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Common DRC Failures

Intentionally broken builds that teach you how to diagnose and fix common DRC failures.

Goal

Learn to read DRC output by studying intentionally broken builds. Each scenario sets up a specific failure, shows what the DRC reports, and walks through the diagnosis and fix. After this tutorial, you'll recognize these failures on sight and know how to resolve them.

Time: About 20 minutes to work through all scenarios. What you need: A free Protoboard account. You can build each scenario on the same board or create separate boards.

This tutorial is different. Instead of building something that works, you'll build things that are broken on purpose. Most of the time spent on a real project goes into diagnosing and fixing issues, not producing a clean build on the first try.

Quick reference: DRC states

Before diving into the failures, here's what each DRC state means:

State
Color
Meaning

CONFIGURED

Green

All connections properly set up; nothing to fix

PARTIALLY_CONFIGURED

Amber

Some connections exist but the setup is incomplete

NOT_CONFIGURED

Red

A harness or interface link exists but nothing is mapped

INCOMPATIBLE

Red

Fundamental mismatch; these parts can't connect this way

Failure 1: Voltage mismatch

The scenario

You connect a 5V device to a 3.3V-only sensor that can't tolerate higher voltages.

1

Set up the broken build

  1. Place an Arduino Uno Rev3 on the canvas (operates at 5V logic)

  2. Place an SCD40 CO2 sensor on the canvas (3.3V only, no onboard level shifting)

  3. Create a harness from the Arduino's 5V power output to the SCD40's power input

2

What DRC shows

Run DRC. You should see:

INCOMPATIBLE (red) on the power harness.

The DRC message will indicate a voltage domain mismatch: the Arduino's 5V output exceeds the SCD40's maximum input voltage rating.

3

Diagnosis

The SCD40 is a 3.3V device. Unlike the BME280 breakout (which has onboard level shifting and accepts 3-5.5V), the SCD40 expects 3.3V power and logic levels. Connecting it directly to a 5V rail could damage the sensor in real hardware.

Protoboard catches this by comparing voltage domains: the Arduino's 5V output domain doesn't overlap with the SCD40's acceptable input range.

4

The fix

Place an MCP16251T regulator between the Arduino and the SCD40. Configure the regulator's output for 3.3V. Now the power chain is: Arduino 5V to regulator input, regulator 3.3V output to SCD40 power input.

The Arduino Uno Rev3 has a 3.3V output pin (limited to ~50mA). If the SCD40's current draw is within that limit, you can connect the Arduino's 3.3V power domain to the sensor instead of the 5V domain. Adjust the harness interface link accordingly.

Replace the SCD40 with the BME280 breakout, which accepts 3-5.5V thanks to its onboard regulator and level shifters. The DRC will show CONFIGURED because the voltage domains overlap.

Failure 2: Protocol mismatch

The scenario

You try to connect an I2C controller to an SPI peripheral, two completely different communication protocols.

1

Set up the broken build

  1. Place an Arduino Uno Rev3 on the canvas

  2. Place a BME280 sensor on the canvas

  3. Create a harness between them

  4. In the interface link, try to pair the Arduino's I2C master interface with the BME280's SPI slave interface (instead of the BME280's I2C slave interface)

2

What DRC shows

Run DRC. You should see:

INCOMPATIBLE (red) on the data harness.

The DRC message will indicate a protocol type mismatch: I2C and SPI are fundamentally different protocols with different signal structures.

3

Diagnosis

I2C uses two wires (SCL + SDA) with addressing. SPI uses four wires (MOSI, MISO, SCLK, CS) with chip select. These protocols are not interchangeable; the signals, timing, and addressing schemes are completely different. Protoboard enforces that the protocol type must match on both sides of an interface link.

4

The fix

Select the harness, open the Inspector, and change the interface link. Pair the Arduino's I2C master interface with the BME280's I2C slave interface (not SPI). Both interfaces use the same protocol, so Protoboard will find them compatible.

Good to know: The BME280 breakout supports both I2C and SPI. If you actually want to use SPI, pair the Arduino's SPI master interface with the BME280's SPI slave interface. Just make sure both sides are the same protocol.

Failure 3: Role conflict

The scenario

You connect two I2C masters together, two devices that both want to control the bus.

1

Set up the broken build

  1. Place an Arduino Uno Rev3 on the canvas

  2. Place a Raspberry Pi 5 on the canvas

  3. Create a harness between them

  4. Pair the Arduino's I2C master interface with the Raspberry Pi's I2C master interface

2

What DRC shows

Run DRC. You should see:

INCOMPATIBLE (red) on the I2C harness.

The DRC message will indicate a role conflict: both devices are configured as I2C masters.

3

Diagnosis

I2C is a master/slave protocol. The master initiates communication and drives the clock (SCL). Two masters on the same bus need special multi-master arbitration, which most simple setups don't support. Protoboard enforces complementary roles: master must connect to slave (device), not master to master.

This same rule applies across all protocols:

  • I2C: master connects to slave

  • SPI: controller connects to peripheral

  • Power: supply connects to return (input)

  • Motor: driver connects to motor

  • UART: transmitter connects to receiver

4

The fix

If you genuinely need the Arduino and Raspberry Pi to communicate, use a protocol where their roles are complementary. For example, use UART where one device is the transmitter and the other is the receiver. Or use SPI where one is the controller and the other is the peripheral.

If the real goal is to have both MCUs read the same sensor, place a BME280 (I2C slave) on the board and connect each MCU to it separately. This creates two valid master-to-slave connections instead of one invalid master-to-master connection. (Note: only one master can use the bus at a time without multi-master support.)

