EFA CAMverse › EAGLE viewer
Format guide · EAGLEReceived a .brd file but don't have EAGLE installed? EFA CAMverse opens EAGLE boards natively – without an EAGLE or Fusion installation, without cloud upload – and shows layers, components, nets, copper pours and 3D.
EAGLE .brd – the native board format, readable directly without EAGLE.
EAGLE (“Easily Applicable Graphical Layout Editor”) is a schematic and PCB design program. The .brd file is its native layout format and contains the complete design: layers, traces, components (packages), nets, keepouts and dimensions – the design intent, not just the finished image.
EAGLE was developed in the late 1980s by the German company CadSoft; since 2016 it belongs to Autodesk and has meanwhile been absorbed into Autodesk Fusion (Electronics). With version 6.0 (2011) the file format switched from a proprietary binary format to well-readable XML.
Download for free and install – a native Windows application (10/11, 64-bit), free to use as a viewer.
Open the board file directly – EFA CAMverse reads the XML format (EAGLE 6.0 and newer) and evaluates the version stated in the file. The binary legacy format up to EAGLE 5.x is not supported.
Toggle layers, highlight nets with a double-click, inspect components, measure distances – and switch to the 3D view with one click. No Gerber export from EAGLE required.
Toggle every layer and control transparency – the stackup is derived directly from the design.
As a design format, .brd carries both: components with references and the netlist – with bidirectional highlight on double-click.
Keepouts and copper pours are rendered filled – the way EAGLE computes them.
View the board in space – with components as 3D bodies, rotate and zoom freely.
Precise distance and geometry measurement right in the layer view.
A native Windows application – no cloud, no upload. Your design data stays on your machine.
Assembly views & variantsFrom the component data in the .brd file, EFA CAMverse generates the assembly print itself, component by component – instead of merely displaying a supplied drawing. That is why your customer's variant can truly be reproduced: components deselected for a variant are never drawn in the first place and disappear completely with body, pads and labelling – in 2D as well as 3D. More about assembly →
Pass on as GenCAD 1.4Read the .brd file and export it as GenCAD 1.4 – real conversion, not just viewing. Feed assembly, test and AOI environments that expect GenCAD straight from the EAGLE design. All features →
Old EAGLE files (up to 5.x)?Up to EAGLE 5.x, .brd was a proprietary binary format – this is not supported. From EAGLE 6.0 (2011) on, .brd is XML-based and is read; strongly deviating versions may trigger a compatibility notice. Tip: save old boards once with a newer EAGLE version.
EAGLE vs. KiCadBoth are tool-native design formats – not manufacturing exchange like Gerber or ODB++. EAGLE is proprietary (Autodesk) and XML-based, KiCad is open source with S-expression syntax. EFA CAMverse reads both natively – in the same tool. To the KiCad guide →
And when the next customer delivers something else: EFA CAMverse also opens eight more PCB/CAM formats – in the same tool, with the same way of working.
EFA CAMverse is free to use as a viewer – unlock advanced features whenever you need them. Native on Windows, your data stays local.
EFA CAMverse 2026 · free viewer · Windows 10/11 · 64-bit
Gerber X3
ODB++
IPC-2581
GenCAD
IPC-D-356
DXF
PADS