KiCad is a useful tool for designing printed circuit boards, but it is of no use to you if you cannot install it on the computer you are on. To overcome this, [Akshay Rukade] has created a browser-based alternative to help you work in less permissive environments. It is called ZiroEDA.
ZiroEDA is quite simply a TypeScript port of KiCad 10.0.6’s C++ source code. You get the schematic editor, the PCB editor, the interactive router, and the electrical and design rule checkers all running in a browser. It can open .kicad_pro files as you would expect, and you can edit and save them as you would if you were working directly in standard KiCad.
[Akshay] Reports that KiCad’s own Kicad-cli was used for compatibility testing, and that the zone fills came out identically from ZiroEDA versus KiCad itself. With that said, the project is still ongoing, and some dialogs from the original software are still missing. The projects are said to be end-to-end encrypted, but you’ll hopefully lose your job quickly if you try to put something important to national security through a tool like this. You can always try it, just to give your high-ups a heart attack.
Source is available on GitHub if you want to see how it all ticks. We’ve also featured other great KiCad hacks before, such as this GPU-accelerated autorouter. If you’re working on PCB tools of your own, don’t hesitate to note the tip line.