System requirements

Recommended system for optimal performance

  • Windows XP SP2 Professional or later1
  • Intel® Core™ 2 Duo/Quad 2.66 GHz or faster processor or equivalent
  • 2 GByte RAM
  • 10 GByte hard disk space (Install + User Files)
  • Dual monitors with at least 1680x1050(widescreen) or 1600x1200(4:3) screen resolution 
  • NVIDIA® GeForce® 80003 series, 256 MB (or more) graphics card2 or equivalent
  • Parallel port (if connecting to a NanoBoard-NB1)
  • USB2.0 port (if connecting to a Nanoboard-NB2)
  • Adobe® Reader® 8 or above
  • DVD-Drive
  • Internet Connection to receive updates and online technical support

Notes:

1. Testing also performed on Windows Vista

2. To take advantage of the accelerated graphics engine, including 3D visualization, your graphics card must support DirectX 9.0c and Shader model 3. We don’t recommend on-board based graphics cards for either minimum or recommended.

3. Testing performed on a 8500 GT, 256mb

Minimum system requirements for acceptable performance

  • Windows XP SP2 Professional1
  • Intel® Pentium™, 1.8 GHz processor or equivalent
  • 1 GByte RAM
  • 3.5 GByte hard disk space (Install + User Files)
  • Main monitor 1280x1024 screen resolution
    Strongly recommended: second monitor with minimum 1024x768 screen resolution
  • NVIDIA® GeForce® 6000/7000 series, 128 MB graphics card2 or equivalent
  • Parallel port (if connecting to a NanoBoard-NB1)
  • USB2.0 port (if connecting to a Nanoboard-NB2)
  • Adobe® Reader® 8 or above
  • DVD-Drive

Notes:

1. Functionality testing has been performed on Windows 2000 however we cannot guarrantee optimum performance.

2. To take advantage of the accelerated graphics engine, including 3D visualization, your graphics card must support DirectX 9.0c and Shader model 3. We don’t recommend on-board based graphics cards for either minimum or recommended.

Performance comparison of graphics cards

Graphics cards are a critical hardware element that can have a large impact on both the performance and stability of systems. These benchmarks help you choose the right 3D PCB graphics engine for your needs and budget. Choose the right hardware requirements necessary to achieve stunning results, make the whole system more responsive and ‘feel’ better, and remove distractions to design caused by lags in the GUI.

Performance comparison of graphics cards >

Installations required for FPGA design

Implementing an FPGA design in a device requires the installation of third-party software tools. These tools are available as downloads from FPGA vendor websites. A list of the vendor tools and devices supported by Altium Designer and links to the appropriate websites are provided in the Community section.