Release Notes: Design System Manager (DSM)

November 3, 2022

Minor updates

This release fixed a rare issue some customers were experiencing that prevented libraries to sync.

New Design System Manager: 1.0.25, Legacy Design System Manager: 1.1.50

March 2nd, 2022

Compatibility improvements

This new DSM release addresses some anticipated compatibility issues with Sketch 84.

New Design System Manager: 1.0.21, Legacy Design System Manager: 1.1.50

January 5th, 2022

DSM Inspect and Spec integration enhancements

We’ve enhanced the DSM Inspect and Spec integration for large Sketch files. It allows for using more symbols/text styles from Sketch libraries per Sketch file.

Compatibility improvements

This new DSM release addresses incompatibility issues that were affecting customers using Sketch 81 with certain software installed who couldn’t use click-to-apply layer styles from DSM.

New Design System Manager: 1.0.20, Legacy Design System Manager: 1.1.49

September 12th, 2021

Bulk icons download

You can now download icons in bulk from the DSM documentation site or through our tokens and icons API. To get started, click the Download column on any Icons page in your design system’s Foundations.

July 14th, 2021

Increased asset limit

We’ve increased the limit of assets (symbols, text styles, and layer styles) per file when uploading a Sketch library to a design system.

New Design System Manager: 1.0.17, Legacy Design System Manager: 1.1.47

June 22nd, 2021

Figma integration

V7 customers can now import Figma libraries to the new DSM. Learn more here: Creating a Design System

June 21st, 2021

Freeform documentation

To give you more control over the structure and content of your design system, the Foundations section in the DSM documentation site has been updated to allow multiple content blocks (as well as any asset type) per page. Learn more here: Developing your DSM documentation

June 7th, 2021

Optimizations

You won’t see anything new this time! This release includes some under-the-hood optimizations aimed at improving the stability of the tool.

New Design System Manager: 1.0.15, Legacy Design System Manager: 1.1.47

May 2021

System language

This release fixes an issue that prevented the new DSM from loading in Sketch when the macOS system language wasn't set to English.

New Design System Manager: 1.0.14, Legacy Design System Manager: 1.1.47

April 2021

Design tokens

You can now easily import your Sketch text styles, layer styles, and color variables as design tokens! You can learn more here: Importing Design Tokens in the new DSM

Add any asset type to the Foundation pages

The left-navigation categories in the Foundations section (i.e. Colors, Typography, Icons) no longer limit pages to a specific asset type. This means that you can now create a new page in any category and add either typography, colors, or icons.

March 2021

Sketch Freeze

This release fixes a rare bug that would cause Sketch 71 to freeze when closing documents.

Issues downloading Sketch libraries

If you're on macOS 11 (Big Sur) and download a local copy of a Sketch library, DSM will now add the .sketch extension to the file name, as expected. Previously, without first manually adding the .sketch extension, attempting to open the affected Sketch library files led to an error.

Incompatibility with the Anima plugin

If you're using the Anima plugin for Sketch, you will no longer see errors when opening DSM.

Text Alignment

If you're on macOS 11 (Big Sur), the alignment of your text styles should now appear as expected in DSM Legacy. This release corrects the bug that had intermittently prevented proper text alignment—e.g., center-aligned text could appear right aligned, and vice versa.

New Design System Manager: 1.0.13, Legacy Design System Manager: 1.0.45

February 19th, 2021

What's fixed in the new DSM?

In Sketch 70.5, quitting Sketch or disabling new DSM (version 1.0.9) was causing Sketch to crash. This release, new DSM version 1.0.10, fixes the bug that had been causing the crash.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.10
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.44 (unaffected by the February 19th release)

February 18th, 2021

What's changed in the new DSM?

If you're rocking a new Mac that's stocked with the Apple M1 processor, the latest new DSM release gets you back in business—without the help of Rosetta 2:

• Support for Apple M1 processors: DSM will now run on new Macs that are powered by the Apple M1 processor, without using Rosetta 2.
  
