cadcraft/docs/gaps.md

Where CADCraft falls short of AutoCAD

Last reviewed: 2026-10-10 · Last updated: 2026-10-11 · Change: minor (SPLINE, MTEXT and MLEADER prompt options landed, #408: top-10 row 5, F1 and F10 narrowed) · Target: Autodesk AutoCAD 2027

Every known shortfall, one row each, ranked within each section by user impact. This is the work list: agents pick from here (top of a section first), and remove or update a row in the same PR that closes it. Numbers and weights live in target-app-parity.md; hours are Opus 5.5 agent-hours, calibrated as explained there. "Est." means a judgement from the cited evidence. Rows marked [alpha blocker] are what fails the alpha gate; do them first.

Top 10 across everything

#	Gap	Why it ranks here	Est.	Doc
1	[alpha blocker] Saving DWG drops what we don't model (DXF now writes back unknown entities and objects, foreign xdata, extension dictionaries, reactors, layer states and colour books, #528; through DWG, acadrust drops custom-class entities and objects, xdata on table records and blocks, entity colour books and reactors; MULTILEADER is still written as LEADER+MTEXT)	Opening a colleague's DWG and saving it still deletes some content: the one thing a CAD user can't forgive	6–10	file formats
2	[alpha blocker] No real-file test corpus and no check in AutoCAD	All 36 file tests are synthetic; nobody has verified a CADCraft DWG/DXF opens cleanly in AutoCAD	10–15 + human	file formats
3	Tracking leftovers (object snap tracking, Extension, Parallel and Apparent Intersection landed, #379): polar angles relative to the last segment, PolarSnap, temporary tracking point	Small now; ranks lower at the next review	3–5	ui
4	No code pages when reading pre-2007 files (saving DWG/DXF at 2000–2018 and binary DXF landed, #421)	Pre-2007 CJK/Cyrillic files are garbled	3–5	file formats
5	[alpha blocker] Stubbed prompt options left in PEDIT Edit vertex, SPLINEDIT and MTEXT columns	Scripts and muscle memory hit "not available yet" (the most-used commands are done)	3–6	features
6	Ellipse and spline geometry is tessellated (intersections, offsets, closest points; polyline offset ignores bulges)	Coordinates are subtly wrong; offsets of ellipses come out as polylines	30–50	geometry
7	[alpha blocker] No xrefs, block editor, dynamic blocks or groups	Most production drawings use them	80–120	features
8	No autosave in the web build (the desktop app has SAVETIME autosave, Drawing Recovery, AUDIT and RECOVER since #406)	Browser users lose unsaved work when the tab or the browser goes down	3–5	features
9	Dynamic input lacks grip input; no TK; grip options ignored (FROM, M2P/MTP, point filters, * and <a landed, #392)	Precision entry at the cursor is how AutoCAD is taught today	12–20	ui
10	No CI runs the Rust tests on pull requests (cargo fmt on main is fixed)	open PRs land without a gate; regressions go unseen	2–3	stability

