Altium Designer Installation - FAQs

This section is intended to cover common questions about installing your Altium Designer 10 package.

Where can I find information for installing Altium Designer?

• Installing Altium Designer with the Altium Platform Installer

Note: To install and run Altium Designer requires an Altium Live account Activation.
Contact your local sales representative if you did not receive an activation email.

Why is the downloaded installer so small?

The Altium Designer download installer comes in two parts:

• The main installer,
• and an online Plugin manager to add additional functionality from within Altium Designer.

For more information for adding additional content, see:

• Plug-ins and updates

Why is there only a limited number of installed libraries and examples in my installation?

To reduce the install footprint only selected examples and libraries are included. Additional manufacturer libraries, examples and reference designs can
be downloaded manually from the following:

• Libraries
• Examples and Reference Designs

Is a separate download of the Altium Designer installer available?

No. The installation is done via AltiumLive. In case you need an installation DVD you can request this at Altium.

To install Altium Designer via AltiumLive you need to login to http://live.altium.com in order to download the Altium installer.

How can I install Altium Designer when a Proxy is required?

If you need to configure a proxy server you can do so by selecting the Advanced button on the second page of the Altium installer wizard (License Agreement page).
If there are problems with the proxy configuration a detailed description is available using this link

How can I install Altium Designer without having internet access?

To do so you either need the Altium Designer installation DVD or a local repository. For more details about the creation of the local repository please use this link

Where do I get my account login data?

If you are the contact person for the Altium Designer license you would like to use you should have received an email including your personal AltiumLive activation link. If you did not receive this email you can request it via the AltiumLive sign in website http://live.altium.com/#signin

There you can click on the button Register interest to fill in a form to request the AltiumLive access.

I’ve uninstalled Altium Designer and would like to install it again from a local installation repository. But I’m still asked to login to AltiumLive. Why?

Because of the previous installation this information is still known in Windows. You can skip the login and check the local repository settings afterwards. The local repository you would like to use for the installation needs to be specified and then the installation can continue.

Do I need to have internet access to be able to install Altium Designer updates?

Yes. In order to update your existing installation you need to have internet access. Furthermore the remote repository location needs to include the entry: http://installation.altium.com\* (http://installation.altium.com*). This can be checked by selecting Tools » Preferences in the DXP » Plug-ins and updates menu. The installation is executed by pressing the Update all button.

A local repository can be created after the update and then other PCs can install the updated Release 10 version as complete reinstall from this local repository without having internet access (Have a look at the next article to find out more).

How can I update without internet access?

This is possible when at least one PC with internet connection is available. This PC then includes the up-to-date version of Altium Designer because it can be updated via the internet. After every update of Altium Designer on this PC an updated local repository can be created. Then Altium Designer can be installed on the other PCs without internet access from this local repository completely from scratch.

Is it possible to use a silent / scripted installation so the IT department can install Altium Designer comfortable on multiple PCs?

No. Currently this is not supported.

Can I install Altium Designer without the Altium Installer / Altium Download Manager?

No. Even when a local repository is used to install Altium Designer the Altium Installer is required for this installation.

How can I create a local installation repository?

This is possible after the installation of Altium Designer.
After signing in via DXP » My account the DXP » Plug-ins and updates menu can be selected to access the Tools link to select Create Installation Repository.
A detailed description is available here

My stand alone license is listed as activated but there is still an ‘unlicensed’ entry shown in red colour. What goes wrong here?

In case the Altium Designer Release 10 license is an upgrade of a Summer 09 license this license has been activated with Summer 09 in the past. This fact is causing the trouble. In order to solve this the license needs to be reactivated.

To do so please execute a right mouse click on the license you would like to reactivate and then select ‘activate’ or ‘reactivate’. A popup note shows up which you should read and afterwards the reactivation can be executed by clicking the Yes button.

In case there are problems remaining or in case of additional questions regarding this topic please contact the technical support or your local Altium sales representative / VAR contact.

Altium Designer shows the message ‘subscription expired’ or "AD includes Updates that are not supported" although there is a valid subscription. Why?

This message is related to the activation date of the license. In case the activation was made before the subscription was prolonged and the current date is after the previous subscription end date this message shows up.

There are different approaches to solve this problem, depending on the license type you are using.

Standalone:
- Within Altium Designer, open the 'My Account' page ("DXP » My Account")
- Right click on the license and select "delete"
- Exit the Altium Designer
- Now open the registry
  If you have Windows XP or comparable server operation system: Click on Windows-Start, Choose "Run" and enter "regedit".
  If you have Windows 7 (Vista) or comparable server operation system: Click on Windows-Start and enter "regedit" in the input box.
- Delete in the registry the whole key "Expired Licenses", located at the path "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Altium2004\DesignExplorer\" and close the registry again.
- Start the Altium Designer again
- Log in with your AltiumLive account details using the "Sign In" button at the top of the page
- Once the license is displayed, select it with an right click and choose "reactivate"
- In the column "activated" you should see now the message "used by me."

Private Server:
- Open the UI with a double click on the tray icon of the license server
- Click the Account Preferences button and ensure the portal addresses use portal2 e.g. portal2.altium.com
- Select the appropriate license
- Click on "Delete License"
- Click on "Activate" and log in with your Altium SupportCenter credentials
- The activation window pops up, select the appropriate license.
- Click on "Activate License"
- Click on "OK" to close the actvation window
- The activation window closes again and the newly activated license will be shown in the list of active licenses.
- If a Secondary Server is in use, please reactivate the secondary server licenses as well. 