  Sketch 70.5 or later is also required.
• Mac models with the M1 processor: Here's the full list of Macs that previously required Rosetta 2 to run DSM:
  • MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
  • Mac mini (M1, 2020)
  • MacBook Pro (13-inch, M1, 2020)

What’s changed in Legacy DSM?

If you're still using Legacy DSM, this release fixes the Apple M1 processor issue for you as well:

• Support for Apple M1 processors: Legacy DSM will now run on the new Macs with the Apple M1 processor without using Rosetta 2.
  
  Sketch 70.5 or later is also required.
• Mac models with the M1 processor: Previously, these three Macs required Rosetta 2 to run Legacy DSM:
  • MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
  • Mac mini (M1, 2020)
  • MacBook Pro (13-inch, M1, 2020)

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.9
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.44

February 9th, 2021

What's changed in the new DSM?

This release addresses a handful of bugs:

• Issue with Apple M1 processors: To prevent DSM from causing Sketch to crash due to incompatibility issues, DSM will not currently open if you're using one of the new Mac models that are stocked with the Apple M1 processor—MacBook Air (M1, 2020), Mac mini (M1, 2020), or the MacBook Pro (13-inch, M1, 2020). Instead, the new DSM plugin will display an error message prompting you to reopen Sketch with Rosetta 2—the native Mac app that "enables a Mac with Apple silicon to use apps built for a Mac with an Intel processor" (as stated in Apple's Support docs).
  Note: This temporary stop-gap solution is one aspect of our current push to correct the compatibility issues that are preventing DSM from functioning properly on machines with the M1 processor.
• Trouble switching versions: Now when you need to switch to a different version of your design system in the DSM Sketch plugin, you can do so whether or not the version you’re currently using contains Sketch libraries. Previously, a bug had prevented the Switch button (in the DSM Sketch plugin) from functioning.
• Warning, Warning: If you duplicate a particularly large Sketch file that you've already uploaded to DSM web view, and then you try to upload the large, duplicate Sketch file, you will now see two warning messages—one indicating that large files may take a long time to load and a second indicating that a document with the same ID already exists.
• Invalid color variables: If your Sketch file contains an invalid color variable, now you can still upload the file to DSM web view without encountering an error, as the invalid variable will be automatically filtered out before the file is uploaded.

What's changed in legacy DSM?

This release addresses one glaring bug:

• Issue with Apple M1 processors: To prevent DSM from causing Sketch to crash due to incompatibility issues, DSM will currently display an error message prompting you to reopen Sketch with Rosetta 2. Learn more about this issue and workaround.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.8
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.43

January 28th, 2021

What's new in the new DSM?

This release makes it a whole lot easier to update your design system settings in the DSM web view during January, including a new visibility setting for DSM Enterprise organizations:

• Primary navigation customization: Available on both the DSM Free and DSM Enterprise plans, now you can customize the links in your primary navigation for design systems in the DSM web view. With numerous options for nav bar, you can guide your collaborators to most useful sections of your documentation:
  • Add new or existing sections 
  • Rename section links
  • Reorder section links
  • Delete section links—excluding default sections
• New, easy-access settings page: With numerous important settings options now available, you'll be happy to know that we've created a new settings hub so you can configure multiple settings in one place. To access the following settings, open your design system in the DSM web view, click the settings icon (), and select Settings:
  • System settings: Configure your general design system settings and draft visibility.
  • Customization: Configure your design system settings for top navigation, component tab order, theme, and logo.
  • Foundation fonts: Configure settings for fonts that have been added to the design system.
    
    Previously, this setting was called the Font manager.
• Design system draft visibility: Now your DSM Enterprise admin can restrict visibility of your design system draft to prevent anyone with the viewer role (for the system) from seeing elements that aren't ready for release. Read the details.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.7
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.42

January 10th, 2021

What's improved or fixed in the new DSM?

