The automatic fabrication of dental restorations is becoming more and more reality. Some main advances are the contact-free optical impression and the computer-based design of the occlusal and outer surface of teeth. However, these new technologies have to compete with conventional processes and therefore should offer both at least a comparable quality and a high automation to save time. Especially, the accuracy of the impression should not be affected negatively by optical measurement devices. As there exists little knowledge about this behaviour, we established a new method to assess the full three-dimensional precision and accuracy. The results of these investigations will be presented. A further main aspect of CAD/CAM-methods is the calculation and design of functional surfaces of the restorations. Collecting a large number of carious-free and intact tooth surfaces, new computer methods allow the extraction of feature points and structures, which are characteristic both for the special tooth type and individual surrounding like neighbour teeth and antagonists. This knowledge-based information in terms of a fundamental mathematical description of tooth morphologies is called the biogeneric tooth model and can be used for reconstructing the missing tooth surfaces suitable for the individual situation. The model was already introduced successfully for inlay/onlay reconstructions and has now been extended for crown reconstructions. Additionally, procedures using the original, the wax-up or the contralateral tooth morphologies benefit from this model. The background and the features of this new biogeneric method will also be presented.