Speak to us for expert advice on SOLIDWORKS PDM Upgrade
Are you looking for a SOLIDWORKS PDM upgrade guide? Here are the steps that will be helpful during the upgrade process
Note: The steps mentioned here might have to be modified based on your PDM installation and data model. Contact us if you have any queries.
Installation files can be downloaded from the SOLIDWORKS customer portal.
It is always best practice to first upgrade the Sandbox environment and test the upgraded Sandbox environment before performing the upgrade on the Production environment. The sandbox environment should be similar to the Production environment when it comes to setup.
License server first needs to be upgraded so that licenses are available for the upgrade process on Sandbox. The version of the license server can be higher than the SOLIDWORKS product. So same license server can be used for the Production environment as well. There will be some downtime involved during the upgrade. So plan it not to affect production activities.
Before the upgrade is started if the toolbox is being maintained in SOLIDWORKS, check-out toolbox folders. If the toolbox is not checkout then PDM Client needs to be upgraded first and then the toolbox needs to be checked out before upgrading SOLIDWORKS. If the toolbox is not checked out then it will not be upgraded and additional effort will be required to upgrade the toolbox.
Upgrade servers. Launch the installer and select the “Upgrade SOLIDWORKS PDM Server” option. On the next page, SOLIDWORKS Installer will ask for SQL Server credentials. So have them ready.
SOLIDWORKS & SOLIDWORKS PDM Client needs to be upgraded\installed on a client where testing needs to be done. Note: two versions of SOLIDWORKS PDM Client cannot exist on a computer. So don’t use a client that is being used for production activities
It is always a good practice to upgrade add-ins. The old version of add-ins work with the new version of PDM but sometimes they throw unexpected exceptions. Also, there will be an improvement in the APIs in the new version of SOLIDWORKS PDM.
Testing is one of the important activities. Test the regularly used functionalities like workflows, check-in, check-out, and any other custom actions. Not always we can expect functionality to work as expected after the upgrade. After testing if any errors are encountered, fix them and note them down to do the same changes during production upgrade.
Take back up of SOLIDWORKS PDM database, PDM Archive server settings. If you are having replicated servers then take a backup of Archive server settings on all servers.
Lessons learned during the upgrading of the sandbox environment need to be applied at relevant steps.
Before upgrading check out the toolbox on a client.
Upgrade all servers. Don’t forget to upgrade replicated servers.
It is recommended to upgrade servers during non-working hours and ensure that there sufficient time to roll-back in case of unexpected problems.
Upgrade SOLIDWORKS PDM Client and SOLIDWORKS on all clients.
Upgrade add-ins
Check-in toolbox.
Speak to us for expert advice on SOLIDWORKS PDM Upgrade
Conact us to find out more about our CAD automation services
Automation of work in CAD softwares
We are having expertise in automation of work in following CAD softwares
- Siemens NX usign NXOPen
- It is possible to export material properties also
- Multiple configurations are also taken care of
- List only part files used in assembly at all levels
CAD Automation use cases
- Customization of UGClone in NX to fit naming needs. Out of the box UGClone in NX comes with naming support for newly generated files. But the naming options provided by UGClone are not sufficient always. We extend functionality provided by UGClone to fit naming needs of company
- An application that can automatically create features by a button click
- Automatic generation of PDF for drawings based on requirement by a button click
Conact us to find out more about our CAD automation services
Easy to set up and also comes with advanced functionality to handle complex scenarios
- Data is transferred automatically by simple click of a button
- Real time Dynamics data preview inside SOLIDWORKS
- Compare SOLIDWORKS BOM with Dynamics BOM
- Advanced data modification using custom script before sending data to Dynamics Navision or Business Central
- See Item information in a task pane in SOLIDWORKS
- See ERP BOM information in a task pane inside SOLIDWORKS
- Supports integration with SOLIDWORKS PDM also
- Possibility to create Assembly BOM or Production BOM
- Supports files with multiple configurations also
- Create new files using number series in Dynamics Navision or Business Central
- If BOM Version are being used then it is possible to compare SOLIDWORKS BOM with old versions of ERP BOM
- Keep track of data transfer between PDM and ERP using our PDM2ERP reporting tool
- Preview Dynamics Navision (Dynamics Business Central) BOM inside SOLIDWORKS PDM
- It is possible to preview old versions of Bill of Materials also if BOM versions are being used in Navision or Business Central
- It is possible to choose configurations also if configurations are being used
- It is possible to modify what ERP BOM columns one wants to see inside the SOLIDWORKS preview
- Column settings can be saved for future use
- Preview Dynamics Navision (Dynamics Business Central) item properties inside SOLIDWORKS.