Failure 4: Missing resource allocation

The scenario

You create a harness and interface link, but don't allocate the physical resources (pins) needed to carry the signals.

1

Set up the broken build

  1. Place an Arduino Uno Rev3 on the canvas

  2. Place a BME280 sensor on the canvas

  3. Create a harness between them

  4. Create the interface link (I2C master to I2C slave)

  5. Don't allocate specific Arduino pins to the I2C functions; leave the resource allocation empty

2

What DRC shows

Run DRC. You should see:

PARTIALLY_CONFIGURED (amber) on the I2C harness.

The DRC message will indicate that resources are not allocated: the logical connection exists, but no physical pins have been assigned to carry the signals.

3

Diagnosis

An interface link says "these two interfaces should be connected." Function links say "this signal maps to that signal." But resource allocation says "this specific pin on the Arduino carries the SCL signal." Without allocation, Protoboard knows what you want to do but can't verify that the hardware can actually do it.

Concretely:

  • Interface link = "I want I2C between Arduino and BME280"

  • Function links = "SCL maps to SCL, SDA maps to SDA"

  • Resource allocation = "Arduino pin A5 carries SCL, pin A4 carries SDA"

All three layers need to be complete for a CONFIGURED result.

4

The fix

Select the harness, open the Inspector, and look for the resource allocation section. Assign the Arduino's pins:

  • A4 to SDA function

  • A5 to SCL function

Alternatively, ask ProtoBot: "Allocate I2C resources on my Arduino."

Re-run DRC. The harness should now show CONFIGURED (green).

Failure 5: Bus capacity exceeded

The scenario

You connect too many devices to a single I2C bus, exceeding the bus's capacity or creating address conflicts.

1

Set up the broken build

  1. Place an Arduino Uno Rev3 on the canvas

  2. Place multiple I2C sensors: BME280, VL53L0X, LSM6DS3TR-C, MLX90614, MAX30102, and SCD40

  3. Connect all six sensors to the Arduino's I2C bus by creating individual harnesses from the Arduino to each sensor

  4. Try to allocate all of them to the same I2C peripheral on the Arduino

2

What DRC shows

Run DRC. You may see:

  • DRC warnings about bus capacitance or device count limits

  • PARTIALLY_CONFIGURED (amber) if some sensors share the same default I2C address (address conflict)

  • The DRC may also flag resource contention if too many devices demand more current than the bus can source

3

Diagnosis

The I2C bus has practical limits:

  • Electrical: Bus capacitance increases with each device and wire length, eventually degrading signal quality

  • Addressing: Each device needs a unique 7-bit address. Some sensors have fixed addresses or limited address options. If two devices share the same address, they'll collide

  • Current: The I2C pull-up resistors must source enough current for all devices on the bus

Protoboard's DRC catches these issues by tracking how many devices are allocated to each bus and checking for address conflicts.

4

The fix

If your MCU supports multiple I2C peripherals, split the sensors across different buses. The Arduino Uno only has one hardware I2C bus, but a Teensy 4.1 or Arduino Mega 2560 have multiple I2C peripherals.

Add an I2C multiplexer (create as a blank part if needed) to expand one I2C bus into multiple isolated channels. This solves both address conflicts and capacitance issues.

Some sensors (like the BME280) allow you to change their I2C address via a configuration pin. If two sensors conflict, check whether one of them supports an alternate address.

Quick diagnosis guide

When you see a DRC failure, use this table to narrow down the cause:

Red flags (INCOMPATIBLE)

Symptom
Likely cause

Power harness turns red

Voltage domain mismatch

Data harness turns red

Protocol mismatch or role conflict

"Incompatible roles" message

Two masters, two slaves, or other non-complementary roles

"Protocol mismatch" message

I2C paired with SPI, UART paired with I2C, etc.

Amber flags (PARTIALLY_CONFIGURED)

Symptom
Likely cause

"Resources not allocated"

Pins not assigned to functions

"Missing function links"

Interface link exists but signals aren't mapped

"Address conflict"

Two I2C devices share the same address

"Incomplete power path"

GND or VCC function link is missing

Common failures

I fixed the issue but DRC still shows the old error

Make sure you re-run the DRC after making changes. The validation doesn't auto-refresh, so you need to click the Board Review icon again (or the refresh button in the validation panel) to re-scan.

DRC shows multiple errors and I don't know where to start

Start with INCOMPATIBLE (red) errors first; these are fundamental issues that block everything else. Once red errors are resolved, move to PARTIALLY_CONFIGURED (amber) issues, which are usually about completing the configuration. Finally, address any warnings.

I can't reproduce a specific failure from this tutorial

Make sure you're creating the interface links exactly as described. Auto-detect may choose the correct interface link (preventing the failure). To force a specific bad pairing, manually select the wrong interface in the Inspector rather than relying on auto-detect.

ProtoBot fixed my issue but I don't understand what it changed

After ProtoBot makes changes, select each harness and review the interface link details in the Inspector. Compare what's there now with what you had before. Understanding the fix is more valuable than just having it work.

Key takeaways

  1. Voltage domains must overlap. The output voltage range must fall within the input's acceptable range.

  2. Protocol types must match. You can't bridge I2C and SPI without an adapter.

  3. Roles must complement. Master connects to slave, driver connects to motor, supply connects to return.

  4. Resources must be allocated. Logical connections need physical pin assignments.

  5. Buses have capacity limits. Too many devices cause address conflicts, signal degradation, or current overload.

  6. Run DRC often. It catches these issues before you buy parts and solder wires.

Next steps

PreviousMotor Control Chain
NextMedical Devices

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