DWG viewer documentation
The CADXChange DWG viewer opens DWG and DXF drawings on your own computer, in the browser or as a portable desktop app. Nothing is uploaded. This page explains everything it can do.
Open the online viewer →Open a drawing
- Drag a DWG or DXF file onto the viewer, or click “Open DWG”. You can pick several files at once.
- Each drawing opens in its own tab. Click + to open another one; click × or press the middle mouse button on a tab to close it.
- The viewer shows its progress while it reads the file, builds the geometry and draws it. Large drawings take longer, but the page stays responsive.
- The first layout opens by default, because that is how most drawings are plotted. Click “Model” at the bottom to see model space; the other layouts are tabs next to it.
- Everything happens on your computer. The drawing is never uploaded.
Background
- Use the background button in the toolbar to switch between “Dark background”, which looks like the AutoCAD editor, and “White background (print style)”, which shows black lines on white like a plotted sheet. The viewer remembers your choice.
Layers
- Open “Layers” to list the layers of the drawing.
- Tick or clear a layer to show or hide it. “Show all” turns every layer back on.
- “Only this layer” hides everything except that layer.
- “Filter layers” narrows the list by name.
Find text
- Click “Find” or press Ctrl+F, then type part of a text, an attribute value or a block name.
- The current layout is searched and the matches are listed with a count. Click a match, or press Enter and the arrow keys, to jump to it in the drawing.
- Press Esc in the box to clear the search. When there are too many matches only the first ones are listed; refine the search to narrow it down.
Object properties
- Click an object to see its properties: handle, layer, color, linetype, lineweight and transparency, plus geometry such as start and end points, center, radius, length or area.
- Text shows its contents, style and height, hatches show their pattern, and block references list their attributes. When several objects are selected the panel shows how many.
Measure
- Click “Measure”. It starts in “Quick” mode: move over the drawing to see the dimensions around the cursor and click to keep them.
- Other tools are “Distance” (use “Multiple points” for a path), “Radius”, “Angle”, “Area” (with “Add area” and “Subtract area”) and “Coordinate”. Pick a tool, then click points in the drawing.
- Object snap (F3) snaps to endpoints, midpoints, centers, nodes, quadrants, intersections, insertion points, perpendicular and tangent points, nearest points and centroids. Choose the snap modes from the menu next to the OSNAP switch in the status bar. Ortho (F8) and Polar tracking (F10) constrain the direction.
- Enter or right-click finishes a measurement and Esc cancels it. Options such as “Undo” appear in the prompt.
- Choose the units and the precision in the panel, “Copy” a result, or “Clear” the list.
Export to PDF
- Click “Export PDF”. Choose the area (“Whole drawing”, “Whole sheet” or “Current view”), the paper size, the orientation, “Color” or “Black and white”, and the line width.
- The result is a vector PDF, so it stays sharp at any zoom. It is made on your computer and nothing is uploaded.
External references and fonts
- A drawing can refer to other drawings, such as title block frames. When those files are not loaded, a notice tells you that part of the drawing is missing. Open “References”, click “Add referenced files” and pick the files from your computer.
- Fonts that the drawing uses but the viewer does not have are replaced by similar ones, and a notice says so. Open “Fonts” to see which font is used for each name, and use “Add font files” to supply the SHX, TTF or OTF files the drawing was made with. “Remove added fonts” undoes it.
- Added fonts stay on your computer and are never uploaded.
Desktop app
- The desktop app is a single portable program: copy it anywhere and double-click it, there is nothing to install. It works fully offline.
- Double-click a DWG or DXF file, or choose the app under “Open with”, to open it. If the viewer is already running, the drawing opens as a new tab in the same window.
- Use the “Language” menu at the top right to change the display language; “Auto” follows Windows. Changing it reloads the viewer.
- It needs Windows 10 (version 1903 or later) or Windows 11, and the Microsoft Edge WebView2 Runtime. Windows 11 includes the runtime; if it is missing, the app shows where to download it.
Troubleshooting
“This file could not be opened.”
The file may be damaged, or saved in a version the viewer cannot read. Open it in AutoCAD and save it again, or save a copy as DXF, then try again.
The drawing is too large to open.
Very large drawings can be more than a browser can handle. Purge unused objects in AutoCAD and save a smaller file, or split the drawing.
Part of the drawing is missing.
Open “References”. The drawing probably refers to other drawings (xrefs) that are not loaded; add them with “Add referenced files”.
Text looks different from AutoCAD.
The drawing uses fonts the viewer does not have, so similar fonts are shown. Open “Fonts” and add the SHX, TTF or OTF files the drawing uses.
Measured values look wrong.
Check “Units” and “Precision” in the Measure panel. “Drawing units” uses the units stored in the drawing.
The desktop app says the WebView2 Runtime is missing.
Install the Microsoft Edge WebView2 Runtime from Microsoft’s website (the app shows the address), then start the app again.