Features

#	Gap	Evidence	User impact	Est.
F1	[alpha blocker] Prompt options print "not available yet": PEDIT Edit vertex Break/Regen/Tangent, some SPLINEDIT options; MTEXT Dynamic/Static columns (no column model). SPLINE, MTEXT and MLEADER options done (#408): closed splines keep but ignore a fit tolerance, SPLINE Object fits the polyline's vertices (no spline frame is kept) (TRIM/EXTEND, PLINE arc mode and Length, XLINE done (#397); OFFSET, ROTATE and FILLET options done earlier)	modify2.rs:594,783,806, cmd/mtext_opts.rs	Medium: the most-used commands are done	3–6
F2	XREF editing in place and clipping: REFEDIT and XCLIP are missing. XATTACH, the External References palette, -XREF (Bind/Detach/Path/Unload/Reload/Overlay), XBIND, XOPEN, overlays, relative paths and loading at open are done (#525). Unloaded state and xref-layer overrides last only for the session	cmd/blocks/xref.rs	Medium: xrefs can't be edited in place or clipped	15–25
F3	[alpha blocker] (block editor and REFEDIT; dynamic-block authoring is beta) No block editor (BEDIT) or dynamic blocks (parameters, actions, visibility, lookup); dynamic blocks from other files lose their behaviour	issue #185 offers help	High: standard libraries are dynamic	50–75
F4	Autosave leftovers: no autosave in the web build (browser storage); autosave files are DXF, not DWG; no AUDITCTL .adt log and no separate RECOVER mode in the file readers (SAVETIME, Drawing Recovery, AUDIT and RECOVER landed with #406)	engine/src/autosave.rs, engine/src/audit.rs	Low-medium (web users)	3–5
F5	Arrays are not associative: no ARRAYEDIT; ARRAY/ARRAYRECT/ARRAYPOLAR edit the array in an option loop, then create plain copies (ASsociative, Levels, polar ROWs and grip editing print "not available yet")	cmd/array.rs	Medium-high	8–12
F7	Dimensions: no DIMSTYLE manager dialog; 43 of ~80 DIMSTYLE variables (DIMTOFL, DIMATFIT, DIMTMOVE, DIMLTYPE, DIMLWD, DIMFXL, DIMTOLJ, DIMALTU …); no smart DIM; no DIMJOGGED, DIMJOGLINE, DIMBREAK, oblique DIMEDIT, inspection; QDIM continuous only (SETVAR DIM* now become style overrides, #129)	doc/src/tables.rs:223-266, annotate.rs:64,364	High for detailers	25–35
F8	TOLERANCE leftovers (feature control frames landed, #420: model, our own symbol drawing, DXF, command-line prompts, explode, grips): no Geometric Tolerance dialog, no LEADER/QLEADER tolerance annotation, no in-place editing of a frame's contents	cmd/tolerance.rs	Low-medium (mechanical)	2–4
F9	MTEXT editor is a dialog box, not in place; no columns, bullets, numbering, tabs, indents; no fields (FIELD, UPDATEFIELD); no spell check (SPELL)	ui-egui/dialogs.rs:188-240	Medium-high	30–45
F10	MLEADER: no MLEADEREDIT/ALIGN/COLLECT; MLEADERSTYLE has 5 fields (block content and spline/no-leader types are per command, not in the style; block content has no attributes)	annotate.rs, cmd/mleader_content.rs, tables.rs:417	Medium	8–12
F11	Tables (cell styles, formulas, TABLEDIT, TABLEEXPORT, table breaking and CSV data links landed, #534): formulas aren't read from or written as AutoCAD FIELD objects (other programs see values); number formats apply to formula results only; cell text doesn't wrap; custom cell styles, breaks and data links travel as CADCraft xdata (not through DWG); data links read CSV only (no Excel ranges, no write-back, not on the web); no cell-style tab in the Table Style dialog	cmd/table/*, io/dxf_table.rs	Low-medium	6–10
F12	Annotative scaling: the flag is stored, nothing scales; no scale list, no "Annotative Object Scale" commands	4 uncovered menu items	Medium-high in layouts	10–15
F13	Hatch: 23 patterns (AutoCAD ~85; ours must stay original); no hatch dialog (HATCH and HATCHEDIT options work at the command line and in JSON), no MPolygon; HATCHEDIT can't add or remove boundaries; a hatch copied with its boundary isn't linked to the copy; HPGAPTOL closes gaps between curve ends only	doc/src/library.rs, cmd/hatch.rs, cmd/hatch/edit.rs	Medium	8–12
F14	[alpha blocker] No plot preview, plotter devices, PUBLISH/batch plot; Print opens no plot dialog (#160, PR #200). Plot styles (CTB and STB, plot-styles.md) apply since #410; their end/join/fill styles aren't applied and binary .ctb/.stb files can't be read	palettes.rs:666	High for sheet output	15–25
F15	Viewports: no polygonal, object or clipped viewports; no viewport scale control in the UI	menu items uncovered	Medium	6–10
F16	Groups: no group bounding box or single grip when a group is selected (GROUPDISPLAYMODE), copying a whole group does not make a new group, no Object Grouping dialog (GROUP, GROUPEDIT, UNGROUP, -GROUP, PICKSTYLE group selection and the DXF/DWG round trip landed, #417); PICKSTYLE's associative-hatch bit is stored but unused	cmd/groups.rs	Low	2–4
F17	Attributes: BATTMAN lists only; no ATTSYNC, EATTEXT, global ATTEDIT	blocks.rs:300	Medium	6–10
F18	Layer bugs: edits change geometry on locked layers (#87, PR #196); delete/purge removes layers used by blocks (#72, PR #189); rename misses paper space and blocks (#75, PR #191); linetype rename breaks assignments (#74, PR #195); rejected freeze changes colour (#71, PR #188)	issues	High (correctness)	3–5 (PRs open)
F19	MATCHPROP Settings is a keyword prompt (no dialog) and has no material, shadow or centre-object settings; TEXTTOFRONT and HATCHTOBACK act on the current space only; OVERKILL doesn't compare polyline segments with other objects (picker and Settings, DRAWORDER Above/Under, TEXTTOFRONT, HATCHTOBACK, OVERKILL tolerance/ignore/overlap/end-to-end options landed, #439)	props/matchprop.rs, draworder.rs, overkill.rs	Low	2–4
F20	OPTIONS/Preferences dialog missing (#23) (UNITS has a dialog since #38)	—	Medium	6–10
F21	MLINE, REGION and HELIX are objects since #510, with gaps: MLEDIT has no Merged Tee and tees trim square; UNION/SUBTRACT/INTERSECT only combine regions whose boundaries don't meet; regions are saved as closed polylines (no ACIS data); PURGE skips multiline styles	draw2/mline.rs, inquiry/regions.rs, dxf_region.rs	Low	6–10
F22	Inquiry: MASSPROP approximate; COUNT counts model-space inserts only; no QuickCalc palette (CAL is an evaluator); no DWG Compare	utility.rs:203,310-352, inquiry.rs:305	Low-medium	15–25
F23	No Sheet Set Manager, eTransmit, Share, Traces, Markup Import, Activity Insights	menu items uncovered	Low-medium (team workflows)	40–70
F24	No 3D: UCS, 3D views, orbit, solids, surfaces, meshes, sections, visual styles, materials, lights, rendering (150 menu items)	parity-checklist	Medium (3D users)	300–450

