PDM Gray Folders and Local Files
There are certain scenarios where a SOLIDWORKS PDM user might see gray folders or files in their local vault view. These grey folders and ghosted/transparent files either indicate a user does not have permissions to that specific folder or file but it exists in the local vault view, or the folder/file exists in the local vault view but is not part of the actual PDM vault itself.
SOLIDWORKS PDM caches copies of folders and files locally as users browse and work with files in the vault. By default, these cached files and folders will remain locally even after the user logs out of PDM, so the files don’t have to be retrieved again the next time the user logs into that local vault view.
NOTE that if the folders or files show up in a gray color, the logged in PDM user will NOT be able to perform any vault operations on the objects other than right-click and ‘Add to file vault’. If they should not be local files/folders and should be visible to the user, verify the user has sufficient folder and workflow permission to see the objects.
If a previously cached folder or file is no longer accessible in the vault itself, it will show up in gray color to indicate it is only stored locally. There are several reasons you may see these local files or folders, and it is in most cases, it’s normal behavior:
- A PDM user logs into the vault view where a different PDM user with more access permissions previously cached a file to the same local vault view on the same computer, but the current user does not have read permissions to the folders or files. The previously cached objects are technically still in the local vault view, so they appear gray and the user cannot access them.
- The folder or file has been deleted, renamed or moved, and the previously cached copy remains in the local vault view.
- The files were added to the local view by an application, but they were not added to the vault itself—therefore only existing locally.
The example below shows a normal PDM folder as well as examples of gray folders and ghosted/transparent files.
- Green folders = normal PDM folders that exist in the vault, and the logged in PDM user has access to the folder.
- Gray folders = the folder was either deleted from the vault but still exists in the local vault view, or the logged in user does not have permission to access the folder, which occurs when more than one PDM user shares the same local vault view on the same computer.
- Ghosted/transparent files = local files that have been added to the local vault view but never added to the vault itself and checked in for the first time.
In this example, logging into the same local vault view as a different user displays that user’s permissions/access to the folders and files.
- This logged in user has permission/access to all folders. Note all the folders are green. This indicates the folders were part of the vault, but the user in the previous example did not have permission to access the folders.
- There are two <Private State> files added by Eng-3 that have not been checked into the vault for the first time. Eng-3 must log in and check in the files in for the first time. Click here to learn more about Private State files.
- There is one normal file that has been checked into PDM and is currently in the ‘Under Editing’ state. This file is accessible to any PDM user with at least read file permissions of the Under Editing state.
Remove Gray folders
If there is only one PDM user who accesses the local vault view, and the user no longer needs to have the gray folders that were deleted from the vault cached locally, then the user can ‘Clear the local cache’ to remove the local copies. This process will only clear the files that are part of the vault and will not clear <Local Files> or folders.
Hiding or Removing Local Folders and Files
If the logged in PDM user does not need to see the local files or folders, they can be hidden using the group or user Settings > File Explorer category by enabling the options:
- Show only files that are part of the file vault.
- Hides display of local folders and files.
- Local file clean-up > Automatically delete local read-only files that are not part of the file vault.
- This option deletes files that meet the criteria when the user with the setting browses into the vault folder.
- Show only files that are part of the file vault.
Technical Support
Get help from our team by Calling us at 800-364-1652 x 2. You can also get assistance by clicking the Technical Support button or the Email Our Experts button below.