I’ve asked this to our VAR a couple times, there’s an SPR (in which I have little faith), and I asked it in old forum, but would like to ask here too. How can we make default behavior to get files by referenced version, not latest?
I know it can be done, but it needs to be selected every time. Unless the user is getting a specific version of the top level file, then get by referenced version is selected; we need that every time.
Also, there are times when latest version is cached, but no reference file dialog, such as opening a file from open file dialog so I don’t think there is an option in that case. But I’ve been wrong a lot.
PDM has a lot “unsolidworks behaviors” (bom, exclude part, etc…)
but with the rule of “a build part” is one part-number,
when the part evolve, all the evolutions must be backwward-compatible.
if not, this has to become a new part, to keep previous (old) assembly using that part alife (with no problem).
example of a plate with 2 holes at each side,
if you add one hole in the center, the part is backward-compatible.
if you remove one of the two holes, the part become a different part.
also, if you considere the approch of “Library file”.
have the lastest reference is always in majority of case the best behavior.
because, if in one library-part you had corrected a false description, or added a “new mounting configuration”.
if you don’t get lastest file, you will not see the good evolution.
and if you work on a machine that has already been build, you have to choose “referenced version”.
I think I follow what you say and I’ve heard that over and over, mostly from VARs. Here’s the kicker that has never been answered for us (which should have have been a warning sign to us), latest versions aren’t always the “Good evolution” they could be pending changes that have not yet been implemented or even approved. Usually the VAR jumps right over to well don’t show working versions to all the users. It’s the design engineers that are needing to decide if they use new or as referenced, they need to see all versions.
I’ll try to be clear and concise, it’s hard for me to explain so that others understand, but I’ll try. One user is working on a new product that has a lot of common parts in it and they are about to release their top level assembly and drawing for review. At the same time some of those common parts are somewhere along the revision process for an entirely separate ECR, clearly we don’t want to use the latest versions of those files as those changes are not implemented. As referenced is the safer option as it won’t be automatically trying to implement unreleased versions.
Maybe better if I say, this isn’t a case of I want to use and old version of x on assembly A for ever while assembly B uses latest. Rather this is more, we shouldn’t be releasing stuff that shows sub components at newer versions that shouldn’t be used yet.
Does that make any sense or am I speaking gibberish?
Perfect sense and one of the weak areas of PDM. There isn’t an easy way to do this and we just end up living with the risk as we have the setting “Always works with latest” set. Ideally we need a “As Released” button option. Then pick which parts we want to set to Inwork and revise. Maybe an option to load latest release:
As Built
As Built Release
As Latest
As Latest Release
I’ve put in an enhancement request many moons ago.
Since Reference Dialog settings was mentioned by jcapriotti I’ll just paste what ours has been for the Design group. This has been working ok I think. The high lighted setting was the last one I cleared out a couple months ago, I was severely warned about having that not checked by our VAR but it seems to be helping, at least not hindering.
I should mention the Solidworks PDM Add-in is a big help here as it adds clarity of local version and referenced version. Getting everyone to actually use it and set up those columns is another obstacle. I found the reg key for those settings and I’ve tested on my own machines exporting and importing it but I haven’t worked up the nerve to push it out yet.
I want to use that setting but there was too much risk with hundreds of users opening files and not getting the latest and instead opening the last cached version. In that mode I really wish it would prompt the user for which version instead of relying on the user to right click and pick…most user double click.
Might take a custom add-in at this point to get the needed functionality…however we are moving to Windchill so I’ve already got my .net tied up in that migration.
Be careful about pushing out column settings in a registry file. PDM keeps some user column set customization details in the database and applies it to a client at login which would update the client registry settings and overwrite settings you may have tried to set.
Diaval , How in the wide world did you find those SPR numbers?!
I “Voted” for a couple of them in my ERs in customer portal, the first number I could not find. Submitted support case to VAR asking to be added to the last two and a description of the 471886.
Do you know the difference between a customer using the “Vote For” an SPR from EH system in the customer portal and when the VAR adds a customer to an SPR?
I have had several questions/issues this week concerning versions. A couple were because the reviewer failed to do a “Get Referenced” so they had a mix of old versions and latest that were newer than what should be used in the drawing and model being approved. It’s nice to be able to have all the version history at our fingertips, but it’s a tough concept to fully understand how it impacts daily tasks.
Hey so sorry but I had a typo in that first number. It should be 417886. I have a bit of mild dyslexia with longer number strings and sometimes transpose the numbers without realizing it.