UI/UX

Detail and evidence: ui-parity.md.

#	Gap	User impact	Est.
U2	Dynamic input: grip dimensional input, lock icons, DYNPROMPT options menu (pointer boxes with Tab and relative entry landed in #60)	Medium	3–5
U4	Tab snap cycling offers the closest snap of each mode, not every candidate. Typed snap overrides (END, MID … NON), the Shift/Ctrl+right-click snap menu and Tab cycling landed (#393), the menu's Temporary track point in #441	Low	1
U5	Hot-grip options (Base point, Copy, Undo, Reference) are shown but ignored; multiple hot grips; multifunctional grip menus (Add/Remove Vertex, Convert to Arc)	Medium-high	6–10
U6	Selection: lasso; selection cycling (a list of overlapping objects, SELECTIONCYCLING); the CLass keyword; isolation saved with the drawing (OBJECTISOLATIONMODE 1) and the status-bar isolate button. Press-drag windows (#63), the W, C, F, WP and CP keywords (#226), BOX, AUto, SIngle, Multiple, Group, Add, Remove and Undo, SELECTSIMILAR, and ISOLATEOBJECTS/HIDEOBJECTS/UNISOLATEOBJECTS (#428) landed	Medium	3–5
U7	Right-click context menus (canvas, selection, command, command line, palettes, tabs)	Medium-high	6–10
U8	Snaps missing on some objects: MID on circles/ellipses/splines; NOD on dimension points; INS on ATTDEF/MLEADER; TAN on ellipses/splines; GCEN on splines	Medium	4–6
U9	Isometric snap/grid and ISODRAFT (dead toggle). Polar additional angles, angles relative to the last segment and PolarSnap landed (#441)	Medium	2–4
U10	UNDO Mark/Back/BEgin/End/Auto; SETVAR coverage (~60 of ~1,000 variables)	Medium	6–10
U11	MVIEW Restore (a saved viewport configuration into a layout); VIEW Orthographic, UCS and background settings; view twist is kept but not shown (Zoom Realtime and Dynamic, ZOOMFACTOR, named views (VIEW) and tiled model viewports with saved configurations (VPORTS) landed in #463)	Low	1–2
U12	Workspaces, navigation bar, CUI customisation, alias editor, ViewCube drag (#7)	Low-medium	15–25
U13	Window controls misaligned on macOS (#161); .dxf from Finder fails to open (#158)	Medium	2–4

