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Managing 2 Vaults, PDM 2016 & 2018

Question asked by Mac Readhead on Jun 15, 2018
Latest reply on Jun 19, 2018 by Mac Readhead

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Good Morning Forum:

We have been using the same vault since ~2009 and it has some backend issues, so we are planning on creating an entirely new 2018 vault/Archive server/SQL backend. The current vault is 2016 and our SolidWorks installs are 2015/2016. I've got a few questions about migration of data and administration of 2 vault versions. Once the 2018 vault is running smoothly we plan on decommissioning the 2016, but for the transition period, I'd like to have a few things ironed out.

Exporting some of the filecards/variables/Workflows to the new Vault. - Will there be an issue exporting a cex from 2016 and importing in 2018?
Transferring current vault files to new vault. - Can we move them to a non-vault location, and then import into a new vault while maintaining metadata & references(assuming variable names are the same)?
Can the 2018 Administration tool access and administrate a 2018 and 2016 vault?
Will a desktop with the 2018 PDM client be able to access a vault running on a 2016 backend?

I'm hoping that I will not have to upgrade the old vault to 2018 during this process, but I have a feeling that It might be required.

**I should mention I know that SW2015 is not officially supported for a 2018 PDM client. It will be phased out as well.

Martin Solem Jun 19, 2018 3:21 AM

Correct Answer

Hi,

Throwing in some support for what Michael Dekoning is saying.

Exporting some of the filecards/variables/Workflows to the new Vault. - Will there be an issue exporting a cex from 2016 and importing in 2018?

Probably not. I've done this on a few occasions and it has always worked when going from older to newer version. (Not always successful the other way around.)

Transferring current vault files to new vault. - Can we move them to a non-vault location, and then import into a new vault while maintaining metadata & references(assuming variable names are the same)?

When you do this you can move directly from one vault to another, or you can use a temporary storage area. The important thing is to maintain the folder structure for all references. Also, when you are done, break the old reference path by uninstalling the old vault view or rename a top-level folder to "xxxx_old" or something similar, otherwise SOLIDWORKS is going to find those files and open them. Make sure you test this and understand what is going on.

Can the 2018 Administration tool access and administrate a 2018 and 2016 vault?

No.

Will a desktop with the 2018 PDM client be able to access a vault running on a 2016 backend?

No.

When we first started using PDM Standard, we were using a vault server on 2018 and all the clients were on 2017.
It may not have been officially supported, but it certainly worked!

This doesn't work, but it may appear so if you are using SOLIDWORKS 2017 and SOLIDWORKS PDM Client 2018 on the same computer. PDM has backwards compatibility for SOLIDWORKS files and the PDM Add-in for SOLIDWORKS.

Btw, i also tried to import the CEX file you attached, and it looked fine in my 2018 SP3 vault.

Is the old vault beyond moving, upgrading and reconfiguration to adjust to your current department/company's way of handling files and processes? While i too like the idea of starting fresh, I would still go a long way to keep the old vault, keeping history, and everything that has worked fine up until now. Importing a large amount of data into a new vault is a lot of work

Martin

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Michael Dekoning Jun 15, 2018 2:38 PM

I'm almost positive you'll need to upgrade to 2018 before doing any of this. Clients and admin tool must be on the same version.

Of possible you should upgrade your 2016 system to 2018 and move the server components. There is information on how to do this on the PDM installation guide.

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Mac Readhead @ Michael Dekoning on Jun 18, 2018 9:23 AM

I had a feeling that I was going to be required to do this. I was just hoping there was a way to leave it alone for now.

Since I wont need the existing files to be ready in the new vault initially, have you ever tried importing just the cex file from an older version? I've attached a 2016 pdm cex export if you're willing to try importing into a 2018 sandbox vault. It just has a file card and a few typical variables. I'd love to know if that is possible.

Attachments

Administrative Export File-2016-MR.cex.zip3.6 KB

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John Wayman @ Mac Readhead on Jun 18, 2018 9:42 AM

When we first started using PDM Standard, we were using a vault server on 2018 and all the clients were on 2017.

It may not have been officially supported, but it certainly worked!

I don't know whether it would have worked with the server 2 releases away from the clients.

We're on 2018 server and client now, but we had no problems before.

John

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Michael Dekoning @ John Wayman on Jun 18, 2018 7:58 PM

That's never worked for us on PDM Professional (even service packs used to have to be the same). I think it's definitely unsupported.

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Nick Cradock @ Michael Dekoning on Jun 18, 2018 8:14 PM

i think this was introduced either 2017 or 2016 sp5 i cant remember,

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Michael Dekoning @ Nick Cradock on Jun 18, 2018 8:21 PM

Yes differing service packs between server and client components is now supported, but not different versions to my knowledge.

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Martin Solem Jun 19, 2018 3:21 AM

Hi,

Throwing in some support for what Michael Dekoning is saying.

Exporting some of the filecards/variables/Workflows to the new Vault. - Will there be an issue exporting a cex from 2016 and importing in 2018?

Probably not. I've done this on a few occasions and it has always worked when going from older to newer version. (Not always successful the other way around.)

Transferring current vault files to new vault. - Can we move them to a non-vault location, and then import into a new vault while maintaining metadata & references(assuming variable names are the same)?

Can the 2018 Administration tool access and administrate a 2018 and 2016 vault?

No.

Will a desktop with the 2018 PDM client be able to access a vault running on a 2016 backend?

No.