I am familiar with this issue in PDM so knew that there were a few enhancement requests related to allowing Get to use reference versions as default.
Do you know the difference between a customer using the “Vote For” an SPR from EH system in the customer portal and when the VAR adds a customer to an SPR?
If I understand this correctly, enhancement requests are handled a bit differently than bugs by SolidWorks. Customers can directly add themselves to enhancement requests to ask for new features. But when an issue is considered a bug, the customer has to go through their VAR as the first point of service to be added to a bug SPR. I wasn’t sure if your VAR could push a bit harder on any of the enhancements though. Might not hurt to ask.
I have had several questions/issues this week concerning versions. A couple were because the reviewer failed to do a “Get Referenced” so they had a mix of old versions and latest that were newer than what should be used in the drawing and model being approved. It’s nice to be able to have all the version history at our fingertips, but it’s a tough concept to fully understand how it impacts daily tasks.
This is always a bit of a tricky issue. Because PDM is designed to use a workflow of continuous development, it can be a bit difficult implementing processes that will ensure that newer, unreleased versions of parts don’t get added to assemblies and drawings, while still allowing the same developers read/write access to work on development of newer versions/revisions of parts and subassemblies.
Some user training will always be needed around ensuring to get Referenced versions of any references when starting work on a change. It’s also good to ensure the State column is visible on the check in dialog so that the user can evaluate any reference that is not in an approved state to ensure they are using the correct version of that file instead of a newer, unreleased version.
With Branching and Merging in PDM Pro, it is also possible to do development on a separate copy of the files to prevent references from using the wrong versions of the approved files. Then when the development work is completed, the source file can be moved to a workflow state for merging and re-released as the new approved version/revision.
I am really interested in hearing how others manage this issue of ensuring references to approved versions don’t accidently get updated to use a version currently under development.
Thanks for those numbers, however you found them.
Glad I could help. The more customers who complain about this issue, the better chance we have at pushing SolidWorks to implement the enhancement.
We always work with “Latest”. We have just been risking it for years. Normally it’s not an issue as a new design would get new part/assy numbers. Every once in a while it comes up and we just have to work around it.
I’ve been on SolidWorks for years about needing a way to get “Latest Release”. Of course, you still need a way get latest Release on most files but not on some others you’re revising. Branching looks like it could be a solution however we are moving to Windchill so little dev work is being done on PDM except to make small changes. Windchill does have some functionality around getting latest versions in a certain states but it’s UI is like deciphering hieroglyphs without a Rosetta stone.
I might have found how to turn off automatically get latest while I was working on another task. Not saying I’m ready to check this box just yet, but it is in my mind to test behavior. If this were checked for the Solidworks file types then a PDM addin hook to the EdmCmd_PreGet command (I’m not seeing a PreOpen command) that would get referenced files by version.
This could also be a big help to us in the cases where there are dozens of drawings using some “optional” part. In that case it takes several minutes for PDM to get all the refs because it gets all the drawing nodes, then gets every part in all those drawings as well.
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Interesting way to address it. I would’ve hoped that the API would let you do this without going to that setting.
Does the Get call not let you exclude getting the references? In the UI you can manually unselect the references. Then before/after in the API, get the reference list and get the “Released” version of each.
I have not been able to find any way to prevent the getting of latest when there is no copy of the needed file in local cache. The thing with this setting is it probably only has effect on right click Open specifically, it still does not cover all the other ways a file will be opened by SW, especially when SW is the default program. Double click, click a link in an email notification, etc.
Or you’re saying forget that setting because the PreGet hook will be called EVERY TIME the get command is ran. I wasn’t thinking of that. Which could cause the need for some logic to make sure its less hindrance then help. I really only want to have an affect when the files are gotten “silently” as in open an assembly and you don’t have local cache. In that case there’s no ref file dialog, it just does it. In the case where the ref file dialog does show up I want it to default to get by referenced. Oh I see, you’re saying before any get, even if the user double clicks an assembly file in vault view, then the get command is fired, my add-in would display the RFD and since I displayed it I could set default behavior of get by referenced, Then, once all the files are cached the get command that fired PreGet would continue but there would already be local copies of everything so it would take no action. I wonder if that would work. Thanks rubber duck!
With Branching and Merging in PDM Pro, it is also possible to do development on a separate copy of the files to prevent references from using the wrong versions of the approved files. Then when the development work is completed, the source file can be moved to a workflow state for merging and re-released as the new approved version/revision.
So branching automagically only takes the latest released version?
How does it behave, when two or more individual changes are made to the same assembly? Does the merge work fine in this case? Diaval
