Proteus 8.12

New Features

We are pleased to announce that Proteus Design Suite 8.12 has now been released. It can be downloaded from the home page of the software. Note that this version involves a file format change which is not backwards compatible with older versions of the software.
New features include:

• Multi-Board Support: A formal scheme for product designs which have multiple rigid boards but a single schematic. Each board can have its own stackup and design rules and work on specific boards can be switched via a simple combo box. The design explorer module provides a global overview of the project and all of the output systems such as Bill of Materials and CADCAM are board aware.


• Differential Pair Pass Through: It's very common for passive devices to be part of the differential pair (between source and destination pins). This makes it harder to treat the signal as a single entity and complicates things like length matching. In this release we've introduced a scheme whereby you can specify these passives as pass through devices. They will then contribute any specified pin length (x2) plus the pad->pad distance on the PCB (footprint distance) to any length matching calculations.


• Non Functional Pads: Despite the name non functional pads are typically vias on which the annular ring is removed on layers where no connection is made. This can make a little more space in a tight area of the board or serve to reduce stray capacitance near sensitive signals. We've introduced support for NFP either via global command or to all vias inside a selection box. Design rules measurements take place either from the hole edge for depleted layers or from the edge of the annular ring where present. Users can remove and restore NFP as needed and the system will automatically restore the annular ring if the via is manually routed to on a layer that is currently depleted.
• SnapEDA Web Search: We've added integration with SnapEDA as a second vendor in the integrated web search, allowing direct access to their vast online library of parts and direct import into the Proteus application.


• Cloud Licensing: We've added access to log files, a heartbeat indicator and an authorised IP list to the web portal for enterprise customer cloud licensing.

For a full listing of features and fixes please log on to our support forums and look under the 'Updates and Fixes' section. Proteus 8.12 is available free of charge to all customers whose USC is valid as of 1^st February 2021.