File formats

Detail: file-format-parity.md.

#	Gap	User impact	Est.
FF1	[alpha blocker] Round-trip what we don't model. DXF done (#528): unknown entities and objects (with their CLASS records), foreign xdata (hyperlinks included), extension dictionaries, persistent reactors, DICTIONARYVAR and XRECORDs, layer states, colour book colours, references remapped on save; IMAGE, VIEW/UCS, groups, block descriptions, true colours, transparency (#201, #204, #208, #209, #213, #223); WIPEOUT and gradients (#147, #162). Left: through DWG, acadrust drops custom-class entities and objects, xdata on table records and blocks, entity colour book names and reactors; UCS elevation; MTEXT background colours; unknown entities follow only layer edits, and renamed layers and blocks lose their foreign data	High	6–10
FF2	[alpha blocker] Native MULTILEADER objects (read and write)	High	6–10
FF3	Save-version leftovers (DXF/DWG 2000–2018, binary DXF, SAVEAS version/binary and the default save version landed, #421): no R14 DWG or R12 DXF output; the Save dialog can't pick the version per file (the file picker doesn't report the chosen type; File > Default Save Format sets it); no command-line SAVEAS format prompt	Low	2–4
FF4	Code pages ($DWGCODEPAGE, ANSI_932/936/949/950/125x) when reading pre-2007 files	Medium-high (Asia, Eastern Europe)	3–5
FF5	[alpha blocker] Real-file corpus (storytold/cadcraft-corpus), open → save → reopen tests, black-box check in AutoCAD	High	10–15 + human
FF6	[alpha blocker] DWG throughput: a 10 MB DWG took ~2 min to fail (#57)	High for real projects	6–10
FF7	Table record and object handles from other programs' files are renumbered on the first save (entity handles are kept; *D blocks no longer duplicate and once reopened, CADCraft's own files keep every handle across saves, #495)	Low	4–6
FF8	SHX fonts (shape and big fonts) not read	Medium-high (text metrics differ)	8–12
FF9	.pc3 plotter configuration files; linetype shape (SHX) elements are skipped (templates and .dwt, user .lin/.pat and .pgp alias files landed, #552; .ctb/.stb, #410)	Low-medium	5–10
FF10	PDF: text as real fonts, layers (OCG), multi-sheet; PDF import and underlays; raster image attach	Medium	30–50
FF11	DWF/DWFx, DGN, WMF, EPS, ACIS/STL and other exchange formats	Low-medium	50–100
FF12	DWG in the web build	Medium	6–10
FF13	R12 binary DXF, pre-R13 DWG	Low	10–20

Hardware

Detail: hardware-parity.md.