When we first started using PDM Standard, we were using a vault server on 2018 and all the clients were on 2017.
It may not have been officially supported, but it certainly worked!

Btw, i also tried to import the CEX file you attached, and it looked fine in my 2018 SP3 vault.

Martin

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Mac Readhead @ Martin Solem on Jun 19, 2018 7:56 AM

Good Morning Martem:

Thanks for the fantastic answer!

The reason we're starting fresh is we're joining our ways of doing work with our parent companies' to better fit their system. Almost all of the old links will be irrelevant, if not damaging to the new system if it went through our new workflow. Previously there was intent to use a workflow but it never managed to happen, so there's tens of thousands(almost 4TB) of files sitting at WIP.

We've toyed with the idea of keeping the old vault around, and simply having access to 2, but I don't want anyone to accidentally be using the old vault's resources, dated as they are. Most of our work is "one and done" custom, so we rarely need to access previous work, nor would we be able to utilize it with our top down design approach. We'd likely have the old data as an archive with the same folder structure.

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8 Replies

Michael Dekoning Jun 15, 2018 2:38 PM
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I'm almost positive you'll need to upgrade to 2018 before doing any of this. Clients and admin tool must be on the same version.
Of possible you should upgrade your 2016 system to 2018 and move the server components. There is information on how to do this on the PDM installation guide.
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- Mac Readhead @ Michael Dekoning on Jun 18, 2018 9:23 AM
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  I had a feeling that I was going to be required to do this. I was just hoping there was a way to leave it alone for now.
  
  Since I wont need the existing files to be ready in the new vault initially, have you ever tried importing just the cex file from an older version? I've attached a 2016 pdm cex export if you're willing to try importing into a 2018 sandbox vault. It just has a file card and a few typical variables. I'd love to know if that is possible.
  Attachments
  - Administrative Export File-2016-MR.cex.zip3.6 KB
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  - John Wayman @ Mac Readhead on Jun 18, 2018 9:42 AM
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    When we first started using PDM Standard, we were using a vault server on 2018 and all the clients were on 2017.
    It may not have been officially supported, but it certainly worked!
    I don't know whether it would have worked with the server 2 releases away from the clients.
    
    We're on 2018 server and client now, but we had no problems before.
    
    John
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    - Michael Dekoning @ John Wayman on Jun 18, 2018 7:58 PM
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      That's never worked for us on PDM Professional (even service packs used to have to be the same). I think it's definitely unsupported.
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      - Nick Cradock @ Michael Dekoning on Jun 18, 2018 8:14 PM
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        i think this was introduced either 2017 or 2016 sp5 i cant remember,
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        Michael Dekoning @ Nick Cradock on Jun 18, 2018 8:21 PM
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        Yes differing service packs between server and client components is now supported, but not different versions to my knowledge.
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Martin Solem Jun 19, 2018 3:21 AM
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Correct Answer
Hi,

Throwing in some support for what Michael Dekoning is saying.
Exporting some of the filecards/variables/Workflows to the new Vault. - Will there be an issue exporting a cex from 2016 and importing in 2018?
Probably not. I've done this on a few occasions and it has always worked when going from older to newer version. (Not always successful the other way around.)
Transferring current vault files to new vault. - Can we move them to a non-vault location, and then import into a new vault while maintaining metadata & references(assuming variable names are the same)?
When you do this you can move directly from one vault to another, or you can use a temporary storage area. The important thing is to maintain the folder structure for all references. Also, when you are done, break the old reference path by uninstalling the old vault view or rename a top-level folder to "xxxx_old" or something similar, otherwise SOLIDWORKS is going to find those files and open them. Make sure you test this and understand what is going on.
Can the 2018 Administration tool access and administrate a 2018 and 2016 vault?
No.
Will a desktop with the 2018 PDM client be able to access a vault running on a 2016 backend?
No.
When we first started using PDM Standard, we were using a vault server on 2018 and all the clients were on 2017.
It may not have been officially supported, but it certainly worked!
This doesn't work, but it may appear so if you are using SOLIDWORKS 2017 and SOLIDWORKS PDM Client 2018 on the same computer. PDM has backwards compatibility for SOLIDWORKS files and the PDM Add-in for SOLIDWORKS.

Btw, i also tried to import the CEX file you attached, and it looked fine in my 2018 SP3 vault.

Is the old vault beyond moving, upgrading and reconfiguration to adjust to your current department/company's way of handling files and processes? While i too like the idea of starting fresh, I would still go a long way to keep the old vault, keeping history, and everything that has worked fine up until now. Importing a large amount of data into a new vault is a lot of work

BR
Martin
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- Mac Readhead @ Martin Solem on Jun 19, 2018 7:56 AM
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  Good Morning Martem:
  
  Thanks for the fantastic answer!
  The reason we're starting fresh is we're joining our ways of doing work with our parent companies' to better fit their system. Almost all of the old links will be irrelevant, if not damaging to the new system if it went through our new workflow. Previously there was intent to use a workflow but it never managed to happen, so there's tens of thousands(almost 4TB) of files sitting at WIP.
  
  We've toyed with the idea of keeping the old vault around, and simply having access to 2, but I don't want anyone to accidentally be using the old vault's resources, dated as they are. Most of our work is "one and done" custom, so we rarely need to access previous work, nor would we be able to utilize it with our top down design approach. We'd likely have the old data as an archive with the same folder structure.
  Like • Show 1 Like1
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Managing 2 Vaults, PDM 2016 & 2018

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