This version of the new DSM plugin (1.0.7) includes minor design changes and a convenient new feature for anyone who uses a proxy server:

• Update proxy credentials: If your IT team has implemented a proxy server but your credentials aren't saved on your machine, now you can easily authenticate (and save your credentials to your macOS Keychain, if wanted) right from the new DSM plugin in Sketch. Read the details
• Design enhancements: You may notice the minor look and feel enhancements we've made to the new DSM plugin and web view.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.7
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.42

December 2020

What's improved or fixed in the new DSM?

Along with a couple of big bug fixes, the latest version of the new DSM should improve the experience when uploading Sketch libraries to DSM:

• Help is on the way: When uploading Sketch libraries to the DSM Web view, you'll notice a new link to troubleshooting instructions that help with potential gotcha moments such as navigating a network proxy problem or correcting file size issues.
• DSM data in Inspect: Your DSM data should be displayed as expected in Inspect now. Before this fix, a bug had prevented Inspect from displaying DSM data in certain rare cases.
• Cloudy with 100% chance of DSM: Now you should see the new DSM plugin as expected when working with Sketch Cloud documents. 

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.7
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.42

November 25th, 2020

What's improved or fixed in the new DSM?

🎶 See Your True Colors Shining Through

The latest release of the new DSM further enhances support for features introduced with Sketch 69:

• Support for Sketch color variables: Now when you upload a library from Sketch to DSM, the upload will include any color variables you’ve established in Sketch, so you can document the variables in the DSM web view—in the Color pages, alongside colors based on layer styles.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.5
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.42

November 17th, 2020

What's improved or fixed in the new DSM?

This release addresses compatibility issues between the new DSM plugin and these two Sketch versions:

• Sketch 69 compatibility: You may notice the new DSM plugin better supports the ability to display DSM data in Inspect when inspecting shared styles nested within components.

• Sketch beta 70 compatibility: The new DSM plugin is now compatible with Sketch beta 70.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.3
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.40

September 2020

What's improved or fixed in the new DSM?

The latest version of the new DSM Sketch plugin includes a couple of improvements and a notable fix:

• Big Sur compatibility: The new DSM plugin is now compatible with macOS 11 Big Sur beta.
• Sketch 69 compatibility: The DSM side panel has been repositioned to account for the new Components View (beta) in Sketch version 69 (beta).
• A11y enhancements: You may notice an improved experience after our latest round of minor accessibility enhancements.
• Keeping up appearances: The plugin respects the Appearance setting (Light or Dark) in your System Preferences as expected.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 1.0.1
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.40

August 18th, 2020

What's new in the new DSM?

The new DSM Sketch plugin has been updated to include accessibility enhancements.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.17
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.40

August 17th, 2020

What's new in the new DSM?

DSM now supports adding missing fonts so text style samples in Foundations are rendered correctly. With this enhancement, editors can ensure viewers see the correct text style samples, even if the needed custom fonts are not installed on the viewers' local machines.

August 12th, 2020

What’s fixed in Legacy DSM?

Hotfix here! Get your hotfix! 

• What a drag: If you updated to Sketch version 68 (released yesterday, August 11th) and then began having trouble dragging icons from the Legacy DSM grid, this hotfix release (Legacy DSM version 1.1.40) should solve the issue.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM plugin at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.16
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.40

August 10th, 2020

What’s new in the new DSM?

Check out the latest way to work with symbols in the new DSM:

• Iconic documentation: You can now add symbols from your Sketch library to the Icons category in the Foundations section of your DSM site. When you add icons, logos, or illustrations to the Icons category, viewers of your DSM site will be able to download these items as SVGs.
  
  To take advantage of this feature, you'll need to use version 0.6.15 (or later) of the DSM Sketch plugin. As always, we recommend updating to the newest version—0.6.16 at the time of publication.

  

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM tool at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.16
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.39

August 5th, 2020

Grab a quick fix!

What’s fixed in the new DSM?

