Performing Design Reviews of a Specific Project in an Altium 365 Workspace

The project Design Reviews page is the central location for all project stakeholders to perform and manage structured reviews of a Workspace design project. The interface allows the creation, access and management of Design Review instances by any Workspace member, which in turn can be assigned to other Workspace members as Reviewers. The Design Review creator (the ‘Initiator) can add attachments and formalized Checklist items, and has full control over the Design Review completion/approval process.

Create, configure, manage and conclude Project Design Reviews assessed by specified Workspace Members.

Completed project Design Reviews help to identify design issues, provide a traceable compliance record, and ensure that the design meets company requirements and standards. Design projects support multiple Design Reviews, which can be created at any time through the project’s development such as prior to its Release, or when passing the design to another team or contractor/manufacturer.

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In the Workspace Web Viewer, project Design Review instances are created and accessed from the project's Design Reviews page. The review will apply to the currently open project (in its current state) and be available to all Workspace members who have access to the project itself. Note that only Workspace members (and not Workspace Guests) can participate in Design Reviews – see the below slideshow for more information.

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Select the button on the Design Reviews page to create a Design Review instance that applies to the currently open design project.

The created Design Review opens in its Overview summary mode and applies to a snapshot of the current design, as available for viewing and commenting through the Design Snapshot option in the navigation tree.

Edit the review’s title and description to best identify the Design Review to other Workspace members. Note that the current committed version of the design can be opened by selecting the version tile immediately below the title/description entry. This is the latest commit by default, and the name will include its Tag if available.

In the version tile, click on the commit name entry to set the Design Review to another/previous project commit from the drop-down options.

Use the Reviewers options to add Workspace members who are required to action the review. Choose from the Suggested names or begin typing an email/name in the field to select from matching Workspace members. You can enter any other user's email address, but they will need to become a Workspace member to access Design Reviews – see Inviting other Users to Your Workspace for related information.

Click the button to confirm your selections. When an added Reviewer does not have access to the design, the Share window will open automatically with that user preselected for sharing. If the user is not member of the Workspace – or is an existing Guest – then the external sharing window will open with the Invite these people to your Workspace option as a fixed selection, since only Workspace members can participate in Design Reviews.

Optional: Add a preconfigured list of review check items from the available Checklist Templates. Multiple templates can be added to the review's Checklist, which can include your own custom templates.

The selected template will add its check items to the review instance. Use an entry's control to remove a check item from the list (a number have been removed in this example), or the upper control to remove the entire list.

Select the control if you wish to add another Checklist template to the current Design Review.

Choose from the available Checklist templates in the Add Templates to Checklist window. These include sample templates and any custom templates you have created – see Checklists view for more information. Here, the custom Parts Acceptance template is selected.

The Parts Acceptance template has added three check items to the current review Checklist. During the review process, Reviewers can confirm any check items as completed, not completed, or not applicable.

A further custom check item (or an item list) can be added manually at any time through the upper ‘Add item' field, which will be appended to any existing list of check items.

Note that the current list of check items can be saved as a new Checklist Template () – for related information, see the Checklists view on the Admin – Settings page. Hover over a Checklist entry to access its Delete option (), click on the entry to edit its text, or drag the entry to a new position in the Checklist order.

Optional: Use the Attach Files option to add (upload) files that relate to the project Design Review and will assist in the review and sign-off process.

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Select the button on the Design Reviews page to create a Design Review instance that applies to the currently open design project.

The created Design Review opens in its Overview summary mode and applies to a snapshot of the current design, as available for viewing and commenting through the Design Snapshot option in the navigation tree.

Edit the review’s title and description to best identify the Design Review to other Workspace members. Note that the current committed version of the design can be opened by selecting the version tile immediately below the title/description entry. This is the latest commit by default, and the name will include its Tag if available.

In the version tile, click on the commit name entry to set the Design Review to another/previous project commit from the drop-down options.

Use the Reviewers options to add Workspace members who are required to action the review. Choose from the Suggested names or begin typing an email/name in the field to select from matching Workspace members. You can enter any other user's email address, but they will need to become a Workspace member to access Design Reviews – see Inviting other Users to Your Workspace for related information.

Click the button to confirm your selections. When an added Reviewer does not have access to the design, the Share window will open automatically with that user preselected for sharing. If the user is not member of the Workspace – or is an existing Guest – then the external sharing window will open with the Invite these people to your Workspace option as a fixed selection, since only Workspace members can participate in Design Reviews.