On Demand:
- Within Altium Designer, open the 'My Account' page ("DXP » My Account")
- Release the license that is currently in use (Release-Button), no matter whether you use the license (use) or have available offline (roam)
- Restart Altium Designer
- Select the license with an right click on it and choose "use" or "roam" to access the license again

After activate the server licenses again within the Private Server AD still shows the message "Subscription expired" or "AD includes Updates that are not supported". How can I solve that?

If you have already reactivated the private server licenses in the private server and you still receive the message "Subscrption expired" in AD, please perform the following steps:

1 Activation of the server license/s
1.1 Open the Altium Live Dashboard "http://dashboard.live.altium.com/#home" in a browser on another PC (if possible, NOT the server) and log in with your Altium Live login.
Note: To open the Altium Dashboard, you must be a member of the group administrators of the company's account.
1.2 Click on the button "Licenses" (fourth button next to the Altium Dashboard logo)
1.3 Now click on the title of the license you want to activate. Then you'll see the license details.
1.4 Click on the button "Activate" located next to the field heading "License Management". It opens a new area below the license details.
1.5 In this area you can select the required version of the Altium Designer and the type of server you want to use. HINT: To be able to use Altium Designer 2013 you have to activate as product version "Release 10/12".
1.6 Click on the button "OK" and then confirm the download of the desired Altium Designer license file (ALF).
1.7 Save this license file/s on a hard disk at the server directly or on another device (USB flash drive, etc) to transfer the file/s to the server.

Note: If you need to use multiple versions of Altium Designer, or if you use a primary and secondary server, then repeat the steps 1.5 and 1.6 for the respective Altium Designer version or the respective servers.

2 Integration of the server licenses on the private license server
2.1 Stop the private server service in the services area of the server administration.
2.2 Check in the Task Manager if there is still running a process called "dxpsecurityservice.exe", in case of yes stop the process manually.
2.3 Now open the registry
If you have Windows XP or comparable server operation system: Click on Windows-Start, Choose "Run" and enter "regedit".
If you have Windows 7 (Vista) or comparable server operation system: Click on Windows-Start and enter "regedit" in the input box.
2.4 If existing you have to delete in the registry the whole key "Expired Licenses", located at the path "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Altium2004\DesignExplorer\" or "HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Software\Altium2004\DesignExplorer\Expired Licenses" and close the registry again.
2.5 Open the Folder Altium2004 located at:
If you have Windows XP or comparable server operation system use the following path: "C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Applicationdata\Altium2004"
If you have Windows 7 (Vista) or comparable server operation system use the following path: "C:\ProgramData\Altium2004"
(HINT: The folders "Applicationdata" and "ProgramData" are hidden folders if you still use the folder view standard settings from microsoft.)
2.6 Delete the ALF files (*.alf) which contain the same activation code displayed in the in Altium2004 folder.
2.7 Now copy the license files, which you have generated in the first steps, into the Altium2004 directory of the server.
2.8 Start the private license server service in the services area of the server administration again.

Note: Also pay attention to the authorization of the service. If you run in any problems during the steps before please check if the service is started as local Administrator.

It should work now, if not please contact your local Altium Support Team.

How to activate my license and/or use it?

You can find very detailled Instructions to every license type in our Wiki.
Standalone: Using a Standalone License
On-Demand: Using an On-Demand License
Private Server: Using a Private Server License

Activation of Standalone and Private Server licenses can also be performed directly from your web browser using the AltiumLive Dashboard. Note that only Group Administrators for the Altium Account can access and use the Dashboard. For more detail, see License Activation  .

I’m using Windows XP and during the Altium Designer installation an error message shows up telling me that some files could not be written.

There is a limitation regarding the maximum length of path names. In case this limit is exceeded the files cannot be created. Before the installation starts the path length can be adjusted / reduced in two sections.

In the License Agreement section there is an Advanced button which can be used to access a menu where the location of the local temporary repository can be specified. In the section Destination Folder the location of the program installation and the shared documents (libraries, examples,…) can be configured.

Which ports need to be open to enable Altium Designer to access the Altium servers to download Altium Designer 10?

Internet-Ports: 80 (http) and 443 (https/SSL)
VPN-Port: 1194 (In some cases it could be Port 1723 instead.)
Network ports: TCP 21001 (can be adapted in the Private Server) and UDP 20001 & 20002 (needed for the communication between Server and Client.)

Why are Import /Export functions like DXF Import with AD not available?

Open the Plug-ins and Update screen:

DXP » Plug-ins and updates

To install missing modules, open the following category:

Importers and Exporters

Install individual importers and exporters, or install all 34 of them by clicking the Install All button within the category.

Additional information:
Post-Installation Management of your Altium Designer Install

Tips for Altium Designer Updates

Since Altium Designer Update 17 (10.972.23595), the updating system supports two alternative installation methods - Installation Patching and Full Download.

•  Installation patching is the default method and is recommended when download bandwidth or speed is a concern, or when gateway virus scanners prevent large files from downloading. When using patching we recommend disabling your antivirus program for the duration of the update. Disabling the antivirus product during the download is possible, because any dropped connections will be retried by the Altium Download Manager.
  
  Please note that the "preparing patching" stages are performed in between small downloads. Rather than indicating a slow download, this indicates a slow patch preparation.
   
• Full download is recommended if you can not disable the antivirus software running on your computer or if the patching method is running very slowly on your system. The larger download size is displayed once the Full download option is selected.
   
• If disabling antivirus is not possible, some antivirus programs can be configured to have less impact on the patching process. For example, Kaspersky Internet Security 2011 features an option: "Enable Proactive Defense" which can be disabled to speed the patching process. Kaspersky version 2012 may have less impact than the previous version.