Installation
- SOLIDWORKS and SW PDM System Requirements
- Preparing for Installation
- How to Download SOLIDWORKS
- SOLIDWORKS Installation Manager (.EXE)
- How to Request a Manual Download for SOLIDWORKS
- How To Order A SOLIDWORKS Media Kit
- Installing – A Complete Overview to Managing a CAD Environment
- SOLIDWORKS Individual Installation
- How to Modify Your SOLIDWORKS Installation
- How to Repair Your SOLIDWORKS Installation
- SOLIDWORKS Activation Wizard: How to Transfer SOLIDWORKS License
- Performing a Clean Uninstall
- How to Quickly Update SOLIDWORKS to a Newer Service Pack
- Install the 3DEXPERIENCE Add-in for SOLIDWORKS
- SOLIDWORKS Network Licensing
- How to Upgrade SolidNetWork License Manager
- Moving from SOLIDWORKS Standalone to Network Licenses
- Adding License to an Existing SolidNetwork License Manager
- Use Options File to Reserve Licenses for Specific Users
- SOLIDWORKS SolidNetWork License Order Guide
- How to Reactivate SOLIDWORKS Network Licenses
- How to Move the SOLIDWORKS SolidNetWork License Manager to a New Server
- SOLIDWORKS SolidNetwork License Manager Overview
- How to Install the SolidNetwork License Manager
SOLIDWORKS Portal
SOLIDWORKS
- SOLIDWORKS Hardware Guide – 2021 Update
- SOLIDWORKS Keyboard Shortcuts
- SOLIDWORKS Copy Settings Wizard
- Accessing Xpress Tools
- How To Tell Who Has a SOLIDWORKS File Open
- How to Use SOLIDWORKS Pack and Go
- SOLIDWORKS Administration Overview
- Rebuild Types and How They Work
- How to Store SOLIDWORKS Templates on the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform
- How to Adjust Annotation Formatting and Spacing
- Understanding SOLIDWORKS Settings and Templates
- How to create SOLIDWORKS Part, Assembly, and Drawing Templates
PDM
- PDM How to Work in Off-line Mode
- Enhancement Requests for PDM Users
- How to Use PDM Move Tree
- How to Use PDM Copy Tree
- PDM - What are Private State Files?
- PDM Search Operators
- How to Set PDM to Details View in Windows File Explorer
- SOLIDWORKS PDM Search Results – Which Configuration’s Variables are Displayed?
- PDM Automatic Login Options
- PDM Administrators: Roles and Responsibilities
- PDM License Type Matrix
- PDM Server Recommendations
- PDM Backup Procedures
- How to Reset Your SOLIDWORKS PDM Admin Password
- How to Control Get Version Commands
- Adding a PDM Vault View with a Windows Azure Active Directory Account
- PDM Major Minor Revisions
- How to Set Revision Manually in PDM
- How to Set Up Revision Tables
- PDM - What are Version Free Variables?
- PDM How to Rollback a File to a Previous Version
- PDM Setting Cache Options Automatically
- How to Change PDM Date Formatting
- How to Delete a PDM User Completely
- How to Reset Web2 Authentication in IIS
- SOLIDWORKS PDM Connectivity Test Tool
- How to Configure the SOLIDWORKS PDM Local HOSTS file to Resolve Server Name
- Show all articles ( 3 ) Collapse Articles
- Create Local Vault View
- How to Delete or Recreate a Local Vault View
- Create Local PDM Vault View Using .cvs File
- How to Change PDM Client License Type after Installation
- PDM File Version Upgrade Tool
- PDM Upgrade Checklist
- How to Upgrade SOLIDWORKS PDM Add-ins
- How to Upgrade SOLIDWORKS Toolbox in PDM
- SOLIDWORKS PDM: Moving Server Components - Checklist
- How to Install SOLIDWORKS PDM Standard
- SOLIDWORKS PDM / Manage Installation Guide (PDF)
- Install Microsoft SQL 2019 for PDM Professional
- How to Install PDM Client Software
Known Solutions
- Windows Firewall Exceptions for SOLIDWORKS Network Based Products
- Why Users Need Local Admin Rights to Install SOLIDWORKS
- How to Run SOLIDWORKS with Administrator Permissions
- Blank SOLIDWORKS Installation Manager - Resolution
- SOLIDWORKS RX - The Ultimate CAD Diagnostic Tool
- SOLIDWORKS Safe Modes
- How to Force SOLIDWORKS to Use Your Graphics Card
- How to Ensure that You are Running a SOLIDWORKS Certified Graphics Card Driver
- Troubleshooting SOLIDWORKS Installation Issues
- Resolution to Common File Location Errors
- Non-Matching Internal ID
- Could not obtain a license for SOLIDWORKS CAM. Invalid (inconsistent) license key
- “The Source Folder Is Not Versioned Properly…” Error when Modifying Serial Number
- “A Newer Version of This Product is Already Installed” Error when Installing SOLIDWORKS
- "Error obtaining License (-85, 147, 0)"
- SOLIDWORKS Search Routine Order
- How to Restore Dismissed SOLIDWORKS Messages
- Viewing SOLIDWORKS Configurations in eDrawings
- How to Modify the Reference/Update Dialog Dismissal Time
- Show all articles ( 4 ) Collapse Articles
Simulation
- Simulation Meshing Guide
- How to Duplicate and Reuse Simulation Study Data
- Setting Up Default Options for SOLIDWORKS Simulation Studies
- Which Type of Elements Should I Use?
- Is SOLIDWORKS Simulation Accurate?
- Getting Started with Simulation
- The Basics of Setting Up a Study in Simulation
- Do I Need Non-linear Simulation?
Adding a PDM Vault View with a Windows Azure Active Directory Account
When running the “View Setup” wizard to setup a PDM vault view (Create a Local Vault View for SOLIDWORKS PDM), you might run into errors such as “No authority could be contacted for authentication.” or “The Archive Server could not open the Windows Registry.” These errors happen if your account can’t feed the correct credentials into the system to complete the vault view setup.
If your account is already an Admin, commonly the error is caused when the account is setup as a Microsoft Azure Active Directory Account (An easy way to tell if your account is setup this way is if you use an email address as your username to log into your Windows profile).
There are a few ways to get around these permission errors:
Option 1: Script the Vault View Setup
• If you have many users that need to have vault views setup and they all experience this problem. It will be beneficial to script the view setup to speed up the process and this can bypass the permissions errors caused by the Microsoft Azure Activate Directory Account. To do this, follow the instructions here: Create PDM Vault View Using Script
Option 2: Run the Vault View Setup as a Different User
• If there is another admin account that isn’t a Microsoft Azure Active Directory Account on your machine, then you can run the setup as a different user. If you don’t have this account setup, continue to Option 3. If you do have another admin account, follow the steps below:
- To run the view setup as a different user, navigate to the “ViewSetup.exe” application. The default location is C:\Program Files\SOLIDWORKS Corp\SOLIDWORKS PDM
- Hold down “Shift” and right click the “ViewSetup.exe” application and select “Run as different user” and log in with the necessary credentials.