Optional: Add a preconfigured list of review check items from the available Checklist Templates. Multiple templates can be added to the review's Checklist, which can include your own custom templates.

The selected template will add its check items to the review instance. Use an entry's control to remove a check item from the list (a number have been removed in this example), or the upper control to remove the entire list.

Select the control if you wish to add another Checklist template to the current Design Review.

Choose from the available Checklist templates in the Add Templates to Checklist window. These include sample templates and any custom templates you have created – see Checklists view for more information. Here, the custom Parts Acceptance template is selected.

The Parts Acceptance template has added three check items to the current review Checklist. During the review process, Reviewers can confirm any check items as completed, not completed, or not applicable.

A further custom check item (or an item list) can be added manually at any time through the upper ‘Add item' field, which will be appended to any existing list of check items.

Note that the current list of check items can be saved as a new Checklist Template () – for related information, see the Checklists view on the Admin – Settings page. Hover over a Checklist entry to access its Delete option (), click on the entry to edit its text, or drag the entry to a new position in the Checklist order.

Optional: Use the Attach Files option to add (upload) files that relate to the project Design Review and will assist in the review and sign-off process.

See the Admin Checklists page for information on managing Design Review Checklists.

Design Reviews also include the direct ability to open a comparison of the snapshot’s Schematic, PCB and BOM documents with those of previous project Commit events. Select a SCH/PCB/BOM document tab entry to see a comparison summary of its changes since the most recent Commit event, and click the Open Compare command to access that design data comparison. Use the Compare to Commit <date> menu options to select another Commit event for the comparisons. View a representative BOM comparison and Schematic comparison for this example.

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The ability to compare the Design Review's BOM, Schematic and PCB snapshot documents with their previously committed version is directly available though the Design Review interface.

The ability to compare the Design Review's BOM, Schematic and PCB snapshot documents with their previously committed version is directly available though the Design Review interface.

The ability to compare the Design Review's BOM, Schematic and PCB snapshot documents with their previously committed version is directly available though the Design Review interface.

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The ability to compare the Design Review's BOM, Schematic and PCB snapshot documents with their previously committed version is directly available though the Design Review interface.

The ability to compare the Design Review's BOM, Schematic and PCB snapshot documents with their previously committed version is directly available though the Design Review interface.

The ability to compare the Design Review's BOM, Schematic and PCB snapshot documents with their previously committed version is directly available though the Design Review interface.

See the Design Data Comparisons page for information on performing design document comparisons.

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The Design Snapshot view corresponds to the state of the project design when the Design Review instance was created and offers the features available in the normal WIP design view, including full document navigation, net highlighting, cross-probing, and commenting.

Along with the ability to inspect the design in its review state, the snapshot view also provides a dedicated Design Review pane that summarizes the current review status, provides access to the comparisons (see above), and allows the actioning of the review’s Checklist items.

The Design Snapshot's Design Review pane includes review status information and provides access to the Checklist items.

In the Design Snapshot view, placed Comments and their assignment to user Tasks are directly associated with the Design Review. The review will include only those Comments and Tasks, and not show any existing Comments/Tasks from the source WIP design. A placed Design Review Comment will include a From: <design review> entry that links to the review Overview.

Design Snapshot Comments and any associated Tasks directly apply to the Design Review.

Design Review Tasks

The Design Review Tasks view includes general task requests created from Comments placed in the Design Snapshot view and Initiator/Reviewer tasks generated by the Design Review process. Design Review Tasks also are available through both the Projects Tasks and Workspace Tasks views.

Comment Tasks, which are associated with a specific project (snapshot) document, can be managed and progressed by all Workspace members who have access to the project. Select a Task tile to open the Information pane and access its details (Status, Assignee, Priority, etc), add a further comment, or cross-probe to the comment in the design view (Show in Design).

See Working with Tasks for more information.

Tasks associated with the Design Review appear in the review's own Tasks view and also show in the main Project Tasks view.

A Design Review instance automatically creates associated process Tasks for both Reviewers and Initiators. These update and progress to completion with the Design Review process but also can be directly managed and progressed through the Tasks view by their Assignee (the task’s assigned Initiator or Reviewer). Select a Task tile to open the Information pane and access its details along with the Activity view mode.

See Completing Reviews from the Tasks Page below for related information.

