My boss asked me if it's possible make SW show/tell him what has changed from file to file. Meaning if I send him a file today where I change a radius, is there a way for him to know? I told him I could make the change part a different color but he's looking for something more automatic. Does anything like this exist in SW?
Here we track the changes manually, meaning if you make a change then either mark the change in the dimension or a note.
I know but my boss is trying to find a way to track them. His last attempt was Gitlab.
There's a few tools built in;
So Dave this would allow someone to compare 2 file? Would both parties have to have a SW seat?
Personally I've used comments (limited notes) and configurations (probably not the best way) to track a kind of design history for a part file. My guess is that something PDM-like would be more robust for tracking a full design history.
Depending on what features are changing, maybe a design table would make sense to use? I know for simpler modifications, they're fairly straight forward, but I don't have experience with using them beyond basic configurations for a simple part or assembly.
If you use SolidWorks PDM, you can enter comments at check-in/change state, and then you can view the history of a part/assembly/drawing:
Think old school. Add a revision table and put your revision in it. It'll be there forever, you only have one file, and a human being had to make a conscious decision to do it. Their name will be on it forever and they will be the one you ask as to why they made the revision if need be.
SOLIDWORKS 2019 Tutorial - Markup Feature