A new EPDM system is being implemented and I wish for it to follow a very specific workflow. When the file undergoes a transition from "State A" to "State B" I want the file to be moved from its current folder "Folder 1" to a new folder "Folder 2". Is there anyway this can be done on EPDM?
Could you post a link to SolidWorks Knowledge Base because I can't seem to find it and am not sure if I have access to it
Hi Matthew to access the Knowledge Base you need to have a SolidWorks Customer Portal account, go the link here, and follow the process to create one:
You can try to use Dispatch with Shell Execute function with a system command like xcopy.
Do you mean create an API code using that method?
No, I'm talking about using the Dispatch Actions in Administration where you can create a script to move files when are entered in a specified state. Look at Dispatch chapter in Administration Guide. .
Yes, via the API. However, this process is fraught with danger, since moving files that may be open in SOLIDWORKS will cause problems. You really have to put a lot of defensive measures in place (in the code or in your process) to ensure that the files can actually be moved before you move them.
Agreed with Jim. My spider sense is screaming no!!
Moving Solidworks Files within ePDM is just not advised. Any Plan B that involves keeping files in place is a far better situation.
Well, it's tricky but not impossible. I wrote an add-in to match our pre-EPDM processes. It involves renaming and moving model files and their associated drawings (generating PDFs along the way) when they are assigned part numbers in our MRP system. This can be done either from outside or inside SolidWorks and the files can be open in SW. It works, but like I said above there is a lot of defensive coding to account for users doing things you wouldn't expect. On occassion, SW or EPDM will hiccup and I have to clean up some stuff manually as admin, but overall, with thousands of part numbers having gone through the process, it works.
Well I would have thought that moving files within EPDM (AS LONG as they are checked in) is one of the main benefits of using EPDM, as it updates the file references.
Hi Matthew, if you have access to the SolidWorks Knowledge Base, check out Solution S-057734
Moving a file as a file changes state is not possible out of the box, but is possible through the EPDM API. The solution referenced above, has an API example from SolidWorks on how to achieve this.
Thanks
Prasad