Open GDS files in your browser
The file a chip's layout is handed over in, from a single cell to a whole die. Open one right here, every cell and layer, with no layout tool. Nothing leaves your device.
Or drop it anywhere on this page
What you'll see
Your layout opens with its cells down one side and its layers down the other.
- Every cell and what it places • Sharp at any zoom
- Layers by name • Hide one, show one alone or pull them apart in 3D
- Measure in microns • Find a cell, pin or label
- Export • PNG, SVG and the cell list as CSV
About GDS
Calma made GDSII in 1978 for its chip layout system, and it has been how designs are handed to a foundry ever since. Sending the final GDS is still called tapeout, from the magnetic tape it once went on.
A GDS is a library of cells. Each holds polygons, paths and text on numbered layers, and places other cells, one by one or in arrays, turned or mirrored, so a chip of millions of shapes is built from a few hundred cells. What layer 68 means is up to each process's layer map.
Filepeek reads the file in your browser and draws its top cell sharp at any zoom, with every cell listed beside it. Layers are named and colored from the layer maps of SkyWater SKY130, GlobalFoundries GF180MCU and IHP SG13G2 when the cells' names give the process away, or from a KLayout .lyp dropped with it. Hide layers, measure in microns, find a cell, pin or label, pull the layers apart in 3D, and save the view as PNG or SVG, a cell as a GDS of its own or the cells as CSV.
GDSII Stream Format
.gds • .gds2 • .gdsii
Format
- MIME type
- application/x-gdsii
- Made by
- Calma
- Released
- 1978
Inside the file
- Cells
- Named parts of the design, placed in others
- Shapes
- Polygons, paths and boxes on numbered layers
- Labels
- Text naming pins and nets
- Units
- A database unit, usually a nanometer
Opens in every browser
Browsers download GDS files, and layout tools need installing. Filepeek opens them in Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari, gzipped or not.
- YouChromeOpens through Filepeek
- YouEdgeOpens through Filepeek
- YouFirefoxOpens through Filepeek
- YouSafariOpens through Filepeek
Questions
How do I open a GDS file without KLayout?
Drop it on this page or choose Peek a GDS. It opens on its top cell, with every cell listed beside it and nothing to install. A gzipped .gds.gz opens too.
Which layer is which?
Each process numbers its own layers. Filepeek names and colors them from the layer maps of SkyWater SKY130, GlobalFoundries GF180MCU and IHP SG13G2 when the cells' names give the process away, or from a KLayout .lyp dropped with the layout. Otherwise they're listed by number and datatype, like 68/20.
Can I measure a distance?
Yes. Choose Measure and click two points. Each snaps to the nearest corner or edge in reach, and the distance shows in microns.
Can I see the layers in 3D?
Yes. Choose Layers apart from View to lift each layer to its place in the stack, from the wells up through the metals, and drag to turn it.
Can I save one cell as its own GDS?
Yes. Open the cell and choose Export, then Save this cell, for a GDS of that cell and every cell it places. Export also saves the view as PNG or SVG and the cell list as CSV.
Is my file uploaded?
No. The layout opens inside your browser and never leaves your device.