#	Gap	Est.
H1	3Dconnexion SpaceMouse (needs the device and 3D views)	6–10 + human
H2	Multi-monitor: floating palettes on other screens, per-monitor DPI (PR #110 for Windows 11 DPI)	4–6
H3	Plotters and system printers (PC3 devices) beyond PDF files	6–10
H4	Pen tablets / digitizer (TABLET)	3–5 + human
H5	Screen magnifier tracking (#39, PR #187)	1–2

Localization

Detail: localization-parity.md.

#	Gap	Est.
L1	Catalog covers the UI (936 rows, #36) but not engine diagnostics, CLI/MCP replies or command history	4–6
L2	AutoCAD for Mac's 7 other languages (zh-Hans, es, fr, ja, de, ko, it) plus pt, hi, ar, id, vi from the standard's list	40–60 + native review
L3	Complex-script shaping for Devanagari and other Indic scripts in drawing text; RTL (mirrored) UI. Arabic-script shaping and bidi in drawing text landed (#287)	20–30
L4	IME fixes on every platform (PRs #110–#119); vertical text styles	6–10

Stability

#	Gap	Evidence	Est.
S1	No CI runs cargo xtask ci on pull requests (only packaging lint and release builds)	.github/workflows/	2–3
S2	cargo fmt --check fails on main fixed on main (8fceaaf)	—	0
S3	47 open PRs, many community bug fixes awaiting review	gh pr list	10–20
S4	Open correctness issues: extents union far-apart geometry (#166), lines not visible mid-command (#44, PR #56), browser save/plot deliver nothing (#133, #134), closing a tab switches drawings (#76, PR #192)	issues	6–10
S5	No smoke test of every command through the UI (PR #42 proposes one)	—	6–10
S6	No property-based or fuzz tests for geometry; hostile-input tests cover parsing only	geometry-parity	4–6

Platforms

#	Gap	Est.
P1	Web build: File > Open does nothing (#55, PR #199), saves don't download (#133, PR #193), plot shows raw PDF bytes (#134), no DWG	6–10
P2	Windows and Linux get little runtime testing; Linux Mint mouse delay (#25); Windows magnifier (#39)	6–10
P3	macOS file associations: opening .dxf from Finder fails (#158)	1–2

Ecosystem and automation

#	Gap	Est.
E1	AutoLISP interpreter (safe subset first: defun, command, entget/entmod, selection sets, getpoint …), APPLOAD, acad.lsp startup	60–100
E2	SCRIPT command reading .scr files (scripts run today through CLI/MCP/control only)	1–2
E3	Express Tools equivalents (TXT2MTXT, BREAKLINE, BURST, NCOPY exists, SUPERHATCH, Move/Copy/Rotate)	30–50
E4	Plug-in API (owner decision: Rust/WASM plug-ins rather than ObjectARX/.NET)	30–50
E5	CUI customisation and alias (.pgp) editor	15–25

AI features

#	Gap	Est.
A1	Smart Blocks equivalents (placement suggestions, replace, detect and convert, search), using local open models	25–50 + model licensing
A2	An in-app assistant (AutoCAD has Autodesk Assistant); CADCraft's MCP server already lets any agent drive it	10–20
A3	Markup Assist (import markups from PDFs/images)	10–20

Revision history

Date	Change	Summary
2026-10-11	minor	SPLINE Knots/Tangency/toLerance/Object, MTEXT Height/Justify/Line spacing/Rotation/Style/Width/Columns, MLEADER spline and no-leader types and block content landed (#408): top-10 row 5, F1 and F10 narrowed
2026-10-11	minor	Object snap tracking, Extension, Parallel and true Apparent Intersection landed (#379): top-10 row 3 and U1 narrowed to the leftovers
2026-10-10	minor	Merged main: closed or narrowed rows for the Ukrainian catalog, UNITS dialog, shortcut display, dynamic input pointer boxes, press-drag windows, SETVAR DIM*, WIPEOUT and gradients, fmt
2026-10-10	minor	Alpha blockers marked (rows failing the core-workflow gate)
2026-10-10	major	First gaps list: ranked top 10 and every known shortfall by dimension, with evidence and estimates