GoEngineer Blog

This guide applies to anyone using a SOLIDWORKS SolidNetWork License (SNL) server to manage SOLIDWORKS licenses, and it outlines the processes returning a network license that is in a hung state and hence it cannot be returned to the server using the regular process.

A good way to simplify a large SOLIDWORKS assembly is to save it as a part. Doing so will convert the file references into multiple solid (or surface) bodies in the resulting part file’s feature tree.

OK. Chances are if you’ve been around SOLIDWORKS for any significant amount of time, you may have seen some of these SOLIDWORKS Tips before, but I’ll be surprised if more than a handful of seasoned SOLIDWORKS Users have seen all five of these Tips and Tricks. While I’ve shown countless SOLIDWORKS Tips in my time, these five are some of my personal favorites.

Every few releases it’s always a good idea to update your SOLIDWORKS templates to the latest version you and your company are currently using. Being one of the techs on the Technical Support team, we run into the rare occurrence that a part, assembly or drawing seems to have become corrupt.

A “Parallel Installation” of SOLIDWORKS is any time more than one version (i.e. 2011, 2012, 2013, 201X, etc.) of SOLIDWORKS is installed and operating on a single system. This setup does not require additional licenses as both versions operate under the same serial number and the same license runs both installations.

SOLIDWORKS License Manager: all you ever wanted to know about license borrowing and returning. With SOLIDWORKS License Manager, if you are planning on working with SOLIDWORKS products off the network or from a remote location, you can borrow one of your networked licenses for up to 30 days. Read this article to learn how.

If you wear glasses, are color blind, or if you’re giving a presentation in SOLIDWORKS, you might need to make SOLIDWORKS easier to see. The most popular reason that I have run across and one of the reasons behind sharing these SOLIDWORKS tips was that major discoloration adjustment made to the SOLIDWORKS interface in 2016.

Want to spell-check your drawings? Does the SOLIDWORKS Spell Checker think you misspelled your company’s name? Well, here’s how to find it, use it, and add words to the dictionary so that it knows how your company’s name is spelled. With a drawing open, the SOLIDWORKS Spell Checker is located under Tools > Options, as well as in the Annotation toolbar. F7 will start the spell checker too.

 

What is a surface? To understand what a surface is we must understand what a solid is. In a solid body, every edge is a boundary between two faces, which creates a watertight, enclosed volume that can contain mass. So that means that conversely, a surface body will have edges that bound only one face, leaving an open model with an open volume. The edges of a solid will be black while the edges of a surface will be blue. In this blog, we'll go over everything you should know about SOLIDWORKS Surfacing.