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Available in all Workspace Tasks views, Design Review process tasks can be progressed by their assigned user. Select a task tile to open the view's Information pane.

The Information pane provides access to the process task’s details, its Assignee voting options, and links to its source Design Review (Open Review) and the review details view mode (the Activity entry).

The pane’s Activity view provides details of the Design Review related to the current Task, including its progress, associated users, associated project, and its review Mode. You can use the view’s Terminate option to close the Design Review – all tasks will move to a completed state.

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Available in all Workspace Tasks views, Design Review process tasks can be progressed by their assigned user. Select a task tile to open the view's Information pane.

The Information pane provides access to the process task’s details, its Assignee voting options, and links to its source Design Review (Open Review) and the review details view mode (the Activity entry).

The pane’s Activity view provides details of the Design Review related to the current Task, including its progress, associated users, associated project, and its review Mode. You can use the view’s Terminate option to close the Design Review – all tasks will move to a completed state.

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Workspace members that have been assigned as Reviewers are requested to evaluate the design within the stated review scope, complete any Checklist items, and finally accept or reject the results via the option. During this process Reviewers can inspect changes through BOM/Schematic/PCB comparisons, add/save/complete Checklist items, and place review Comments and associated Tasks.

A Reviewers contribution to the Design Review is completed when their assessment is registered as Approve or Reject in the Review pane, where their name (under Reviewers in the Overview) will be highlighted in green and marked accordingly.

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An example of a Design Review instance as seen by a Reviewer. Note that most items (name/description, attached files, assigned reviewers, etc) cannot be edited.

Completing Checklists is not mandatory to successfully submit the review. Any Checklist items that have been completed are effectively 'resolved' by the Reviewer.

When the Reviewer has completed their assessment, it can be confirmed in the Review pane by choosing to Approve or Reject the review and adding any relevant notes.

The Reviewer then uses the button to finalize their review process and feedback by submitting the results.

On completion of the process, the review state associated with the Reviewer's name entry will change from Pending to Approved or Rejected (depending on the Reviewer's assessment). This is visible to all Design Review stakeholders including other Reviewers and the review Initiator (creator).

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An example of a Design Review instance as seen by a Reviewer. Note that most items (name/description, attached files, assigned reviewers, etc) cannot be edited.

Completing Checklists is not mandatory to successfully submit the review. Any Checklist items that have been completed are effectively 'resolved' by the Reviewer.

When the Reviewer has completed their assessment, it can be confirmed in the Review pane by choosing to Approve or Reject the review and adding any relevant notes.

The Reviewer then uses the button to finalize their review process and feedback by submitting the results.

On completion of the process, the review state associated with the Reviewer's name entry will change from Pending to Approved or Rejected (depending on the Reviewer's assessment). This is visible to all Design Review stakeholders including other Reviewers and the review Initiator (creator).

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A Design Review is finalized and moved to a closed read-only state by the review Initiator by selecting a Completed, Rejected or Cancelled state from the button menu. Only the review’s Initiator or a Workspace Administrator can finalize a Design Review. This is not dependent on the assigned Reviewers having completed their review process, and therefore can occur at any time.

The expected course of events would be for design Reviewers to have completed the review Checklist, dealt with any review Comments/Tasks, and submitted their review assessment as Approve or Reject (see above). The Design Review Initiator then moves the review to a finalized closed state.

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An example of a Design Review instance as seen by the review Initiator when the assigned Reviewers have completed their review process. An entry's highlight color and icon indicate the Reviewer's Approve or Reject assessment.

You can hover over a Checklist entry to see which Reviewer completed the item and when this occurred. Note that Checklist items can be edited until resolved by a Reviewer, and removed or reordered at any time until the Review is closed.

The Design Review Initiator concludes the review process by specifying the closed state of the review as Completed or Rejected from the drop-down options, or Cancelled from the upper menu.

The finalized Design Review is marked as the selected state (such as Completed) and then closed as a read-only review instance when confirmed ().

The submission process completes and locks the Design Review task for the initiator and all other users. It remains accessible for review auditing and assessment purposes.

Back on the project’s Design Reviews page, the finalized review can viewed by enabling the Completed entry (or by disabling filters with Clear all) in the Filters drop-down pane, which exposes In Progress reviews only by default.

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An example of a Design Review instance as seen by the review Initiator when the assigned Reviewers have completed their review process. An entry's highlight color and icon indicate the Reviewer's Approve or Reject assessment.

