Any way to export a footprint?

I assume from your previous messages that you are using ORCAD - it would be nice to mention that in each message so we don't have to look for older messages, or make wild guesses.

Not having used ORCAD, I don't know if my Protel-based suggestion is useful: Protel has a command to create a PCB footprint library from the current PCB file - you might see if such a command exists in ORCAD.

The footprint information is definitely present in your max file. You can open a max file in the footprint library, in fact when orcad was MAXEDA (15 years ago) that is how libraries worked, they were just max files with lots of components and no nets.

Somehow you have confused the ECO into thinking that a component is new because if the footpring field in schematic hasn't changed then the ECO should leave the component footprint alone. You might try adding your max file as the first file in the library editor before running the eco. This shouldn't be necessary but it will force the ECO to use local footprints first.

Hopefully you are not trying to run an ECO to just change a component value, use the simplest ECO which just ECO' on a footprint or net change.

Colin

You are using the wrong AutoECO type. You don't need to reimport footprints on an existing board unless you made a bunch of footprint changes. Thus, choose a different type of AutoECO. On version 10, you can't easily export the footprints from a board if there are any on the solder side of the board. The obstacle and text data is messed up when you pull the footprint info. You can copy the board to another name and add that to your library if you're hell bent on trying to reimport footprints. You can use MAX files as a library.

Yes, sorry I forgot to mention it was OrCAD.

Oh thanks very much! I didn't know I could open the MAX file in the library manager. That solved that problem but it turns out that I didn't need to do that either. I reran the ECO, this time AutoECO Override Attrs. It still asked for the footprints that it couldn't find at the specified mbedded footprint path, but this time I saw that there was a Local library choice and everything was in there. Since I am very new at this, there is a learning curve and I am trying my best to climb it as fast as I can. Sometimes I feel pretty dumb when I miss the obvious. But thanks for the help!