The latest release for the new DSM, version 0.6.16, includes a single fix:

• Library upload blocker: You should now be able to upload libraries to the new DSM without encountering an error, including if you previously couldn't due to certain proxy settings that were causing DSM to throw an upload error.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM tool at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.16
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.38

July 14th, 2020

Pics or didn't happen! 

What’s new in the new DSM?

With the latest DSM release, you can record proof of design systems past—for posterity's sake or, just a tad more realistically, for reference during future projects:

• Archival footage: As a DSM editor, now you can archive your older design systems—whether created in the new DSM or in legacy DSM—as read-only versions for both the web and Sketch plugin. To archive (or later restore) a design system, open DSM on the web, navigate to your Design systems list, click the More menu (•••) at the top right of the system you want to archive, and then click Archive (or Restore).
  

  

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM tool at the time of publication:

• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.12
• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.38

July 6th, 2020

Looking for documentation on a part of your design system? The new DSM has you covered! 

What’s new or improved in the new DSM?

This release introduces a must-have time saver:

• Search party: Now you can search your design system documentation for the specific element you need. To use the search feature, open the design system on the web, and then click the search icon () in the upper-right corner. The new DSM search engine currently indexes your documented symbols, colors, text styles, and component names.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM tool at the time of publication:

• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.37
• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.11

June 29th, 2020

Save time by using existing DSM systems in the new DSM!

What’s new or improved in the new DSM?

Creating design systems from scratch is no problem with DSM, but now you can also start with existing DSM content:

• Import legacy DSM content: You can forget about manually recreating your design system content in the new DSM! Now you can import all your documentation and Sketch data from legacy DSM. You can even copy over any live component documentation you created in Storybook! Check out the details: Importing Legacy DSM to the New DSM
• Duplicate new DSM design systems: Need to create a clone of a design system? Now you can create full duplicates of design systems you built in the new DSM, just like you can with legacy DSM on the web.

Current versions

Here are the version numbers for each DSM tool at the time of publication:

• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.37
• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.11

June 17th, 2020

Cut out the guess work with easy-access documentation tabs for every component!

What’s new or improved in the new DSM?

The latest release of the new DSM includes a big win for all you detail-oriented designers and devs out there, plus a couple of time-savers:

• Documentation tabs: Catalog important details for designers and developers with the newly added documentation tabs on components. To ensure that DSM meets your team's specific documentation standards, you can add and name tabs as needed:
  

  

• Toggle plugin visibility: Now when you enable or disable visibility of DSM via the Sketch Plugins menu, the change will happen immediately. Previously, toggling visibility required a Sketch restart to take effect.
• Improved upload performance: You may notice performance improvements when uploading files, especially if uploading larger files.

What’s new in legacy DSM?

• Export assets to Sketch file: Now you can export your legacy DSM assets to a Sketch file. Editors can access this from the design system dropdown in the top left corner of the legacy DSM plugin.
  
  Tip: As part of our upcoming import workflow improvements, soon you will also be able to upload the Sketch file with your exported assets to design systems on the new DSM!

Version changes

The version numbers for each DSM tool was updated with this release:

• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.37
• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.11

May 5th, 2020

What’s new or improved in DSM?

Say hello to the new InVision DSM, built for collaborative teams. Available in Early Access!

From build and beyond, it takes a team of collaborators to make a design system succeed. That’s why we've redesigned InVision DSM with an even deeper appreciation of design system makers and users.

Here's what to expect from the new DSM:

• Sharing and versioning: Use the new DSM plugin to distribute and version your Sketch Libraries as part of a comprehensive design system.
• Rich documentation: Tie all aspects of your design system together with DSM's revamped, rich documentation site that lets you centralize and showcase the system.

You'll also notice a number of improvements to DSM, including these:

• Familiar ground: When working in Inspect mode, links to DSM documentation now open the same design system version used in the prototype.
• Custom font support: Now when you publish Storybook entries that include custom fonts, those fonts will appear in DSM as expected.

Version changes

The version numbers for each DSM tool was updated with this release:

• Legacy Design System Manager: version 1.1.32
• New Design System Manager: version 0.6.4