You can hover over a Checklist entry to see which Reviewer completed the item and when this occurred. Note that Checklist items can be edited until resolved by a Reviewer, and removed or reordered at any time until the Review is closed.

The Design Review Initiator concludes the review process by specifying the closed state of the review as Completed or Rejected from the drop-down options, or Cancelled from the upper menu.

The finalized Design Review is marked as the selected state (such as Completed) and then closed as a read-only review instance when confirmed ().

The submission process completes and locks the Design Review task for the initiator and all other users. It remains accessible for review auditing and assessment purposes.

Back on the project’s Design Reviews page, the finalized review can viewed by enabling the Completed entry (or by disabling filters with Clear all) in the Filters drop-down pane, which exposes In Progress reviews only by default.

Design Reviews also are represented in a WIP project’s Tasks view as individual tasks for both the review’s Initiator and its nominated Reviewers, and can in fact be completed by resolving these tasks. See more information in the below collapsible section.

Completing Reviews from the Tasks Page

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While reviews are normally conducted through the review instance in the Design Review's Overview page, they can be progressed to a closed state in the project Tasks page by resolving the review's associated tasks – for access, open the Design Review Tasks page, the Projects Tasks page or the Workspace Tasks page. From these views the Design Review flow can be performed by advancing these Design Review tasks to a Resolved state.

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A basic Design Review example with two assigned Reviewers. This is represented as individual Reviewer and Initiator tasks in the project's WIP Tasks view.

In the Tasks view, select a Reviewer task to view its information, cross-probe to the review in the Design Snapshot view (), and ultimately to resolve (complete) the task.

Reviewer tasks are resolved when the assigned Reviewer submits an Approve or Reject decision.

The Initiator task is resolved when the Design Review initiator (creator) completes the task by submitting a Review decision. This action finalizes the Design Review and closes it to a read-only state.

A Task assigned from the Design Review project Snapshot view can be progressed independently of the Design Review itself.

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A basic Design Review example with two assigned Reviewers. This is represented as individual Reviewer and Initiator tasks in the project's WIP Tasks view.

In the Tasks view, select a Reviewer task to view its information, cross-probe to the review in the Design Snapshot view (), and ultimately to resolve (complete) the task.

Reviewer tasks are resolved when the assigned Reviewer submits an Approve or Reject decision.

The Initiator task is resolved when the Design Review initiator (creator) completes the task by submitting a Review decision. This action finalizes the Design Review and closes it to a read-only state.

A Task assigned from the Design Review project Snapshot view can be progressed independently of the Design Review itself.

The process of completing a Design Review from the Tasks page involves each Workspace member associated with the review (Initiator and Reviewers), who submit an assessment in their assigned tasks. Note that a review's Checklist is not accessible when using this approach to complete a Design Review.

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A Reviewer selects their assigned task to open the Provide Review feedback pane, where the reviewer's Decision can be selected as Approve or Reject and an optional Comment added.

Once assigned with a Approve or Reject status, the Reviewer submits the review feedback decision (). Note that the other Reviewer has already submitted their assessment in this example (shown as resolved).

The review Initiator selects their assigned task. This would normally occur after all Reviewers have completed their assigned tasks.

The review Initiator provides a Review decision by choosing from the review task's Completed or Rejected options.

The Initiator then submits the result () which closes the final task.

All tasks directly associated with the Design Review are completed and shown as Resolved.

The now completed (or rejected) review will appear as a closed read-only instance in the Design Reviews page if the Completed filter is selected in the Filters drop-down pane.

The closed Design Review instance can be opened for (read-only) inspection.

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A Reviewer selects their assigned task to open the Provide Review feedback pane, where the reviewer's Decision can be selected as Approve or Reject and an optional Comment added.

Once assigned with a Approve or Reject status, the Reviewer submits the review feedback decision (). Note that the other Reviewer has already submitted their assessment in this example (shown as resolved).

The review Initiator selects their assigned task. This would normally occur after all Reviewers have completed their assigned tasks.

The review Initiator provides a Review decision by choosing from the review task's Completed or Rejected options.

The Initiator then submits the result () which closes the final task.

All tasks directly associated with the Design Review are completed and shown as Resolved.

The now completed (or rejected) review will appear as a closed read-only instance in the Design Reviews page if the Completed filter is selected in the Filters drop-down pane.

The closed Design Review instance can be opened for (read-only) inspection.