Javelin / TriMech Author
Andrew Lidstone, CSWE
How to Create and Deploy SOLIDWORKS PDM Vault Views
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on July 20, 2022
Whether deploying to just a few, or to hundreds of users, a properly set up SOLIDWORKS PDM Vault View is crucial. Learn how to set up Vault Views.
SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional 2022 System Recommendations
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on January 11, 2022
Here is an overview of our current recommended SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional 2022 system specifications and requirements. While the following recommendations are intended as a general overview for most SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional vaults, determining proper server and client hardware is one of the first steps that…
Controlling DraftSight License Timeout Using an Administrative Profile
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on January 10, 2022
Ensuring that idle licenses are returned to the license pool after a defined amount of time is typically an essential aspect of network license management. For most SOLIDWORKS software, this timeout period is defined in the Options file of the SolidNetWork License Manager, however for…
Controlling the License Timeout in DraftSight Enterprise
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on July 12, 2021
When managing network licenses of SOLIDWORKS software, you may want to ensure that a license is returned to the pool after a user has been idle for a certain amount of time. By default, for most SOLIDWORKS software the license will be returned once a…
Microsoft SQL Licensing for SOLIDWORKS PDM FAQs
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on March 1, 2021
SOLIDWORKS PDM, SOLIDWORKS Manage and SOLIDWORKS Electrical software all rely on databases hosted by Microsoft SQL Server software to operate. The Microsoft SQL Server software is licensed separately from your SOLIDWORKS software, so it is your responsibility to ensure that you have the correct licensing…
SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional 2021 System Recommendations
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on November 17, 2020
Here is an overview of our current recommended SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional 2021 system specifications and requirements. While the following recommendations are intended as a general overview for most SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional vaults, determining proper server and client hardware is one of the first steps that…
SOLIDWORKS PDM Upgrade Checklist
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on October 29, 2020
If you are planning on upgrading to the latest release of PDM then make sure you follow our SOLIDWORKS PDM Upgrade Checklist below: NOTE: Upgrading PDM carries some risk. It’s your company’s IP contained in your vault. Javelin can perform your upgrade for you to…
How to access SolidPractices SOLIDWORKS Guides through MySolidWorks
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on July 14, 2020
SOLIDWORKS users with an active software subscription now have access to a powerful library of SolidPractices best practice documents available through their my.solidworks.com account. There are currently over two dozen SolidPractices Guides available for download in the Support section of MySolidWorks. These guides have been…
Installing SOLIDWORKS without the Toolbox Data
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on July 13, 2020
Starting with SOLIDWORKS 2020, when deploying SOLIDWORKS using an Administrative Image, you can choose not to install the SOLIDWORKS Toolbox data files. This is useful if your SOLIDWORKS Toolbox is located in a central location such as the SOLIDWORKS PDM Vault or network drive. Previously,…
Customizing the SOLIDWORKS Taskpane Tabs
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on June 24, 2020
The SOLIDWORKS Taskpane provides access to a number of powerful tools, including SOLIDWORKS Toolbox, Custom Properties, the SOLIDWORKS PDM Add In (if installed) and the 3DEXPERIENCE connector. Starting with SOLIDWORKS 2019, this area of the user interface can be easily customized by either right clicking…
This using SOLIDWORKS PDM remotely article is part of a series aimed at helping you to continue working during the impacts caused by COVID-19. For more information related to SOLIDWORKS 3D CAD software licensing options during this time, please see the comprehensive article from my…
SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional 2020 Server Hardware Recommendations
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on February 19, 2020
Article co-authored by Samir Lohmann on Here is an overview of our current recommended SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional 2020 Server hardware recommendations. While the following recommendations are intended as a general overview for most SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional vaults, determining proper server and client hardware is one…
How to attach to a different SOLIDWORKS PDM Archive Server Location
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on February 12, 2020
Whether its because the SOLIDWORKS PDM archives have been migrated to a new server, or you are working in a different office than usual and need to connect through a replicated Archive Server, it may be necessary to modify which Archive Server your PDM Vault…
Changing the SOLIDWORKS PDM License Server
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on February 5, 2020
Changing the computer that is used as the SOLIDWORKS PDM License Server is actually very easy and can be accomplished quickly in a single step, even if there are many users or multiple vaults involved. On any client computer, open the PDM Administration console and…
Are you having issues after upgrading SOLIDWORKS PDM Web2?
By Andrew Lidstone, CSWE on January 30, 2020
Following an upgrade of SOLIDWORKS PDM Professional, you may encounter some odd behavior when accessing the vault through Web2. If you see any of these symptoms, you may have missed one final step in the upgrade process: Login page hanging indefinitely Being able to login…