- Data are seen in real-time ERP data
- This also helps to identify if an item exists in Dynamics Business Central or Dynamics Navision
- Item properties that one wants to see in SOLIDWORKS preview can be modified based on the requirement
- Preview settings can be saved so that one need not adjust the properties one wants to see every time
- Compare Dynamics NAV (Dynamics Business Central) BOM with SOLIDWORKS BOM
- It is possible to compare SOLIDWORKS BOM with old ERP BOM if BOM versions are being used in Dynamics Navision or Business Central
- Comparison also shows differences in item properties of first level children.
- This functionality is very useful when one wants to see what changes have been done in SOLIDWORKS since data has been sent last to ERP
- Using the PDM2ERP tool it is possible to keep track of data transferred to ERP from PDM
- It is possible to see how many items have been created or updated during a period of time
- It is possible to see which user has created or updated how many items during a period of time
- Exports reports to excel for further analysis
- Inside the log viewer, it is possible to see old logs for error analysis
- Inside the process list one can see details of old processes
Easy to set up and also comes with advanced functionality to handle complex scenarios
Data translation is a complex job. Even after using automated tools a lot of manual effort goes into ensuring that data translated is ready for production use. We automate this process using our inbuilt tools to reduce the time required for manual effort and ensure that the translated data is production-ready in a relatively short duration.
Below are the major features of Inventor to SOLIDWORKS translation. Apart from these, it is also possible to support other custom requirements that you have
- Production-ready files
- Inventor part features are translated to SOLIDWORKS part features
- SOLIDWORKS assemblies will be created correctly as per Inventor assembly
- Assemblies are translated with assembly mates.
- Positional representations in Inventor assembly are translated to SOLIDWORKS configurations
- Inventor explosions are translated to SOLIDWORKS
- Translated SOLIDWORKS drawings are associative to translated 3D models
- Drawing dimensions are migrated
- Drawing views are migrated
- Drawing annotations like surface finish symbol, feature control frame, datum target and balloons are migrated
- Custom properties and Material information are migrated
- Name mapping is supported. It is possible to give different names to translated SOLIDWORKS files
Below are the images of some of the translated files
Inventor assembly with mates
SOLIDWORKS assembly with mates
Inventor assembly exploded view
SOLIDWORKS assembly exploded view
Inventor part
SOLIDWORKS part
Inventor detail drawing
SOLIDWORKS detail drawing
Inventor exploded view drawing
SOLIDWORKS exploded view drawing
Data translation is a complex job. Even after using automated tools a lot of manual effort goes into ensuring that data translated is ready for production use. We automate this process using our inbuilt tools to reduce the time required for manual effort and ensure that the translated data is production-ready in a relatively short duration.
Contact us to know more about Solid Edge to SOLIDWORKS translation
CAD translation is a complex process. Even after using an automatic translator, manual effort will be required to ensure translated files are production-ready. We have in-house tools that not only translate files but also provide assistance in verifying translated files. Using our expertise we ensure that translated files are ready for production. Following are the features of this Solid Edge to SOLIDWORKS translation service
- Production-ready files
- Solid Edge part features are translated to SOLIDWORKS part features
- Sheet metal Features are also translated. But they are partially supported now
- Components in SOLIDWORKS assemblies will be positioned correctly as per Solid Edge assembly
- Assembly mates are created in SOLIDWORKS assemblies based on Solid Edge assembly constraints
- Solid Edge assembly configurations are converted to SOLIDWORKS display states
- Solid Edge assembly explosions are converted to SOLIDWORKS explosions (Explosions are created that are required for drawings. Others will be created based on requirement)
- Family of assemblies are translated to SOLIDWORKS configurations
- Drawings will be converted with associativity to 3D models
- Drawing sheets of all sizes are supported
- Drawing views are created in SOLIDWORKS exactly as in Solid Edge
- Dimensions are created in SOLIDWORKS drawings with associativity to 3D models
- Other annotations like Surface finish symbol, Datum targets, Feature control frames, Notes, balloons are also converted. Grouping information is not obtained
We provide Soid Edge to SOLIDWORKS conversion as service also. Service works as follows
