 10: Graphics settings).
  2. Find PCB Auto Router. If it is not listed, click Browse and add pcb_autorouter.exe from the install folder.
  3. Click Options, choose High performance (the discrete GPU), save, and restart the software.

If the message still appears, your GPU does not support OpenGL 4.3 and you will need to use another computer.

The software opens but shows "Vulkan initialization failed"?

Your GPU or driver does not support Vulkan 1.2, so autorouting is unavailable. Update your graphics driver first.

If your computer has more than one GPU, try switching GPUs in the software (this setting is independent of Windows graphics settings):

  1. Open Advanced → GPU Selection in the software menu.
  2. Choose another GPU; the discrete GPU is usually the better choice.
  3. Restart the software when prompted.

Can I use it in a virtual machine?

No. Virtual machines have no usable GPU acceleration, so the software cannot run. Install and run it directly on the host.