3. Follow the typical steps to setup your Vault View Create a Local Vault View for SOLIDWORKS PDM
Option 3: Create a Temporary Local Admin Account and Create the View Setup from that Profile
• To create a temporary local admin account, perform the following steps:
- Open “Computer Management” (Search for it in your Windows Search Bar)
- Expand the “Local Users and Groups” Section and open the “Users” Folder
- Right-click in the blank space and select “New User…”

4. Create the credentials to make the new account

5. Add the user to the Administrator Group by going to the “Groups” Folder and double clicking the “Administrators” Group

6. Click “Add…” and in the dialog box enter the name of the user that you just created and select “Check Names” for it to automatically add the computer name to the front of the username you entered. Click OK to confirm the changes.

7. Now log out of the account and log into the newly created local admin account. In the login page, you will most likely have to add “.\” in front of your username to specify that you are logging into a local account (For example, if the profile that you just created was named “tempAdmin” for the login username you would put “.\tempAdmin”)

8. Follow the regular steps to add the Local Vault View Create a Local Vault View for SOLIDWORKS PDM. Make sure that during setup you select the option to make the local views accessible “For all users on this computer (requires local administrator rights”
9. You can now log back into your regular account and the vault view should be visible. If you want to remove the admin account that you just created, you can go back into the “Computer Management” application and under the Users section delete the new user.
If you are still having errors when setting up the vault view and you purchased your PDM subscription through MLC CAD Systems, feel free to reach out to us and we would be happy to assist and troubleshoot further.