TRACE Boardviewer
View a KiCad board and schematic without KiCad
TRACE Boardviewer opens KiCad boards (.kicad_pcb) and KiCad schematics (.kicad_sch) for free and offline, side by side and linked part by part. It is a viewer for repair and reference work at the bench, not an editor.
Who this is for
- You repair or modify open hardware and the project publishes its KiCad files.
- You want to check a design at the bench without installing a full EDA suite on that computer.
- You want the board, the schematic and the plotted PDF in one window, with one search across all three and your measurement notes kept with the board.
To change the design, route tracks or make Gerbers, use KiCad itself. TRACE only reads the files and never modifies them.
What opens
| File | Versions | Checked with |
|---|---|---|
Board .kicad_pcb | File versions 4 to 9 (footprint and legacy module records) | Selected real KiCad 5, 7, 8 and 9 boards include open demo, Antmicro, MNT Reform and Raspberry Pi Pico designs. KiCad 4 and 6 styles use synthetic tests. Renamed copper layers and selected KiCad 9 teardrop framing variants are covered. |
Schematic .kicad_sch | KiCad 6.0 to 9.0 | Real files: the KiCad 9 demo (2 sheets), the Jetson Nano baseboard (8 sheets) and the Pico designs. |
Legacy schematic .sch | EESchema versions 1 to 4, with its -cache.lib or other .lib files in the same folder | Synthetic files only; no real legacy file was available. |
On the real boards, footprint, pad, net, side and pad-number counts and every pad position equal an independent reading of the same files, and the outlines equal the Edge.Cuts extents. Tracks, vias and zones are checked for syntax but not built, so the 28 MB Jetson Nano board of 3.6 million expressions opens in about 0.2 s.
Board and schematic, linked by exact names
Attach the top-level .kicad_sch and TRACE reads the whole sheet hierarchy from the same folder. Repeated sub-sheets become separate instances with their own references. Select a part or a net on the board and the inspector shows where it is in the schematic; select it in the schematic and the board follows.
- Links use exact names only, including the sheet-qualified names KiCad writes into a board (
/sheet/NAME,{slash}for/) and automatic names such asNet-(D1-K). - On the real designs above, every schematic reference with a board part linked by its exact name, without any alias.
- Whatever differs is listed, never guessed. The Link and aliases panel shows the differences, and you confirm an alias yourself when two names mean the same part or net.
No conversion to a boardview needed
Many repair tools need a KiCad design converted to a boardview first. TRACE opens the .kicad_pcb directly. You get the real pad shapes and the Edge.Cuts outline, which a .bvr export reduces to a pad radius per pin. If you already have a BVR file, see how to open a .bvr file.
What TRACE draws, and what it leaves out
- Pads: rectangular and equal-size round pads keep their exact shape. Oval, rounded-rectangle, trapezoid, custom and non-square round pads are drawn as their bounding rectangle and counted as approximated in the board information panel.
- Outline: the largest closed Edge.Cuts loop. Inner loops and footprint-level Edge.Cuts are listed as cutouts but not drawn. An open chain is never closed by guessing.
- Nets: taken from the pads. Tracks, vias and zones are not drawn, and the connection guides show logical connections, not copper.
Open a KiCad project in TRACE
- Download TRACE: a portable Windows EXE, the experimental macOS build for Apple silicon, or the experimental Linux packages (.deb and AppImage).
- Press Ctrl+O (Cmd+O on a Mac) and choose the
.kicad_pcb, or drag it into the window. - In the Schematic tab, attach the top-level
.kicad_sch. Keep the sub-sheet files in the same folder. Attach the plotted schematic PDF and datasheets in the Documents tab. TRACE remembers them for this board. - Press Ctrl+F and search for a part (
U1), a value (10k) or a net (+3V3). Ctrl+\ shows the board and the schematic side by side. - Press M and click two pins to measure their distance in millimetres. Press N to note a measured voltage or resistance on a pin.
The getting started guide walks through every step with screenshots.
KiCad, KiCanvas and TRACE
- KiCad is the free, open-source editor. Use it to change a design.
- KiCanvas is a viewer for KiCad files in the browser.
- TRACE is an offline repair workspace: the board, its schematic, the PDF datasheets and your notes in one window, with one search across all of them.
Limits
- KiCad 3 and older boards are not supported. Footprints on inner copper layers are rejected by design.
- Custom-shaped pads are approximated by their bounding rectangle.
- Sub-sheet files must be in the same folder as the schematic you attach. Otherwise the sheet is shown as unresolved, with a diagnostic.
- Files are limited to 64 MiB. Local power symbols of KiCad 9 get no global net, and bus aliases are not expanded.
Common questions
Does TRACE change my KiCad files?
No. Files are read on your computer and never modified or uploaded.
Can TRACE export Gerbers or convert the design?
No. TRACE is a viewer. Use KiCad for exports.
Which other formats does it open?
EAGLE boards and schematics (see the free EAGLE viewer page), GenCAD, BVR and more. The format table lists every format and its status. The comparison shows how TRACE differs from other boardviewers.
Product names are trademarks of their owners. They are used here only to identify file formats and programs; TRACE is not affiliated with any of them.